View source for Jayne Mansfield

{{Short description|American actress and Playmate (1933–1967)}}
{{For|her daughter|Jayne Marie Mansfield}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2020}}
<!--Do not change the image in the infobox without discussing on the article talk page. A consensus has bee reached that the current image should stay.-->
{{Infobox person
| name               = Jayne Mansfield
| image              = Jayne Mansfield (Kiss Them For Me) - Color.jpg <!--The consensus established on the article talk page is that the current image should stay.-->
| caption            = Mansfield in 1957
| birth_name         = Vera Jayne Palmer
| birth_date         = {{birth date|mf=yes|1933|04|19}}
| birth_place        = [[Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
| death_date         = {{death date and age|mf=yes|1967|06|29|1933|04|19}}
| death_place        = [[9th Ward]], [[New Orleans East]], Louisiana, U.S.
| resting_place      = [[Fairview Cemetery (Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania)|Fairview Cemetery]], {{avoid wrap|[[Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania]]}}
| resting_place_coordinates = {{Coord|40.861672|N|75.240244|W|type:landmark|display=inline}}
| occupation         = {{flatlist|
* Actress
* singer
* [[Playboy Playmate|''Playboy'' Playmate]]
* nightclub entertainer
* model
}}
| years_active       = 1954–1967
| children           = 5, including [[Jayne Marie Mansfield]] and [[Mariska Hargitay]]<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com/show/175/Jayne+Mansfield/index.html | title=Jayne Mansfield - the Private Life and Times of Jayne Mansfield. Jayne Mansfield Pictures | website=Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen }}</ref>
| awards             = {{unbulleted list|[[Theatre World Award]] for ''Promising Personality'' (1956)|[[Golden Globe]] for ''New Star Of The Year&nbsp;– Actress'' (1957)}}
| website            = {{URL|jaynemansfield.com}}
| signature          = JMsig Converted.svg
| signature_size     = 100px
| spouse             = {{unbulleted list|{{marriage|Paul Mansfield|1950|1958|end=div}}|{{marriage|[[Mickey Hargitay]]|1958|1964|end=div}}|{{marriage|[[Matt Cimber]]|1964|1965|end=sep}}}}
| partner            = 
}}

'''Jayne Mansfield''' (born '''Vera Jayne Palmer'''; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, [[Playboy Playmate|''Playboy'' Playmate]], and [[sex symbol]] of the 1950s and early 1960s. She was known for her numerous publicity stunts and open personal life. Her film career was short-lived, but she had several box-office successes and won a [[Theatre World Award]] and [[Golden Globe Award]]. She gained the nickname of Hollywood's "smartest [[dumb blonde]]."

Mansfield gained popularity after playing the role of fictional actress Rita Marlowe in ''[[Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (play)|Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?]]'' on Broadway in 1955–56 and reprising it in [[Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?|the 1957 film adaptation]]. Her other film roles include the musical comedy ''[[The Girl Can't Help It]]'' (1956), the drama ''[[The Wayward Bus (film)|The Wayward Bus]]'' (1957), the neo-noir ''[[Too Hot to Handle (1960 film)|Too Hot to Handle]]'' (1960), and the sex comedy ''[[Promises! Promises!]]'' (1963), the last of which made Mansfield one of the first major American actresses to perform a nude scene in a post-silent era film.

Mansfield's professional name came from her first husband, public relations professional Paul Mansfield. She married three times and divorced twice. A third initiated divorce was not finalized at the time of her death. Between the marriages she had five children. On June 29, 1967, she died in a traffic collision at age 34.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nola.com/300/article_f67ff581-2b55-5118-8d41-fb30a8a8d41e.html | first=Mike | last=Scott |title=Remembering the tragic death of Jayne Mansfield, 50 years later| work=[[The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate]] |date=June 28, 2017}}</ref>

==Early life==
Jayne Mansfield was born Vera Jayne Palmer on April 19, 1933, at [[Bryn Mawr Hospital]] in [[Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania]],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Golden |first=Eve | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8RP2DwAAQBAJ&dq=grace+kelly+born+hospital&pg=PT10 | title=Jayne Mansfield: The Girl Couldn't Help It | publisher=[[University Press of Kentucky]] | date=June 29, 2021|isbn=978-0-8131-8098-4|quote=Jayne was actually born in Bryn Mawr—the Bryn Mawr Hospital to be precise. ... Why Jayne was born in Bryn Mawr is a mystery, as her parents lived in Pen Argyll, ...}}</ref><ref name="Strait 1992 15">{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=15}}</ref> the only child of Herbert William Palmer and Vera Jeffrey (Palmer) Palmer.<ref name="Strait 1992 15"/>{{efn|Mansfield's mother's full name before marriage was Vera Jeffrey Palmer. Jeffrey is not her "maiden name", it is a family name Vera inherited from her mother (Jayne Mansfield's grandmother), Beatrice (Jeffrey) Palmer. So, Jayne's mother's full name, including her "born as" last name, was Vera Jeffrey Palmer Palmer.<ref>{{cite web |last1=The Morning Call |title=Vera Peers, 97, mother of Jayne Mansfield (updated October 24, 2021) |url=https://www.mcall.com/2000/11/17/vera-peers-97-mother-of-jayne-mansfield/ |access-date=June 25, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250625015519/https://www.mcall.com/2000/11/17/vera-peers-97-mother-of-jayne-mansfield/ |archive-date=June 25, 2025 |date=November 17, 2000 |quote=Born in Pen Argyl, she was a daughter of the late Thomas and Beatrice (Jeffrey) Palmer.}}</ref>}} She inherited more than $90,000 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|90000|1958|r=-4}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) from her maternal grandfather, Thomas H. Palmer,{{inflation-fn|US}} and more than $36,000 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|36000|1958|r=-4}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) from her maternal grandmother, Beatrice Mary Palmer, in 1958.<ref name=starnews1958/><ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield to get $90,000 |work=[[The Beaver County Times]] |date=January 23, 1957 |page=15}}</ref>{{efn|Vera Jeffrey Palmer's father, Thomas H. Palmer, was from the largely Cornish area of [[Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania]],<ref>{{cite book | last=Kent | first=Alan M. | author-link=Alan M. Kent | title=Travels in Cornish America: Cousin Jack's Mouth-organ | year=2004}}</ref> where he was involved with the [[slate industry]].<ref name=starnews1958>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield, Mickey Pause in Dallas for Party |work=Star-News |date=January 15, 1958 |page=4}}</ref>}}

Until age six, Mansfield lived in [[Phillipsburg, New Jersey]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://canals.org/2022/09/28/jayne-mansfield/ | title=Jayne Mansfield: A Celtic "Blonde bombshell" with Pen Argyl Roots | first=Martha Capwell | last=Fox | work=[[National Canal Museum]]| date=September 28, 2022 }}</ref> where her father, Herbert, was an attorney practicing with future New Jersey governor [[Robert B. Meyner]]. In 1936, her father died of a [[heart attack]] while driving. Three-year-old Jayne was in the car.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://play.max.com/movie/2286880c-d686-47ee-96c5-0241e8c8a3b3 |title=My Mom Jayne |date=2025-06-27 |last=Hargitay |first=Mariska |author-link=Mariska Hargitay |type=Motion picture |time=57:18}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=16–17|loc=[https://books.google.com/books?id=1SdKmX_KPqAC&pg=PA17]}}:"We were driving up a steep hill. ... We were all laughing and joking. ... Suddenly our laughter froze. Daddy fell over against Mama. He was dead."</ref>

In 1939, Mansfield's widowed mother married sales engineer Harry Lawrence Peers, and the family moved to [[Dallas]], Texas.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8vpfDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT4 | title=Jayne Mansfield Biography: The Tragic Life of the Hollywood's Blonde | first=Chris | last=Dicker}}</ref> As a girl, Jayne was known as Vera Jayne Peers.<ref name="The Union-Recorder">{{cite news | url=https://www.unionrecorder.com/opinion/brown-remembering-bombshell-jayne-mansfield/article_caa5ac3e-d3b9-11ed-9658-978ce0f826dd.html | title=BROWN: Remembering bombshell Jayne Mansfield | work=[[The Union-Recorder]] | date=April 5, 2023}}</ref> As a child, she wanted to be a Hollywood star like [[Shirley Temple]].<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|pp=6–7}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=19}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=David |first1=Lester |last2=David |first2=Irene |title=The Shirley Temple story |year=1983 |publisher=Putnam |isbn=9780399127984 |page=[https://archive.org/details/shirleytemplesto0000davi/page/21 21] |url=https://archive.org/details/shirleytemplesto0000davi/page/21 }}</ref> At age 12, she took [[ballroom dance]] lessons.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=37}}</ref> She graduated from [[Highland Park High School (University Park, Texas)|Highland Park High School]] in 1950.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://entertainment.ha.com/itm/autographs/jayne-mansfield-1950-high-school-yearbook/a/1064-287.s | title=Jayne Mansfield 1950 High School Yearbook | publisher=[[Heritage Auctions]]}}</ref><ref name=history>{{cite book |last1=Commire |first1=Anne |author-link=Anne Commire |last2=Klezmer |first2=Deborah |title=Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia |volume=10 |publisher=Yorkin |year=2001 |isbn=9780787640699 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/womeninworldhist10comm/page/185 185–186] |url=https://archive.org/details/womeninworldhist10comm/page/185 }}</ref><ref name=jayneedu1>{{cite book |last1=Garraty |first1=John Arthur |last2=Carnes |first2=Mark Christopher |title=American National Biography |publisher=Oxford University |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127935 |page=450}}</ref> While in high school, she took violin, piano, and viola lessons.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://stylecaster.com/entertainment/celebrity-news/1207647/mariska-hargitay-mother/ | title=Mariska Hargitay Is the Daughter of Hollywood Legend—All About Her Mom | first=Jason | last=Pham | work=[[SHE Media]] | date=January 18, 2024}}</ref> She also studied Spanish and German.<ref name="The Union-Recorder"/><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=217}}</ref>

== Career ==

===Early modeling and performing===
While attending the [[University of Texas at Austin]], Mansfield won several beauty contests, including Miss Photoflash, Miss Magnesium Lamp, and Miss Fire Prevention Week. By her own account, the only title she refused was Miss Roquefort Cheese, because she believed it "just didn't sound right".<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=48}}</ref> Mansfield rejected "Miss Prime Rib" in 1957 as well.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lyons |first1=Leonard |title=Jayne Shuns 'Miss Prime Rib' Title |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/719063847/ |access-date=August 13, 2025 |publisher=[[Long Beach Independent]] |date=September 7, 1957 |page=14 |via=[[Newspapers.com]] }}</ref>

In 1952, while in Dallas, she and Paul Mansfield participated in small local-theater productions of ''The Slaves of Demon Rum'' and ''Ten Nights in a Barroom''. They also appeared in ''[[Anything Goes]]'' in [[Camp Gordon, Georgia]]. After he left for military service, she made her first significant stage appearance in a production of [[Arthur Miller]]'s ''[[Death of a Salesman]]'' on October 22, 1953, with the players of the Knox Street Theater, headed by Sidney Lumet.<ref name="JaynePaul">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=3}}</ref>

