Marilyn Monroe may return in hologram concert

(EndPlay Staff Reports) - Death no longer need keep a star from putting on a show.

Technology is enabling dead celebrities to return to the stage, at least in hologram-like form, to give another performance. Rumors are circulating that Marilyn Monroe may be next up.

The Hollywood Reporter disclosed that a "live" Monroe concert is being planned around the working title "Virtual Marilyn Live – A Musical Celebration of the Birth of the Pop Icon." A venue is not yet secured though it would stream on the web.

Becky Altringer, co-founder of Digicon Media, told Hollywood Reporter that it would use the same technology used to bring the late Tupac Shakur to stage in April at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

Vanity Fair reported that, rather than a true hologram, Shakur's return was done using 2-D technology that relied on an angled half-silvered mirror and a projector set up underneath the stage. The effect was that Shakur, who died when he was shot in Las Vegas in 1996, joined hip-hop artists Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg on stage.

The concert boosted album sales, bringing Shakur's music back to the Billboard 200 album chart for the first time since 2000.

It wouldn't have to end there. Hollywood Reporter suggested Marlon Brando could return and do "A Streetcar Named Desire" live onstage. Baseball legend Hank Aaron could once again break Babe Ruth's home run record.

This could mean more earnings for estates that already run in the millions despite the stars' deaths. Forbes stated that Monroe's estate brought in $27 million between October 2010 and October 2011. Make that $55 million for Elvis Presley and $170 million for Michael Jackson.

There could be hiccups. Among them is what rights are needed.

While a performance adapted from an existing video requires a copyright on the video, the Hollywood Reporter said many states including California give celebrities "rights of publicity" that include their image, voices and likenesses.

There could also be disputes over who owns what rights and whether those rights are enough to proceed.