The photo studio is virtually anonymous now, tucked into a strip mall on the east end of Ventura. Tom Kelley Studios offers little hint of its Hollywood heyday when stars lined up to be photographed.

None was bigger than Marilyn Monroe. She was not yet famous when Tom Kelley met her in 1949 after witnessing a minor car accident on Sunset Boulevard in which Monroe was involved. He gave her $5 for cab fare and an invitation to his studio, where the struggling actress eventually posed nude for the famous Red Velvet photos that helped make her a star.

The studio moved from Hollywood to Ventura a decade ago. But Kelley’s son has made a cottage industry out of marketing those racy images of Monroe, which are now part of the studio’s archives.

In the last few years, Tom Kelley Jr. has emblazoned Monroe on everything from Swiss Army knives to 1950s-style pinup calendars.

Now, however, he’s taken it a step further, licensing use of the photos to Napa Valley-based Marilyn Wines, which has been stamping the starlet’s image on its Marilyn Merlot and other varieties.

A new Marilyn wine, called the Velvet Collection, features a first-of-its-kind, peel-away label that hides just enough of the actress to allow her to appear on supermarket shelves. To see more, buyers can strip away the covering, revealing Monroe lounging in the buff against a ruby-red curtain.

Each bottle comes in a tamper-proof box, is numbered and retails for about $225.

While some might cringe at the commercial use of Monroe’s image, Kelley believes it’s a fitting honor for the movie star.

“If my dad could see this bottle and label, he’d probably be jumping for joy,” Kelley said, noting that the most famous photograph from his father’s Monroe session became the centerfold for Playboy magazine’s inaugural issue.

“There’s probably a stronger contingent of Marilyn fans today than there ever was,” Kelley said.

According to Wine Spectator magazine, the Marilyn Merlot brand is one of the fastest-appreciating wines in the country.