After Paul returned from a deployment to Korea, Mansfield moved with Paul and their daughter, Jayne Marie, to Los Angeles in 1954.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-06-26 |title=Jayne Mansfield |url=https://www.biography.com/actors/jayne-mansfield |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250715023502/https://www.biography.com/actors/jayne-mansfield |archive-date=2025-07-15 |access-date=2025-09-27 |website=Biography |language=en-US |quote=In 1954, after Paul returned from the Korean War, Mansfield convinced him to move with her to Los Angeles so she could pursue her dream of becoming a movie star.}}</ref> Mansfield worked various odd jobs, including selling popcorn at the Stanley Warner Theatre, teaching dance,<ref name="saxtonLA" /> selling candy at a movie theater,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Segura |first=Eleonor |date=April 27, 2020 |title=Part 2: Legendary Women of Film and Their Extraordinary Cars |url=https://www.motortrend.com/features/female-movie-star-cars-list-part-2-hollywood-golden-age/ |work=[[Motor Trend]]}}</ref> modeling part-time at the Blue Book Model Agency,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tibbetts |first1=John |title=American Classic Screen Features |last2=Welsh |first2=James |publisher=Scarecrow |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-8108-7679-8 |page=13}}</ref> and working as a photographer at [[Esther Williams]]'s Trails Restaurant.<ref name="JaynePaul" />

Early in Mansfield's career, some advertisers considered her prominent breasts undesirable or inappropriate. She lost her first professional assignment, a [[General Electric]] commercial featuring young women in bathing suits relaxing around a pool,<ref name="straitanatomy">{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=116}}</ref> having been [[cropped]] out of the final photographs.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2025-06-26 |title=Jayne Mansfield |url=https://www.biography.com/actors/jayne-mansfield |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250715023502/https://www.biography.com/actors/jayne-mansfield |archive-date=2025-07-15 |access-date=2025-09-27 |website=Biography |language=en-US |quote=Mansfield’s first years in Hollywood initially brought disappointment. She had unsuccessful auditions for Paramount and Warner Bros. and had to take a job selling candy at a movie theater. She also sought out modeling work, not always successfully either. At a professional photoshoot for an advertisement for General Electric, she was cropped out of the picture because she looked “too sexy” for 1954 audiences, according to photographer Gene Lester.}}</ref> Photographer Gene Lester, who worked on the photoshoot, stated that this was because Mansfield was "too sexy" for the advertisement.<ref name=":0" /> Emmeline Snively, head of the Blue Book Model Agency, had sent Mansfield to Lester, which led to her to the short-lived assignment.{{Citation needed|date=September 2025}}

In 1954, she auditioned at both [[Paramount Pictures]] and [[Warner Bros.]] For the Paramount audition in April, which she booked with help from Lumet, Mansfield performed a [[Sketch comedy|sketch]] she had worked out with Lumet from ''Joan of Arc'' for casting director Milton Lewis. Lewis told her she was wasting her "obvious talents" and had her come back a week later to perform the piano scene from ''[[The Seven Year Itch (play)|The Seven Year Itch]]''. Mansfield failed to impress, but learned she would have to dye her hair blonde.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Press |first=Joy |date=2025-06-25 |title=The Triumph and Tragedy of Jayne Mansfield |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/jayne-mansfield-true-story-mariska-hargitay |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250827152602/https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/jayne-mansfield-true-story-mariska-hargitay |archive-date=2025-08-27 |access-date=2025-09-27 |magazine=Vanity Fair |language=en-US |quote=Although she hoped to audition for serious roles, Mansfield took a casting director’s suggestion and bleached her hair platinum blond.}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> She performed the piano scene for Warner Brothers, but, again, failed to impress.<ref name=":1">{{Cite AV media | title=Jayne Mansfield Interview Clip 1960 | date=June 19, 2012 | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7RmQbzhfcI | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250313010957/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7RmQbzhfcI | via=[[YouTube]] | archive-date=March 13, 2025 | url-status=live | access-date=March 13, 2025 }}</ref>

She landed her first acting assignment in the [[CBS]] series ''[[Lux Video Theatre]]'', in the episode "An Angel Went AWOL", aired on October 21, 1954.<ref name=JaynePaul/> In it, she sat at a piano and delivered a few lines of dialogue, and was paid $300 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|300|1954|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}}<ref>{{cite news |last=Parsons |first=Louella |author-link=Louella Parsons |title=Outlook for Young Star is Bright |work=The Sunday News-Press |date=January 1, 1956 |page=4}}</ref>

===''Playboy'' appearance===
{{Infobox Playboy Playmate
| name      = Jayne Mansfield
| image     = 
| imagesize = 
| caption   = 
| issue     = February 1955
| height    = {{height|ft=5|in=6}} (5 ft 8 in, according to her autopsy)
| preceded  = [[Bettie Page]]
| succeeded = [[Marilyn Waltz]]
}}
In December 1953, [[Hugh Hefner]] began publishing ''[[Playboy]]''. The magazine became a success in part because of early appearances by Mansfield, [[Marilyn Monroe]], [[Bettie Page]], and [[Anita Ekberg]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Edison |first=Mike |title=Dirty! Dirty! Dirty! |publisher=Soft Skull Press |year=2011 |isbn=9781593764678 |page=24}}</ref> In February 1955, Mansfield was the ''Playboy'' [[Playmate of the Month]],<ref name="playboy-datasheet">{{cite web |title=Playboy Data Sheet: Jayne Mansfield, Miss February 1955 |work=Playboy |access-date=August 6, 2008 |url=http://www.playboy.com/jayne-mansfield |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20070213101503/http://www.playboy.com/girls/playmates/directory/195502.html |archive-date=February 13, 2007}}</ref> and appeared in the magazine several times.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aeolia.net/playboy/pb-m.htm |title=The Playboy Index – M |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160401214324/http://www.aeolia.net/playboy/pb-m.htm |archive-date=April 1, 2016 }}</ref> Publication of photos of Mansfield boosted the magazine's circulation and her own career.<ref>{{cite book |title=Biography News |volume=1 |publisher=Gale Research |year=1974 |page=173}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Brady |first=Frank |title=Hefner |publisher=Weidenfeld and Nicolson |year=1975 |isbn=978-0-297-76943-9 |page=103}}</ref><ref name=saxtonboy>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=175}}</ref> Shortly afterward, she posed for the ''Playboy'' calendar, covering her bare breasts with her hands. ''Playboy'' featured Mansfield each February from 1955 to 1958, and again in 1960.<ref name=saxtonboy/>

In 1955, Jayne and Paul separated, although she kept his last name.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-06-26 |title=Jayne Mansfield |url=https://www.biography.com/actors/jayne-mansfield |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250715023502/https://www.biography.com/actors/jayne-mansfield |archive-date=2025-07-15 |access-date=2025-09-27 |website=Biography |language=en-US |quote=As Mansfield struggled to break into show business, her marriage suffered. In 1955, she and Paul split ways, though she opted to keep his last name.}}</ref> In August 1956, Paul Mansfield sought custody of their daughter, alleging that Jayne was an unfit mother because she appeared nude in ''Playboy'';<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=147}}</ref> however, his attempt failed.<ref name="mansfielddiv"/> In 1964, the magazine repeated the 1955 pictorial.<ref name="saxtonboy" /> ''Playboy'' later reprinted photos from that pictorial issue, with titles such as December 1965s "The ''Playboy'' Portfolio of Sex Stars", and January 2000s "Centerfolds of the Century".<ref name="farisearly">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=4}}</ref>

===Film===
{{See also|Jayne Mansfield filmography}}Mansfield's first film part was a supporting role in ''[[Female Jungle]]'', a low-budget drama completed in ten days. She was paid $150 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|150|1955|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}}<ref name="dubrow">{{cite news|title=Has Jayne been hiding talent?|last=Du Brow|first=Rick|date=May 24, 1959|work=The Milwaukee Journal|page=4}}</ref> It was released unofficially in early 1955.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

In February 1955, James Byron, her manager and publicist, negotiated a seven-year contract with [[Warner Brothers]], whose decisionmakers were intrigued by her publicity antics.<ref name=straitearly>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=69–70}}</ref> The contract initially paid her $250 a week (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|250|1955|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) and landed her two films, one with an insignificant role and one that was unreleased for two years. She filed for separation from Paul Mansfield that January.<ref name=farisearly/><ref name=straitearly/> Mansfield was given [[bit part]]s in ''[[Pete Kelly's Blues (movie)|Pete Kelly's Blues]]'' (1955), starring [[Jack Webb]], and ''[[Hell on Frisco Bay]]'' (1955), starring [[Alan Ladd]]. She acted in one more movie for Warner Brothers—another small but significant role opposite [[Edward G. Robinson]] in the courtroom drama ''[[Illegal (1955 film)|Illegal]]'' (1955).<ref name=straitearly/>
{{multiple image
|direction = vertical
|align = left
|image1 =
|caption1 = Mansfield in the trailer for ''[[Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?]]'' (1957)
|width1 = 200
|image2 = ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv - Com C06-137-003 - Jayne Mansfield (1).jpg
|caption2 = Mansfield at a Zurich premiere in 1957
|width2 = 200
}}
Mansfield got out of her Warner contract just in time to star on Broadway opposite [[Walter Matthau]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bahiana |first1=Ana Maria |title=Golden Globe Moment: Jayne Mansfield Is Back In Town, 1956 |date=December 29, 2017 |url=https://goldenglobes.com/articles/golden-globe-moment-jayne-mansfield-is-back-in-town-1956/ |publisher=[[Golden Globe Awards]] |access-date=May 17, 2025 |quote=after a tentative start with Warner Brothers, who signed her for a seven year contract in 1955, Mansfield had changed her mind when her two initial projects proved to be less than ideal. She had the contract rescinded and fled for Broadway, where she starred alongside Walter Matthau in a successful production of George Axelrod’s comedy ''Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?''}}</ref> Mansfield's agent, William Shiffrin, signed her to play fictional film star Rita Marlowe in the [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] play ''[[Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (play)|Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?]]'' with [[Orson Bean]] and Walter Matthau. The part was offered to Mansfield after [[Mamie Van Doren]] turned it down.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Stein |first1=Jeannine |title=Last of the 'Blonde Bombshells' : The Survival Saga of Ex-Sex Kitten Mamie Van Doren |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-09-15-vw-8165-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=September 15, 1987 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250419163309/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-09-15-vw-8165-story.html |archive-date=April 19, 2025 |quote=It’s a role Van Doren plays in part by choice and in part because she thinks Hollywood never gave her a fair shake. "It was life and I just accepted it. The one mistake I will always kick myself for is not doing 'Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?' It was written for me. Had I taken that role it would have gotten me out of this situation that I’ve always been in. My star would have been higher."}}</ref>

Mansfield accepted the part while working in producer Louis W. Kellman's ''[[The Burglar (1957 film)|The Burglar]]'' (1957). [[Paul Wendkos]] directed this film adaptation of [[David Goodis]]'s novel,<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=71–72}}</ref> made in [[film noir]] style. She appeared alongside [[Dan Duryea]] and [[Martha Vickers]]. The film was released two years later, when Mansfield's fame was at its peak.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

She was successful in this straight dramatic role, though most of her subsequent film appearances were comedic or capitalized on her sex appeal.<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|pp=57}}</ref> It was Kellman's first major venture, and he claimed to have "discovered" Mansfield.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Louis W. Kellman: Filmmaker in Philadelphia for More Than 40 Years |work=[[Philadelphia Inquirer]] |date=December 23, 1988 |page=3 |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=PI&s_site=philly&p_multi=PI&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB29FA09A550641&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D}}</ref>

On May 3, 1956, [[Twentieth Century Fox]] signed Mansfield to a six-year contract to mold her as a successor to the increasingly difficult Marilyn Monroe,<ref name="saxtonNY">{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|pp=81, 82}}</ref> their resident blonde [[sex symbol]]. Monroe had just completed ''[[Bus Stop (1956 film)|Bus Stop]].'' Mansfield was still under contract to Broadway and continued playing ''Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?'' on stage until September 15.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

She undertook her first starring film role as Jerri Jordan in [[Frank Tashlin]]'s ''[[The Girl Can't Help It]]'' (1956).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Crowther |first1=Bosley |title=Screen: One-Track Film; 'Girl Can't Help It' Has a Mansfield Mania |work=The New York Times |date=February 9, 1957 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1957/02/09/archives/screen-onetrack-film-girl-cant-help-it-has-a-mansfield-mania.html |access-date=June 28, 2024}}</ref> Originally titled ''Do-Re-Mi'', it featured a high-profile cast of contemporary [[rock and roll]] and [[R&B]] artists, including [[Gene Vincent]], [[Eddie Cochran]], [[Fats Domino]], [[The Platters]], and [[Little Richard]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Cochran |first1=Bobby |last2=VanHecke |first2=Susan |title=Three Steps to Heaven: The Eddie Cochran Story |publisher=Hal Leonard |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-634-03252-3 |page=56}}</ref> Released in December 1956, ''The Girl Can't Help It'' became one of the year's biggest successes, both critically and financially, earning more than ''[[Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953 film)|Gentlemen Prefer Blondes]]'' had three years before.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=80}}</ref>[[File:Jayne Mansfield (1957).jpg|thumb|180px|Mansfield departs by helicopter to [[Rotterdam]], Netherlands (1957)]]

Soon afterward, Fox started promoting Mansfield as "Marilyn Monroe king-sized", attempting to coerce Monroe to return to the studio and complete her contract.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=5}}</ref>

Mansfield next played a dramatic role in ''[[The Wayward Bus (film)|The Wayward Bus]]'' (1957), an adaptation of [[John Steinbeck]]'s novel of the same name. With this film, she attempted to move away from her "blonde bombshell" image and establish herself as a serious actress. The film enjoyed moderate box-office success, and Mansfield won a [[Golden Globe]] in 1957 for New Star of the Year, beating [[Carroll Baker]] and [[Natalie Wood]] with her performance as a "wistful derelict". It was "generally conceded to have been her best acting", according to ''[[The New York Times]]'', in a fitful career hampered by her flamboyant image, distinctive voice ("a soft-voiced coo punctuated with squeals"), voluptuous figure, and limited acting range.<ref name="NYT19670630">{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield Dies in New Orleans Car Crash |work=The New York Times |date=June 30, 1967 |page=33 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/06/30/archives/jayne-mansfield-dies-in-new-orleans-car-crash-actress-parlayed.html |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

Tashlin cast Mansfield in the film version of the Broadway show ''[[Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?]]'', released in 1957,<ref>{{Cite magazine | url=https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/origin-01-22-24 | title=Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? | magazine=[[The New Yorker]]}}</ref> reprising her role of Rita Marlowe alongside costars [[Tony Randall]] and [[Joan Blondell]]. Fox launched its new blonde bombshell with a North American tour and a 40-day, 16-country tour of Europe. She attended the premiere of the film (released as ''Oh! For a Man'' in the UK) in [[London]], and met [[Queen Elizabeth II]].<ref name="farisqueen">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=6}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|pp=91}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|pp=58–59}}</ref>
[[File:Jayne Mansfield (Kiss them for me-1957).jpg|thumb|left|180px|Promotional photo for ''[[Kiss Them for Me (film)|Kiss Them for Me]]'' (1957)]]

Mansfield's fourth starring role in a Hollywood film was in ''[[Kiss Them for Me (film)|Kiss Them for Me]]'' (also 1957), for which she received prominent billing alongside [[Cary Grant]]. In the film, she is little more than comic relief; Grant's character relates to a redhead played by fashion model [[Suzy Parker]]. The film, described as "vapid" and "ill-advised", was a critical and box-office flop,<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=13}}</ref> and was one of 20th Century Fox's last attempts to promote Mansfield.<ref>{{cite book |last=Shipman |first=David |title=The Great Movie Stars, The International Years |publisher=Angus & Robertson |year=1980 |page=349}}</ref> The continuing publicity related to her physical appeal failed to sustain her career.<ref>{{cite book |last=Donnelly |first=Paul |title=Fade to Black: a Book of Movie Obituaries |publisher=Omnibus |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-7119-9512-3 |page=452}}</ref> Fox gave her a leading role opposite [[Kenneth More]] in ''[[The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw]]'' (1958), a western comedy filmed on location in Spain. In the film, Mansfield's three songs were dubbed by singer [[Connie Francis]]. Fox released the film in the United States in 1959, and it was Mansfield's last mainstream film success. [[Columbia Pictures]] offered her a part opposite [[James Stewart]] and [[Jack Lemmon]] in the romantic comedy ''[[Bell, Book and Candle]]'' (1958), but she turned it down because she was pregnant.<ref name="sheriff1">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Haggiag |first=Michael |editor-first=Phil |editor-last=Hardy |title=The Western: Film Encyclopedia |volume=1 |publisher=W. Morrow |year=1983 |isbn=978-0-688-00946-5 |page=270}}</ref><ref name="sheriff2">{{cite book |last1=Parish |first1=James Robert |last2=Pitts |first2=Michael R. |title=Hollywood Songsters |publisher=Routledge |year=2003 |isbn=9780415943321 |page=321}}</ref> Fox attempted to cast Mansfield opposite [[Paul Newman]] in ''[[Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys!]]'' (1958), his ill-fated first attempt at [[comedy film|comedy]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Rovin |first=Jeff |title=Joan Collins: The Unauthorized Biography |publisher=Bantam |year=1984 |isbn=9780553249392 |page=[https://archive.org/details/joancollinsunaut00rovi/page/89 89] |url=https://archive.org/details/joancollinsunaut00rovi/page/89}}</ref>

Mansfield had remarried in 1958, to [[Mickey Hargitay]]. Three children were conceived when they were together: Mickey, Jr. (b. 1958), Zoltan (b. 1960), and [[Mariska Hargitay|Mariska]] (b. 1964).<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/20/movies/mickey-hargitay-80-actor-and-former-mr-universe-dies.html|title=Mickey Hargitay, 80, Actor and Former Mr. Universe, Dies|first=Dennis|last=Hevesi|newspaper=The New York Times |date=September 20, 2006|access-date=June 28, 2025|archive-date=May 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516042639/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/20/movies/mickey-hargitay-80-actor-and-former-mr-universe-dies.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

With a decreased demand for big-breasted, blonde bombshells and an increasing backlash against her excessive publicity, Mansfield became a box-office has-been by the early 1960s.<ref name=JaynePaul/> She was still a celebrity, able to attract attention and large crowds for her lucrative and successful nightclub acts, including appearances in Las Vegas. She earned "$200,000 for ten weeks of work."<ref name=promo2/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Liberman |first1=Erik |title=Jayne Mansfield: The First Reality Star? |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/jayne-mansfield-first-reality-star-1017771/ |publisher=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |access-date=June 17, 2025 |date=June 29, 2017 |quote=As one of Las Vegas’s first — and highest-paid — female headliners, she earned $200,000 for 10 weeks of work: Fox’s loan-out fee for an entire motion picture.}}</ref>

Fox stopped viewing her as a major Hollywood star and started loaning her and her likeness out to foreign productions in England and Italy, respectively, until the end of her contract in 1962. Many of her English/Italian films are regarded as obscure and some are considered [[lost film|lost]].<ref name=deboltbaugess2011>{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Debolt |first1=Abbe A. |last2=Baugess |first2=James S. |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of the Sixties: A Decade of Culture and Counterculture |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-4408-0102-0 |page=391|title=Encyclopedia of the Sixties: A Decade of Culture and Counterculture &#91;2 volumes&#93;: A Decade of Culture and Counterculture }}</ref><ref name=faris02>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=7–8}}</ref>
[[File:Jayne Mansfield Playgirl after Dark.jpg|thumb|Mansfield in ''[[Too Hot to Handle (1960 film)|Too Hot to Handle]]'' (1960)]]
In 1959, Fox cast her in two independent [[gangster film]]s shot in the United Kingdom: ''[[The Challenge (1960 film)|The Challenge]]'' and ''[[Too Hot to Handle (1960 film)|Too Hot to Handle]]'', both released in 1960. Both films were low-budget, and their American releases were delayed.<ref name=toohot>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=122}}</ref> ''Too Hot to Handle'' was not released in the U.S. until 1961, as ''Playgirl After Dark''. ''The Challenge'' was released in 1963 as ''It Takes a Thief''. In the U.S., censors objected to a scene in ''Too Hot to Handle'' in which Mansfield, wearing silver netting with [[sequin]]s painted over her nipples, appears nearly nude.{{sfn|Jordan|2009|page=167}}

When Mansfield returned to Hollywood in mid-1960, 20th Century Fox cast her in ''[[It Happened in Athens]]'' (1962) with [[Trax Colton]], a handsome newcomer Fox was trying to mold into a heartthrob. She received first billing above the title but appeared in a supporting role. The [[Olympic Games]]-based film was shot in Greece in 1960 but not released until 1962. It was a box-office failure, and 20th Century Fox dropped Mansfield's contract. In 1961, Mansfield took a minor role but above-the-title billing in ''[[The George Raft Story]]'', released in 1962. Starring [[Ray Danton]] as Raft, the film showcased Mansfield in a small part as a glamorous film star. Soon after its release, she returned to appearing in foreign films such as ''[[L'Amore Primitivo]]'' (1964, Italy) and ''[[Panic Button (1964 film)|Panic Button]]'' (1964, Italy).<ref name="tvguide"/>{{efn|During the early 1960s Mansfield also appeared in the German films ''[[Heimweh nach St. Pauli]]'' (1963) aka ''[[Homesick for St. Pauli]]'' in English and ''[[Einer frisst den anderen]]'' (1964).}}

[[File:Jayne Mansfield in Promises! Promises!.jpg|thumb|left|Mansfield nude in ''[[Promises! Promises!]]'' (1963)]]<!-- COMMENT: If you wish to remove the above photo from this article, discuss that on the article talk page BEFORE any possible removal. Present editorial consensus is that the photo is appropriate for and belongs in the article per [[WP:NOTCENSORED]] -->
[[Tommy Noonan]] persuaded Mansfield to become the first mainstream American actress to appear nude in a starring role, in the film ''[[Promises! Promises!]]'' (1963). ''Playboy'' published nude photographs of Mansfield on set in its June 1963 issue, resulting in obscenity charges being filed against [[Hugh Hefner]] in a Chicago court.<ref>{{cite web |last=Klockars |first=Karl |title=Friday Flashback: Hef's Obscenity Battle |publisher=Chicagoist.com |date=April 10, 2009 |access-date=January 25, 2011 |url=http://chicagoist.com/2009/04/10/friday_flashback_hefs_obscenity_bat.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090414072834/http://chicagoist.com/2009/04/10/friday_flashback_hefs_obscenity_bat.php |archive-date=April 14, 2009 }}</ref> ''Promises! Promises!'' was banned in Cleveland, Ohio, but enjoyed box-office success elsewhere. As a result of its success, Mansfield landed on the Top 10 list of box-office attractions for that year.<ref name="Faris01">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=10}}</ref>

Soon thereafter, she was chosen to replace the recently deceased [[Marilyn Monroe]] in ''[[Kiss Me, Stupid]]'' (released in 1964), a romantic comedy starring [[Dean Martin]]. She turned down the role because of her pregnancy (with daughter Mariska). She was replaced by [[Kim Novak]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Redi |first1=Sonya |title=Kiss Me, Stupid |url=https://www.screenslate.com/articles/kiss-me-stupid |publisher=Screen Slate |access-date=June 28, 2025 |date=July 27, 2023}}</ref>

But in that same year, 1963, Mansfield appeared in a pinup book, ''Jayne Mansfield for President: the White House or Bust,'' which was promoted on billboards. [[David Attie]], a commercial and fine art photographer, took the photographs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://flashbak.com/jayne-mansfield-and-her-puppies-campaigned-to-be-us-president-in-1964-24692/|title=Jayne Mansfield for President|access-date=September 11, 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018232727/http://flashbak.com/jayne-mansfield-and-her-puppies-campaigned-to-be-us-president-in-1964-24692/|archive-date=October 18, 2015|date=November 8, 2014}}</ref>

In 1966, Mansfield was cast in ''[[Single Room Furnished]]'', directed by her husband [[Matt Cimber]], whom she had married in 1964. She portrayed three different characters in her first starring dramatic role in several years. The film was released briefly in 1966.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Golden |first=Eve | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8RP2DwAAQBAJ&pg=RA2-PA1882 | title=Jayne Mansfield: The Girl Couldn't Help It | publisher=[[University Press of Kentucky]] | date=June 29, 2021|isbn=978-0-8131-8098-4|quote=Single Room Furnished had a very limited release in 1966.}}</ref>  It did not enjoy a full release until 1968, almost a year after her death. After ''Single Room Furnished'' wrapped, Mansfield was cast opposite Mamie Van Doren and [[Ferlin Husky]] in ''[[The Las Vegas Hillbillys]]'' (1966), a low-budget comedy from [[Woolner Brothers]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rosenbaum |first1=Jonathan|date=October 26, 1985 |title=Las Vegas Hillbillys |url=https://chicagoreader.com/film-tv/las-vegas-hillbillys/ |website=chicagoreader.com |publisher=[[Chicago Reader]] |access-date=June 29, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Las Vegas Hillbillys |url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/80784/las-vegas-hillbillys#overview |publisher=[[Turner Classic Movies]] |access-date=June 28, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Las Vegas Hillbillys |url=https://letterboxd.com/film/las-vegas-hillbillys/ |website=letterboxd.com |publisher=[[Letterboxd]] |access-date=June 29, 2025}}</ref>

This was her first [[country and western]] film, and she promoted it on a 29-day tour of major U.S. cities, accompanied by Husky, [[Don Bowman (singer)|Don Bowman]], and other country musicians. Before filming, Mansfield said she would not "share any screen time with the drive-in's answer to Marilyn Monroe", meaning Van Doren. Their characters did share one scene, but Mansfield and Van Doren filmed their parts at different times; these were edited together later.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=J. Mansfield to Promote C&W Movie |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=October 22, 1966 |page=56}}</ref>

Mansfield's wardrobe relied on the shapeless styles of the 1960s to hide her weight gain after the birth of her fifth child.<ref name="faris105">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=105}}</ref> Despite career setbacks, she remained a highly visible celebrity in the early 1960s through her publicity stunts and stage performances. In early 1967, Mansfield filmed her last role, a [[cameo appearance|cameo]] in ''[[A Guide for the Married Man]]'', a comedy starring Walter Matthau, [[Robert Morse]], and [[Inger Stevens]]. The opening credits listed Mansfield as one of the technical advisers, along with other star names.<ref>{{cite news |last=Burchill |first=Julie |title=Desperately Seeking Attention |work=The Guardian |date=April 12, 2003 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2003/apr/12/weekend.julieburchill |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310070940/http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2003/apr/12/weekend.julieburchill |archive-date=March 10, 2016 }}</ref>

===Television===
{{See also|Jayne Mansfield television work}}
[[File:Jayne Mansfield Barry Coe 1962.JPG|thumb|Mansfield and [[Barry Coe]] in ''[[Follow the Sun (TV series)|Follow the Sun]]'' (1961)]]

Mansfield played her first leading role on television in 1956 on NBC's ''The Bachelor''.<ref>{{cite news|last=Parsons|first=Louella O|date=June 7, 1956|title=Jayne Mansfield's Billing Now Above That of Play|page=9|work=[[St. Petersburg Times]]}}</ref> In her first appearance on British television in 1957, she recited from [[Shakespeare]] (including a line from ''[[Hamlet]]''){{efn|Original text from ''[[Hamlet]]'' (Act I, Scene II):<br />"O, that this too too solid flesh would melt,<br />Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew."}} and played piano and violin.<ref>{{cite news|date=September 30, 1957|title=Fat for Britains|page=1|work=Titusville Herald}}</ref><ref name="farisTV">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=113}}</ref> Her performances in [[television dramas]] included episodes of ''[[Burke's Law (1963 TV series)|Burke's Law]]'', ''[[Alfred Hitchcock Presents]]'', ''[[The Red Skelton Hour]]'' (three episodes), ''[[Kraft Mystery Theater]]'', and ''[[Follow the Sun (TV series)|Follow the Sun]]''. Mansfield's performance in ''Follow the Sun'' ("The Dumbest Blonde"; Season 1, Episode 21; February 4, 1962; produced by [[20th Century Fox Television]]) was hailed as the advent of "a new and dramatic Jayne Mansfield".<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=118}}</ref> She appeared on a number of game shows, including ''[[Down You Go]]'', ''[[The Match Game]]'', and ''[[What's My Line?]]''.<ref name="tvguide">{{cite web |title=Jayne Mansfield |url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/jayne-mansfield/credits/3030489224/ |publisher=[[TV Guide (magazine)|TV Guide]] |access-date=June 17, 2025}}</ref>

She performed in a number of variety shows, including ''[[The Jack Benny Program]]'' (on which she played violin), ''[[The Steve Allen Show]],'' and ''[[The Jackie Gleason Show]]'' (in the mid-1960s, when the show was the second-highest-rated program in the U.S.).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Brooks|first1=Tim|title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present|title-link=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present|last2=Marsh|first2=Earle|publisher=[[Ballantine Books]]|year=2007|isbn=978-0-345-49773-4}}</ref> In November 1957, on a special episode of [[NBC]]'s ''[[The Perry Como Show]]'' ("Holiday in Las Vegas"), one of her nightclub acts was featured, something quite scandalous for the audience according to the broadcaster.<ref>{{cite book|last=Pondillo|first=Robert|title=America's First Network TV Censor: The Work of NBC's Stockton Helffrich|publisher=SIU Press|year=2010|isbn=9780809329182|page=166}}</ref> She was a headlining guest for three of ''[[Bob Hope television specials|The Bob Hope Special]]''s. In 1957, she toured [[United States Pacific Command]] areas in Hawaii, Okinawa, Guam, Tokyo, and Korea with [[Bob Hope]] for the [[United Service Organizations]] for 13 days, appearing as a comedian;<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=118, 153}}</ref> in 1961, she toured Newfoundland,<ref>{{cite news|date=December 31, 1961|title=Dinan 'Undecided' On His Next Move|page=39|work=Sunday Herald|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2229&dat=19611231&id=WwIzAAAAIBAJ&pg=5936,7653478}}</ref> Labrador, and Baffin Island for a Christmas special.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=25, 49, 123}}</ref> She made many appearances on talk shows, which she appreciated for the publicity.<ref name="farisTV" /> One of her more notable appearances on a variety show was on ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'' (Season 10, Episode 35; May 26, 1957), right after her success with ''Rock Hunter''; she played violin with a six-person backup band.<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=87}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFEIOO8YIWY | title=Jayne Mansfield "Concerto No. 6 in a Minor" on the Ed Sullivan Show | via=[[YouTube]] | date=August 16, 2024 }}</ref> After the show she exclaimed, "Now I am really national. Momma and Dallas see the Ed Sullivan show!" According to Nielsen, the episode was watched in 13,400,000 homes, reaching 34% of the total audience, almost 30 million viewers.<ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=212}}</ref>

By 1958, she earned $20,000 per episode for television performances (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|20000|1958|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Winchell|first=Walter|date=June 23, 1958|title=Jayne Asks $20,000 Per TV Performance|page=6|work=[[Star-News]]}}</ref> In 1964, Mansfield turned down the role of [[Ginger Grant]] on the sitcom ''[[Gilligan's Island]]''. Although her acting roles were becoming marginalized, Mansfield rejected the part as it epitomized the stereotype she wished to leave behind.<ref>{{cite web|last=Logan|first=Anika|title=Jayne Mansfield – The Poor Man's Marilyn Monroe|url=http://www.loti.com/jayne_mansfield.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305044712/http://www.loti.com/jayne_mansfield.htm|archive-date=March 5, 2017|access-date=August 2, 2007|work=Rewind the Fifties}}</ref> The part went to [[Tina Louise]]. A widespread rumor that Mansfield had a breast-flashing [[wardrobe malfunction]] at the 1957 [[Academy Awards]] was later found to be baseless by Academy researchers.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Molloy |first=Tim |date=2009-04-27 |title=Shattered TV Taboos: How Bea Arthur and Others Broke Barriers |url=https://tvguide.com/news/shattered-tv-taboos-1005496.aspx |url-status=live |journal=[[TV Guide]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110616062610/http://www.tvguide.com/news/shattered-tv-taboos-1005496.aspx |archive-date=2011-06-16}}</ref>

In June 1967, ten days before her death in a car accident, she read ''[[To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time]]'', a poem by [[Robert Herrick (poet)|Robert Herrick]] about early death, on ''[[The Joey Bishop Show (talk show)|The Joey Bishop Show]]—''her last television appearance."<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=126}}</ref>{{efn|Original text of ''[[To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time]]'' by [[Robert Herrick (poet)|Robert Herrick]]:<br />"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,<br />Old Time is still a-flying;<br />And this same flower that smiles today,<br />Tomorrow will be dying."}}

As late as the mid-1980s, Mansfield as a figure drew audiences on television in  fictional dramas portraying her and documentary productions with historic footage.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gitlin |first=Todd |url=https://archive.org/details/insideprimetimec00gitl |title=Inside Prime Time |publisher=Routledge |year=1994 |page=[https://archive.org/details/insideprimetimec00gitl/page/n210 196] |url-access=limited}}</ref> In 1980, ''[[The Jayne Mansfield Story]]'' aired on [[CBS]], starring [[Loni Anderson]] as Mansfield and [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] as Mickey Hargitay. It was nominated for three [[Emmy Awards]]. The [[A+E Networks]] TV series ''[[Biography (TV series)|Biography]]'' featured her in the episode ''Jayne Mansfield: Blonde Ambition''.<ref>{{cite news |date=2006-08-18 |title=Jayne Mansfield Set/Some Like It Hot |work=Hollywood Reporter}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Jayne Mansfield |url=http://www.aetv.com/biography/bio_episode_guide.jsp?episode=188736 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110909060429/http://www.aetv.com/biography/bio_episode_guide.jsp?episode=188736 |archive-date=2011-09-09 |access-date=2008-07-14  |work=Biography |publisher=[[A+E Networks]]}}</ref> It won an [[Emmy Award]] in the outstanding nonfiction TV series category in 2001.<ref>{{cite web |title=2001–2002 Emmy Awards |url=http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0905631.html|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516084538/http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0905631.html |archive-date=2008-05-16 |access-date=2008-07-14 |work=Infoplease |publisher=Pearson PLC}}</ref> A&E also dramatized her life in the TV serial, ''Dangerous Curves'', in 1999.<ref>{{cite news |last=Zad |first=Martie |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1999/05/16/hollywoods-dangerous-curves/4feef90b-db8d-4f41-ae22-ca42dd1c1840/|date=1999-05-18 |title=Hollywood's Dangerous Curves |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> In 1988, her story and archival footage were part of the TV documentary ''Hollywood Sex Symbols''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bowker Staff |title=Bowker's Complete Video Directory |publisher=Bowker |year=1993 |volume=1 |page=465 |asin=B000ZGSGPK}}</ref>

== Other ventures ==

===Stage appearances===
{{See also|Jayne Mansfield stage work}}
Between 1951 and 1953 she acted in ''The Slaves of Demon Rum'', ''Ten Nights in a Barroom'', ''Macbeth'', and ''Anything Goes''. Her performance in an October 1953 production of Arthur Miller's ''Death of a Salesman'' attracted Paramount Pictures to audition her.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sullivan |first=Steve |title=Va Va Voom |publisher=General Publishing Group |year=1995 |isbn=9781881649601 |page=50}}</ref> Lumet trained her for the audition.<ref name=history/> In 1955, she went to New York and appeared in the Broadway production of [[George Axelrod]]'s comedy ''Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?'', also featuring Orson Bean and Walter Matthau. It was her first major stage performance, garnering her critical attention which was not always positive.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=71–77}}</ref> She starred as Rita Marlowe (a wild, blonde Hollywood starlet à la Monroe) in the musical [[Satire|spoofing]] Hollywood in general and Marilyn Monroe in particular. Her wardrobe, a bath towel, caused a sensation.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bacon |first=James |title=Actress Made Herself Famous |work=[[The Miami News]] |date=January 8, 1962 |page=3A}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=36}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Ruuth |first=Marianne |title=Cruel City: The Dark Side of Hollywood's Rich and Famous |publisher=Roundtable Publishing |year=1991 |isbn=978-0915677481 |page=157}}</ref> She received a [[Theatre World Award]] (Promising Personality) for her performance in 1956,<ref name="TheatreAwards">{{cite web |url=http://www.theatreworldawards.org/award.html |title=Awards |publisher=Theatre World Awards Website |access-date=January 25, 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120313125313/http://www.theatreworldawards.org/award.html |archive-date=March 13, 2012 }}</ref> as well as a [[Golden Globe Award]] (New Star of the year, Actress) in 1957.<ref name="Jayne Mansfield">{{cite web|title=Jayne Mansfield |work=The Hollywood Foreign Press Association |url=http://www.goldenglobes.org/browse/member/29189 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120524205151/http://www.goldenglobes.org/browse/member/29189 |archive-date=May 24, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=O'Neil |first=Thomas |title=Movie Awards: The Ultimate, Unofficial Guide to the Oscars, Golden Globes, Critics, Guild and Indie Honor |publisher=Penguin USA |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-399-52922-1 |page=839 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zMSROkev7ksC |access-date=June 24, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131011093212/http://books.google.com/books?id=zMSROkev7ksC |archive-date=October 11, 2013 }}</ref> [[Brooks Atkinson]] of the ''New York Times'' described the "commendable abandon" of her scantily clad rendition of Rita Marlowe in the play as "a platinum-pated movie siren with the wavy contours of Marilyn Monroe". She performed in about 450 shows between 1955 and 1956.<ref name=burbank>{{cite book |last=Burbank |first=Jeff |title=Las Vegas Babylon |publisher=Franz Steiner Verlag |year=2007 |isbn=9781861059666 |pages=113–114}}</ref>

In May 1964, she starred in the stage production of ''[[Bus Stop (play)|Bus Stop]]'' at Yonkers Playhouse, co-starring Mickey Hargitay and [[Ann B. Davis]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Willis |first1=Anne E. |title=At Yonkers Playhouse |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-herald-statesman-1964-may-26-herald/90201848/-mansfield/177227259/ |access-date=22 July 2025 |publisher=[[The Herald Statesman]] |date=May 26, 1964}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=The Voice of Kevin Kelly |work=The Boston Globe |date=November 30, 1994 |page=65}}</ref> The play had a three week engagement that ended on June 14.<ref>{{cite news |title=Yonkers Books L.A. Mansfield |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-record-yonkers-books-mansfield/177227259/ |access-date=22 July 2025 |publisher=[[The Hackensack Record]] |date=May 18, 1964}}</ref>

Mansfield toured U.S. towns alternating between ''Bus Stop'' and ''[[Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (musical)|Gentlemen Prefer Blondes]]''.<ref name=playfaris>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=74}}</ref> In 1965, she performed in another pair of plays: ''Rabbit Habit'' at the [[Latin Quarter (nightclub)|Latin Quarter]] nightclub and ''Champagne Complex'', directed by [[Matt Cimber]], at the [[Pabst Theater]]. Both plays received poor reviews.<ref name=playfaris/><ref name=playstrait>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=11}}</ref>

===Nightclub===
[[File:Jayne Mansfield Night Club.jpg|thumb|left|Mansfield in a promotional poster for ''[[French Dressing (1964 film)|French Dressing]]'' (1964)]]

In February 1958, the [[Tropicana Las Vegas]] launched Mansfield's [[striptease]] [[revue]] ''The Tropicana Holiday'' (produced by Monte Proser, co-starring Mickey Hargitay) under a four-week contract that was extended to eight.<ref name=cultvegas>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y3a3l0zST68C | last=Weatherford |first=Mike |title=Cult Vegas: The Weirdest! The Wildest! The Swingin'est Town on Earth! |publisher=Huntington Press |year=2001 |isbn=9780929712710 |pages=230–232}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=107}}</ref> The opening night raised $20,000 for [[March of Dimes]] (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|20000|1958|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}} She received $25,000 per week for her performance as Trixie Divoon in the show (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|25000|1958|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars),{{inflation-fn|US}} while her contract with 20th Century Fox was paying her $2,500 per week (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|2500|1958|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).<ref name=straitclub>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=94}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Carrol |first=Harrison |title=Behind Scenes in Hollywood |work=The Billings County Pioneer |page=2 |date=January 2, 1958}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne, Mickey Appears in Las Vegas Revue |work=[[Oxnard Press-Courier]] |date=February 11, 1958 |page=10}}</ref> She had a million-dollar policy with [[Lloyd's of London]] in case Hargitay dropped her as he whirled her around for the show.<ref>{{cite news |title=Swings His Bride |work=[[The Tuscaloosa News]] |date=April 10, 1958 |page=26}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=45}}</ref> In 1959, Jayne returned to the Tropicana with her show being extended from a four-week run to eight when [[Betty Hutton]]'s engagement there failed to materialize.{{sfn|Strait|1992|p=107}} In December 1960, the [[Dunes (hotel and casino)|Dunes hotel and casino]] launched Mansfield's revue ''[[The House of Love (show)|The House of Love]]'' (produced by Jack Cole, co-starring Hargitay). She received a salary of $35,000 a week (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|35000|1960|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars), the highest of her career.<ref name="Strait 1992 110">{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=110}}</ref><ref name=farisclub>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=24}}</ref>

Her wardrobe for the shows at Tropicana and Dunes featured a gold mesh dress with sequins to cover her nipples and pubic region.<ref name=burbank/><ref name=cultvegas/><ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=46}}</ref> The controversial dress was called "Jayne Mansfield and a few sequins".<ref name=straitclub/> In early 1963, she performed in her first club engagement outside Las Vegas, at the Plantation Supper Club in Greensboro, North Carolina, earning $23,000 in a week (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|23000|1963|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars), and then at Iroquois Gardens in Louisville, Kentucky.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=161–163}}</ref> She returned to Las Vegas in 1966, but her show was staged on [[Fremont Street]], away from the [[Las Vegas Strip|Strip]] where the Tropicana and Dunes were.<ref name=cultvegas/> Her last nightclub act, ''French Dressing'', was at the [[Latin Quarter (nightclub)|Latin Quarter]] in New York in 1966, also repeated at the Tropicana.<ref name=farisclub/> It was a modified version of the Tropicana show and ran for six weeks with fair success.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=56}}</ref>

Her nightclub career inspired films, documentaries, and a musical album. 20th Century Fox Records recorded "The House of Love" for the album ''[[Jayne Mansfield Busts Up Las Vegas]]'' in 1962. She played the roles of [[American burlesque|burlesque entertainer]] Midnight Franklin in ''[[Too Hot to Handle (1960 film)|Too Hot to Handle]]'' (1960) and Las Vegas showgirl Tawni Downs in ''[[The Las Vegas Hillbillys]]'' (1966).<ref name=toohot/><ref name=faris105/><ref>{{cite book |last=Ross |first=Becki |title=Burlesque West |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2009 |isbn=9781442697225 }}</ref> In 1967, the independent documentary ''Spree'' (alternative title ''Las Vegas by Night''), about the antics of Las Vegas entertainers, was released. The film, narrated as a part of a travelogue of [[Vic Damone]] and [[Juliet Prowse]], featured Mansfield, Hargitay, [[Constance Moore]], and [[Clara Ward]] as guest stars. Mansfield strips and sings "Promise Her Anything" from the film ''Promises! Promises!''<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|pp=160}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=108}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=161}}</ref> A court order prohibited using any of the guest stars to promote the film.<ref>{{cite news |last=Thomas |first=Kevin |title=Spree Features Visit to Las Vegas |work=Los Angeles Times |date=June 3, 1967 |page=1}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Parish |first1=James Robert |first2=Michael R. |last2=Pitts |title=Hollywood Songsters |publisher=Routledge |year=2003 |isbn=9780415943321 |page=212}}</ref>

Later in her career, Mansfield was busier on stage, performing and making appearances with her nightclub acts, club engagements, and performance tours. By 1960, she had made personal appearances for everything from supermarket promotions to drugstore openings, at $10,000 per appearance (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|10000|1960|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}}<ref name=promo2/>

=== Musical work ===
{{Infobox musical artist
| name              = Jayne Mansfield
| image             = 
| caption           = 
| background        = solo_singer
| genre             = [[Country music|Country]], pop
| occupation        = Singer
| years_active      = 1954–1967
| label             = [[20th Century Fox Records|20th Century Fox]], [[MGM Records|MGM]], [[London Records|London]], [[Polydor]] <!-- Golden Options, Recall Records, Blue Moon -->
}}

{{See also|Jayne Mansfield discography}}

Mansfield had classical training in piano and violin. She sang in film soundtracks and on stage for her theatrical and nightclub performances, and released singles and albums. After her death, she became an [[Jayne Mansfield in popular culture#Musical inspiration|inspiration for punk-rock musicians]].<ref>Wes Hurley, [https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/dont-miss-mansfield-6667_us_59e960fbe4b032f98fa30caa Don't Miss "Mansfield 66/67"!], ''Huffington Post'', October 20, 2017</ref>

====Soundtracks====
Mansfield sang or her singing was dubbed in some of her films including ''[[The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw]]'' and ''[[Promises! Promises!]]''.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=94}}</ref>

Her screen performance of songs in ''The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw'' was actually dubbed by [[Connie Francis]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/89901/the-sheriff-of-fractured-jaw#trivia |title=The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw (1959): Trivia |website=[[Turner Classic Movies]] |access-date=May 17, 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023184439/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/89901/The-Sheriff-of-Fractured-Jaw/trivia.html |archive-date=October 23, 2013}}</ref>

====Live performances====
In 1958, an orchestra was recorded for the [[31st Academy Awards]] ceremony with [[Jack Benny]] on first violin, Mansfield on violin, [[Dick Powell]] on trumpet, [[Robert Mitchum]] on woodwind, [[Fred Astaire]] on drums, and [[Jerry Lewis]] as conductor, but the performance was canceled.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Jack and Jayne got Ax on Oscar night |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=April 7, 1958 |page=8}}</ref> She sang "Too Marvelous for Words" for ''[[The Jack Benny Program]]'' ("Jack Takes Boat to Hawaii"; Episode 9, Season 14; November 26, 1963). Her club performances regularly featured songs like ''Call Me'', ''A Little Brains, A Little Talent'' ("This Queen has her aces in all the right places"), ''Plain Jane'', ''Quando-Quando'', ''Bésame Mucho'', and the song Marilyn Monroe made famous, ''[[Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend]]''.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=52}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Clayton |first=Emma |title=Hollywood glamour caused a stir when Jayne Mansfield arrived in Yorkshire |work=Bradford Telegraph and Argus |date=May 23, 2012 |url=http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/tahistory/featuresnostalgiapasttimes/9721823.Hollywood_glamour_caused_a_stir_when_Jayne_Mansfield_arrived_in_Yorkshire/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304204627/http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/tahistory/featuresnostalgiapasttimes/9721823.Hollywood_glamour_caused_a_stir_when_Jayne_Mansfield_arrived_in_Yorkshire/ |archive-date=March 4, 2016 }}</ref>

====Discography====
{{Infobox artist discography
| Artist = Jayne Mansfield
| Image =
| Image size =
| Caption =
| Studio = 2
| EPs link =
| Singles = 6
| References =
}}

In 1962, [[20th Century Fox Records]] released the album ''[[Jayne Mansfield Busts Up Las Vegas]]'', a recording of her Las Vegas [[revue]] ''[[The House of Love (show)|The House of Love]]''. In 1964 [[MGM Records]] released the novelty album ''[[Jayne Mansfield: Shakespeare, Tchaikovsky & Me]]'', in which Mansfield recited [[Shakespeare]]'s sonnets and poems by [[Christopher Marlowe|Marlowe]], [[Elizabeth Barrett Browning|Browning]], [[Wordsworth]], and others against a background of [[Tchaikovsky]]'s music. The album cover depicted a [[bouffant]]-coiffed Mansfield with lips pursed and breasts barely covered by a fur stole, posing between busts of Tchaikovsky and Shakespeare.<ref>[http://www.triad.rr.com/dance/content/jayne.html Welcome to Raymondo's Dance-o-rama.] ''triad.rr.com'' Retrieved December 13, 2006. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060329094323/http://www.triad.rr.com/dance/content/jayne.html |date=March 29, 2006 }}</ref> ''The New York Times'' described the album as a reading of "30-odd poems in a husky, urban, baby voice". The reviewer wrote, "Miss Mansfield is a lady with apparent charms, but reading poetry is not one of them."<ref>{{cite news |last=Lask |first=Thomas |title=Poetry: Revised Editions |work=The New York Times |date=August 30, 1964 |page=X21}}</ref>

In 1965, [[Jimi Hendrix]] played bass and added lead in his [[session musician]] days for Mansfield on two songs, "As The Clouds Drift By" and "Suey", released as a [[Single (music)|45-rpm single]] by [[London Records]] in 1966.<ref>{{cite book |last=Henderson |first=David |title=Scuse Me While I Kiss the Sky |publisher=Simon and Schuster |year=2009 |isbn=9780743274012 |page=85}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=González |first=Ray |title=Renaming the Earth |publisher=University of Arizona |year=2008 |isbn=9780816524105 |page=43}}</ref> [[Ed Chalpin]], the record producer, claimed that Mansfield played all the instruments on the singles.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Geldeart |first1=Gary |last2=Rodham |first2=Steve |title=The Complete Guide to the Recorded Work of Jimi Hendrix |volume=1 |publisher=Jimpress |year=2008 |isbn=9780952768654 |page=32}}</ref> According to Hendrix historian Steven Roby (''Black Gold: The Lost Archives Of Jimi Hendrix'', Billboard Books), this collaboration occurred because they shared a manager.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Girl Can't Help It |work=Dreamtime |url=http://www.dreamtimepodcast.com/2007/11/episode-46-girl-cant-help-it.html |access-date=December 11, 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071227085956/http://www.dreamtimepodcast.com/2007/11/episode-46-girl-cant-help-it.html |archive-date=December 27, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Jimi Hendrix And Jayne Mansfield: The Untold Story |url=http://www.ncbuy.com/news/20020404/0-jimi-hendrix-jayne-mansfield.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100828111224/http://www.ncbuy.com/news/20020404/0-jimi-hendrix-jayne-mansfield.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 28, 2010 |access-date=December 11, 2007 }}</ref> "Wo ist der Mann", sung in German and released by [[Polydor Records]] in Austria, was much in demand immediately after its release in August 1963. The A-side featured [[Hans Last]]'s "Snicksnack-Snuckelchen".<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Austria |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=August 10, 1963 |page=38}}</ref> In 1964, the [[Original Sound]] label released two original songs from the soundtrack of ''The Las Vegas Hillbillys'', "That Makes It" (an answer to [[The Big Bopper]]'s "[[Chantilly Lace (song)|Chantilly Lace]]") on the A-side and "[[Little Things Mean a Lot]]" on the B-side.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=130}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Mansfield was allegedly intimately involved with many men, including Claude Terrail (owner of the Paris restaurant [[Tour d'Argent]]),<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=198}}</ref> [[Robert F. Kennedy]],<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=153–157, 177–190}}</ref> [[John F. Kennedy]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Kroth |first=Jerome A. |title=Conspiracy in Camelot |url=https://archive.org/details/conspiracycamelo00krot_150 |url-access=limited |publisher=Algora |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-87586-246-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/conspiracycamelo00krot_150/page/n274 263]}}</ref> Brazilian billionaire [[Jorge Guinle]],<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=156}}</ref> producer [[Enrico Bomba]], and her attorney Samuel S. Brody. She met John F. Kennedy through his brother-in-law [[Peter Lawford]] in Palm Springs, California, in 1960, but their alleged affair did not last.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hagood |first=Wesley O. |title=Presidential Sex: From the Founding Fathers to Bill Clinton |year=1998 |publisher=Citadel Press |isbn=978-0-806-52007-0 |page=163}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Boertlein |first=John |title=Presidential Confidential: Sex, Scandal, Murder and Mayhem in the Oval Office |year=2010 |publisher=Clerisy Press |isbn=978-1-578-60361-9 |page=151}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Sullivan |first=Michael John |title=Presidential Passions: The Love Affairs of America's Presidents |year=1994 |publisher=SP Books |isbn=978-1-561-71093-5 |page=69}}</ref> In 1967, film critic Whitney Williams wrote of Mansfield in ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'': "her personal life out-rivaled any of the roles she played".<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=7, 235}}</ref>

=== Marriages, children, and affairs ===
Jayne Palmer met Paul Mansfield at a party on Christmas Eve in 1949; she was a popular student at Highland Park High School, and he at Sunset High School in Dallas.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=50–55}}</ref> On May 6, 1950, they married in [[Fort Worth]], Texas. At the time of their marriage, Jayne was 17 and three months' pregnant, and Paul was 20.<ref name="wed1">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=3, 197}}</ref><ref name="wed2">{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=29}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield's Husband Asks for Divorce |agency=AP |work=[[TimesDaily]] |date=January 4, 1957 |page=11}}</ref> (Some sources say the marriage was on May 10).<ref name="Mann 1974 10–12">{{harvnb|Mann|1974|pp=10–12}}</ref><ref name="Pendergast00">{{cite book |author1=Pendergast, Tom |author2=Pendergast, Sara |title=St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture |url=https://archive.org/details/stjamesencyclope04pend |url-access=limited |publisher=St. James Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-1-55862-401-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/stjamesencyclope04pend/page/n289 260] }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Parish, James Robert |title=The Hollywood Book of Breakups |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-471-75268-4 |page=XX }}</ref> According to biographer Raymond Strait, she had an earlier "secret" marriage on January 28, after which she conceived her first child.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=304}}</ref> On November 8, 1950, Mansfield gave birth to her daughter, [[Jayne Marie Mansfield]].<ref name="JaynePaul" /> Some sources say Paul Mansfield was her child's father;<ref name="wed1" /><ref name="wed2" /> others say the pregnancy was the result of [[date rape]].<ref name="Mann 1974 10–12" /><ref>{{harvnb|Jordan|2009|p=221}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=27}}</ref>

In 1952, she juggled motherhood and classes at the University of Texas. Early in 1952, Paul was called to the United States Army Reserve for the Korean War.<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=36}}</ref> While he served in the army, she spent a year at [[Camp Gordon]], Georgia. Her life became easier with Paul's army allotment.<ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=12}}</ref> Paul Mansfield hoped their child's birth would discourage Jayne's interest in acting. When it did not, he agreed to move to Los Angeles in 1954 after returning from the Korean War to further her career.<ref>{{cite book |last=Parish |first=James Robert |title=The Hollywood Book of Breakups |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-471-75268-4}}</ref> Once in California, he took a job with a small newspaper in East Los Angeles and lived in a small apartment in [[Van Nuys]], Los Angeles, with Jayne and her pets—a Great Dane, three cats named Sabina, Romulus, and Ophelia, two chihuahuas, a poodle dyed pink, and a rabbit.<ref name="saxtonLA">{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=43}}</ref><ref name="strategist1">{{cite news |last=Hopper |first=Hedda |author-link=Hedda Hopper |title=Jayne Mansfield: Girl Strategist |work=[[Hartford Courant]] |date=November 25, 1956 |page=1 |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courant/access/912364222.html?dids=912364222:912364222&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Nov+25%2C+1956&author=&pub=Hartford+Courant&desc=Jayne+Mansfield-+Girl+Strategist&pqatl=google |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105221245/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courant/access/912364222.html?dids=912364222:912364222&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Nov+25%2C+1956&author=&pub=Hartford+Courant&desc=Jayne+Mansfield-+Girl+Strategist&pqatl=google |archive-date=November 5, 2012 }}</ref><ref name="straitLA">{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=62–63}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=People |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |volume=16 |issue=14 |date=October 3, 1955}}</ref> She left Jayne Marie with her maternal grandparents<ref name="extravagance">{{cite book |last=Parish |first=James Robert |title=The Hollywood Book of Extravagance |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-470-05205-1 |pages=44–45}}</ref> and spent the summer semester at [[UCLA]].<ref name="history" /><ref name="jayneedu1" />

After a series of arguments about Jayne's ambitions, infidelity, and animals, Paul and Jayne decided to dissolve the marriage.<ref name="strategist1" /><ref name="straitLA" /> It was a long process. In February 1955, Jayne filed for separate maintenance, and in August 1956 Paul filed for custody of their daughter.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=148, 205}}</ref> Jayne filed for divorce in California in 1956; Paul filed for divorce in 1957 in Texas, citing mental cruelty, and they received their divorce papers on January 8, 1958.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=183, 189}}</ref> After the divorce, she kept "Mansfield" as her professional name.<ref>{{cite news |title=Obituary |work=[[Variety Obituaries|Variety]] |date=July 5, 1967 |page=63}}</ref> Paul Mansfield remarried, settled into the [[public relations]] business, and moved to [[Chattanooga, Tennessee]], but failed to win custody of Jayne Marie or restrain her from traveling abroad with her mother.<ref name="mansfielddiv">{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield in Divorce Action |work=[[Sarasota Journal]] |date=March 21, 1956 |page=15}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne Can Take Daughter Abroad |work=[[Tri-City Herald]] |date=April 17, 1958 |page=2}}</ref> 
After turning 18, Jayne Marie complained that she had not received her inheritance from the Mansfield estate or heard from her father since her mother's death.<ref>{{cite news |title=Chrissy isn't Worried About Ex-Miss World |work=[[The Miami News]] |date=June 3, 1976 |page=9}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Wilson |first=Earl |author-link=Earl Wilson (columnist) |title=It Happened Last Night |work=[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]] |date=June 9, 1976 |page=20}}</ref>
[[File:Jayne Mansfield, Mickey Hargitay and children 1959.jpg|thumb|Mansfield with Hargitay and children in London in 1959]]

Mansfield met her second husband, [[Mickey Hargitay]], at the [[Latin Quarter (nightclub)|Latin Quarter]] nightclub in New York City on May 13, 1956, where he was performing as a member of the [[chorus line]] in [[Mae West]]'s show.<ref name="farisqueen" /> Hargitay was an actor and bodybuilder who won the [[Universe Championships|Mr. Universe]] competition in 1955.<ref>{{cite web|last=Mozee |first=Gene |title=Mickey Hargitay (In Memoriam) |work=Ironman Magazine |date=February 2007 |url=http://imbodybuilding.com/articles/mickey-hargitay/ |access-date=April 10, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523132839/http://imbodybuilding.com/articles/mickey-hargitay |archive-date=May 23, 2011 }}</ref> Mansfield fell for him immediately, which resulted in a squabble with West.<ref name=Windsor>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield Dead |work=[[Windsor Star]] |date=June 29, 1967 |agency=UPI |page=6 }}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=74–76}}</ref> In the ensuing row, Mr. California, Chuck Krauser, beat Hargitay up and was arrested and released on a $300 bond (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|300|1956|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars{{inflation-fn|US}}).<ref>{{cite news |title=Mr. Universe Bopped, Switches Blondes |work=[[Oxnard Press-Courier]] |date=June 8, 1956 |page=1}}</ref>

After Mansfield returned from her 40-day European tour, Hargitay proposed to her on November 6, 1957, with a $5,000 10-carat diamond ring (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|5000|1957|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}}<ref>{{cite news |last=Bacon |first=James |author-link=James Bacon (author) |title=Jayne Mansfield Shies at Photog's Flashbulb |work=[[Sarasota Herald-Tribune]] |date=December 1, 1957 |page=44}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield Hargitay Engaged |work=[[St. Joseph Gazette]] |date=November 7, 1957 |page=2}}</ref> On January 13, 1958 (days after her divorce from Paul Mansfield was finalized), Mansfield married Hargitay at the [[Wayfarers Chapel]] in [[Rancho Palos Verdes]], California. The unique glass chapel made public and press viewing of the wedding easy. Mansfield wore a pink, skin-tight wedding gown made of sequins with a {{convert|30|yd|m|abbr=on}} [[Flounce (fabric)|flounce]] of pink [[Tulle netting|tulle]] (designed by a 20th Century-Fox costume designer),<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=212}}</ref> and at the reception she had Hargitay drink pink champagne.<ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=76}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Liz |author-link=Liz Smith (journalist) |title=Gossip |work=Ottawa Citizen |date=February 15, 1977 |page=58}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Quiet Wedding Attracts 1,500 |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=January 15, 1958 |page=3}}</ref>

Hargitay made his first film appearance with Mansfield in a [[bit part]] in ''Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?''<ref>{{cite news |first=Bosley |last=Crowther |title=Screen: Farce From Fox; 'Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?' Here |date=September 12, 1957 |work=The New York Times |page=37|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1957/09/12/archives/screen-farce-from-fox-will-success-spoil-rock-hunter-here.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130130100247/http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00916FE3B5A177B93C0A81782D85F438585F9 |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 30, 2013 }}{{subscription required}}</ref> The couple became a performing team touring in stage shows, where Mansfield's [[Jayne Mansfield's leopard spot bikini|leopard-spot bikini]] became a topic of discussion and newspaper coverage.<ref name="faris02" /><ref>{{cite news |title=The Bare Facts at Last, All Those Hours at the Gym Will Pay off with Spring's Slightly Skimpy Fashions |work=Miami Herald |date=March 12, 1986 |page=D1}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Kilgallen |first=Dorothy |title=Jayne's Touring Strawhats in Bikinis |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=July 22, 1964 |page=B11}}</ref> As a highlight, Hargitay tossed her around his waist and spun her in wide circles as her shows made more headlines.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=44–45}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=78}}</ref> On screen, he was Mansfield's male lead in her Italian ventures ''[[The Loves of Hercules]]'' and ''[[L'Amore Primitivo]]'' and also appeared in ''Promises! Promises!'' On stage, he was the male lead in her various nightclub acts including ''The Tropicana Holiday''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Djordjevic |first1=Marta |title=The Truth About Jayne Mansfield's Relationship With Mickey Hargitay |url=https://www.grunge.com/732614/the-truth-about-jayne-mansfields-relationship-with-mickey-hargitay/ |publisher=Grunge.com |access-date=June 17, 2025 |date=January 12, 2022}}</ref>

Mansfield and Hargitay had two sons, Miklós Jeffrey Palmer Hargitay (a.k.a. Mickey Hargitay Jr., born December 21, 1958) and Zoltán Anthony Hargitay (born August 1, 1960).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://people.com/all-about-jayne-mansfield-children-8655782|title=Jayne Mansfield's 5 Children: All About the Late Actress' Daughters and Sons|website=People.com|last=Tremaine|first=Julie |date=June 9, 2024}}</ref>

Mansfield and Hargitay made personal appearances on television shows such as the ''[[Bob Hope television specials|Bob Hope Specials]]''.<ref name="faris02" /> They had a number of business holdings, including the Hargitay Exercise Equipment Company, Jayne Mansfield Productions, and Eastland Savings and Loan.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=9}}</ref> She co-wrote the autobiographical book ''Jayne Mansfield's Wild, Wild World'' with Hargitay. It contained 32 pages of black-and-white photographs from the film printed on glossy paper.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mansfield |first1=Jayne |last2=Hargitay |first2=Mickey |author-link2=Mickey Hargitay |title=Jayne Mansfield's Wild, Wild World |publisher=Holloway House |location=Los Angeles |year=1963 |oclc=9922763}}</ref>

In 1962, Mansfield had a well-publicized affair with [[Enrico Bomba]], the Italian producer and production manager of her film ''Panic Button''.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=190}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=139}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Sealy |first=Shirley |title=The Celebrity Sex Register |year=1982 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |isbn=9780671442965 |page=134}}</ref> Hargitay accused Bomba of sabotaging their marriage.<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=144}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=209}}</ref>
[[File:Jayne Mansfield Com X-M103-006.jpg|thumb|left|Mansfield in [[Kloten]], [[Switzerland]], in 1960]]

In 1963, she had another well-publicized relationship with the Brazilian-born comedian-singer [[Nelson Sardelli]], whom she said she planned to marry when her divorce from Hargitay was finalized.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=167–68, 170, 173–74, 195, 197, 202, 203, 207, 208, 224–25}}</ref> The couple divorced in Juarez, Mexico, in May 1963. Sardelli accompanied Mansfield in her legal preparations.<ref name="Faris01" /> She had previously filed for divorce on May 4, 1962, but told reporters, "I'm sure we will make it up."<ref>{{cite news |title=Miss Mansfield Asks Divorce |work=The New York Times |date=May 4, 1962 |page=25}}</ref> During the acrimonious divorce proceedings, she attempted to force a more favorable financial settlement by accusing Hargitay of kidnapping one of her children.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=224}}</ref>

After divorcing Hargitay, Mansfield discovered she was pregnant. Being an unwed mother would have endangered her career, so she and Hargitay announced that they were still married. A daughter, [[Mariska Hargitay|Mariska Magdolna Hargitay]], was born on January 23, 1964, after the divorce was finalized but before California ruled it valid.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=226}}</ref> Mariska later revealed that Sardelli is her biological father.<ref name=dad>{{cite web|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/mariska-hargitay-was-living-a-lie-for-30-years?|title=Mariska Hargitay Was "Living a Lie" for 30 Years. Now She's Embracing Her Mother, Jayne Mansfield—and Her Biological Father|website=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]|first=Joy|last=Press|date=May 17, 2025|access-date=May 17, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.eonline.com/news/1417702/mariska-hargitay-reveals-identity-of-biological-father |title=Mariska Hargitay Reveals Identity of Biological Father After 30-Year Family Secret |first=Corinne |last=Heller |publisher=E! News |date=May 18, 2025 |access-date=June 20, 2025}}</ref> Mansfield sued to get the Juarez divorce declared legal after Mariska was born, and the divorce was recognized on August 26, 1964.<ref name="divorcefaris">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=164}}</ref>

A court decree in June 1967 made Hargitay the guardian of Mickey Jr., Zoltán, and Mariska, though they continued to live with Mansfield.<ref>{{cite news |title=Mickey Hargitay Named Guardian |work=Daytona Beach Sunday News-Journal |date=June 8, 1967 |page=10}}</ref> He married airline stewardess Ellen Siano in 1968,<ref>{{cite news |title=Behind the Scenes in Hollywood |last=Carrol |first=Harrison |work=The Rochester Sentinel |date=April 18, 1968 |page=2}}</ref> and she accompanied him to New Orleans when he picked up his children after Mansfield's death.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield's Children Released from Hospital |work=The Register-Guard |location=Eugene, Oregon |date=June 5, 1967 |page=3}}</ref> Shortly after her funeral, Hargitay sued his ex-wife's estate for more than $275,000 (${{Format price|{{inflation|US|0.275|1967|r=1}}}}&nbsp;million in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars){{inflation-fn|US}} to support the children, as he and Ellen would raise them,<ref name="divorcefaris" /> but he lost the suit.<ref>{{cite news |title=Hargitay Loses Claim to Funds |work=Evening Independent |date=January 17, 1969 |page=18}}</ref> Mansfield once told Hargitay on a television talk show that she was sorry for all the trouble she had caused him.<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=196}}</ref>

[[File:Jayne Mansfield and Sam Brody May 1967.jpg|thumb|Mansfield with attorney and boyfriend Sam Brody, Germany, 1967]]
Mansfield became involved with [[Matt Cimber]] (a.k.a. Matteo Ottaviano, né Thomas Vitale Ottaviano), an Italian-born film director, when he directed her in a stage production of ''[[Bus Stop (play)|Bus Stop]]'' in Yonkers, New York, costarring Hargitay.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=29}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=235}}</ref> She married him on September 24, 1964, in [[Mulegé, Baja California Sur]], Mexico. They separated on July 11, 1965, and filed for divorce on July 20, 1966.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1966/07/21/archives/jayne-mansfield-asks-divorce.html | title=Jayne Mansfield Asks Divorce |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=July 21, 1966 | url-access=subscription}}</ref> Cimber managed her career during their marriage, and guided her through a series of increasingly tawdry projects like ''Promises! Promises!'' and ''The Las Vegas Hillbillys''. Their marriage began to collapse in the wake of Cimber’s alleged physical abuse, Mansfield's alcohol abuse, open infidelities, and disclosure to Cimber that she had been happy only with Sardelli. Work on Mansfield's film ''[[Single Room Furnished]]'' (1966), directed by Cimber, was suspended.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Wallace |first1=David |last2=Miller |first2=Ann |title=Hollywoodland |date=April 2003 |publisher=Thorndike |isbn=978-0-7862-5203-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L4v-x1UPJgkC |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170406101331/https://books.google.com/books?id=L4v-x1UPJgkC |archive-date=April 6, 2017 }}</ref> The couple had a son, Antonio Raphael Ottaviano (a.k.a. Tony Cimber, born October 18, 1965). Cimber and his second wife, dress designer Christy Hilliard Hanak, who married on December 2, 1967, raised Tony, Mansfield's youngest child.<ref name="extravagance" /><ref name="jaynesam1" /><ref name="Jordan 2009 page=222" /> At the time, Mansfield had degenerated into alcoholism, drunken brawls, and performing at cheap burlesque shows.<ref name="salon2001" /><ref name="Jordan 2009 222">{{harvnb|Jordan|2009|p=222}}</ref> Cimber later worked as a producer for ''[[Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling]]''.<ref>{{cite web|website=Bustle|url=https://www.bustle.com/p/is-sam-from-glow-based-on-a-real-person-the-struggling-director-has-a-tv-wrestling-legacy-66127|title='GLOW's Director Has A Complicated Legacy|first=Jack|last=O'Keeffe|date=June 22, 2017|accessdate=June 17, 2025}}</ref>

In July 1966, Mansfield started living with her attorney, Sam Brody, who had frequent drunken brawls with her and mistreated her daughter Jayne Marie. In the 2025 documentary ''[[My Mom Jayne]]'', Jayne Marie, Mansfield's son Zoltán Hargitay, and Mickey Hargitay's third wife Ellen also recalled instances where Mansfield showed signs of physical abuse from Brody. Sam Brody's wife Beverly filed for divorce, calling Mansfield the "41st other woman" in Sam's life.<ref name="extravagance" /><ref name="jaynesam1">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=12, 37}}</ref><ref name="Jordan 2009 page=222">{{harvnb|Jordan|2009|page=222}}</ref>

Mansfield's son Zoltán made news when a lion attacked him and bit his neck while he and his mother visited the theme park [[Jungleland USA]] in [[Thousand Oaks, California]], on November 23, 1966. He suffered severe head trauma, underwent three surgeries at [[Community Memorial Hospital]] in [[Ventura, California]], including a six-hour brain surgery, and contracted [[meningitis]]. He recovered, and Brody sued the theme park on the family's behalf for $1.6&nbsp;million (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|1.6|1967|r=1}}}}&nbsp;million in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}}<ref name="farisqueen" /><ref>{{cite book |last=Maulhardt |first=Jeffrey Wayne |title=Jungleland |publisher=Arcadia |year=2011 |isbn=9780738574448 |page=119}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=January 18, 1967 |title=Jayne Mansfield is Seeking 1.6 Million in Lion Attack |page=18 |work=[[The Tuscaloosa News]]}}</ref> The publicity led to the theme park's closure.<ref>{{cite book |last=Maulhardt |first=Jeffrey Wayne |title=Jungleland |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |year=2011 |isbn=9780738574448 |page=8}}</ref>

In June 1967, two weeks before her mother's death, 16-year-old Jayne Marie accused Brody of beating her.<ref name="NYT19670630" /> Her statement to the [[Los Angeles Police Department]] implicated her mother in encouraging the abuse, and days later a [[juvenile court]] judge awarded temporary custody of Jayne Marie to Paul Mansfield's uncle William W. Pigue and his wife Mary.<ref name="wed1" /><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=288–89}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=236}}</ref>

===Religion===
In August 1963, Mansfield decided to convert to [[Catholicism]].<ref name=playstrait/><ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=150}}</ref> Although she never actually converted, she attended Catholic services when in Europe,<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=160}}</ref> and followed Catholic practices when involved with Catholic partners (including Hargitay, Sardelli, and Cimber).<ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|pp=115, 117, 133}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=50, 174}}</ref> In May 1967, her performance at the Mount Brandon Hotel in [[Tralee]], Ireland, was canceled because Catholic clergy condemned it.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=152}}</ref> She wanted to marry Cimber in a Catholic ceremony, but was unable to find a priest to officiate.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=229}}</ref> While involved with Brody, she also showed interest in [[Judaism]].<ref name=playstrait/>

In San Francisco for the city's 1966 [[San Francisco International Film Festival|Film Festival]], Mansfield and Brody visited the [[Church of Satan]] to meet [[Anton LaVey]], the church's founder. He awarded Mansfield a medallion and the title "High Priestess of San Francisco's Church of Satan." The media enthusiastically covered the meeting and the events surrounding it, identifying her as a [[LaVeyan Satanism|Satanist]], and speculating that she was somehow romantically involved with LaVey.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=282}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=33}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=263}}</ref> That meeting remained a much-publicized and oft-quoted event of both her life and the history of the Church of Satan.<ref>{{cite book|last=Lewis|first=James R.|url=https://archive.org/details/legitimatingnewr00lewi|title=Legitimating New Religions|publisher=Rutgers University|year=2003|page=[https://archive.org/details/legitimatingnewr00lewi/page/n118 108]|url-access=limited}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Lewis|first=James R.|url=https://archive.org/details/satanismtodayenc00lewi|title=Satanism Today: An Encyclopedia of Religion, Folklore, and Popular Culture|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year=2001|page=[https://archive.org/details/satanismtodayenc00lewi/page/n161 146]|isbn=9781576072929|url-access=limited}}</ref> LaVey's daughter [[Karla LaVey]] said in a 1992 interview that Mansfield was a practicing LaVeyan Satanist and had a romantic relationship with Anton LaVey.<ref>{{cite web|date=March 18, 2013|title=Karla LaVey {joan rivers show}|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB_v_669ctc|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625045635/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB_v_669ctc|archive-date=June 25, 2014|access-date=September 7, 2013|via=YouTube}}</ref>

==Public image==

=== Influence ===
{{See also|Jayne Mansfield in popular culture}}
[[File:Jayne_Mansfield-Magda.jpg|thumb|Mansfield posing with Egyptian actress [[Magda el-Sabahi|Magda]] at the [[11th Berlin International Film Festival]], 1961<ref>{{Cite web |title={{!}} Berlinale {{!}} Archive {{!}} Yearbooks {{!}} Yearbooks |url=https://www.berlinale.de/en/archive/yearbooks/1961.html |access-date=2025-08-11 |website=www.berlinale.de |language=en}}</ref>]]
Mansfield was a major Hollywood sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s and 20th Century Fox's alternative to Marilyn Monroe. She came to be known as the "Working Man's Monroe".<ref name="Davies 2012 33">{{cite book |last=Davies|first=Jennifer|title=Fatal Car Accidents of the Rich and Famous|page=33|publisher=RW Press|year=2012|isbn=9781909284043}}</ref><ref name="salon2001" /> She was one of Hollywood's original [[Blonde bombshell (stereotype)|blonde bombshells]],<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Rudnick |first=Paul |title=Heroes and Icons: Marilyn Monroe |magazine=Time |date=June 14, 1999 |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,991257,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120624233523/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,991257,00.html |archive-date=June 24, 2012 }}</ref> and remains one of the most recognizable icons of 1950s [[celebrity culture]].<ref name="stjames" />

According to Hollywood historian and biographer [[James Robert Parish|James Parish]], Mansfield's [[hourglass figure]] (she claimed dimensions of [[BWH|40–21–35]]), unique [[wikt:sashay|sashaying]] walk, breathy [[baby talk]], and cleavage-revealing costumes made an enduring impact.<ref name="extravagance" /> Hollywood historian [[Andrew Nelson (author)|Andrew Nelson]] said that she was seen as Hollywood's gaudiest, boldest, D-cupped, [[B-grade celebrity|B-grade]] actress from 1955 until the early 1960s.<ref name="salon2001" />

Frequent references have been made to Mansfield's very high [[IQ]], which she claimed was 163.{{sfn|Jordan|2009|page=221}} In addition to English, she spoke four other languages. She learned French, Spanish, and German in high school, and in 1963 she studied Italian.<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|pp=10, 17, 148, 155}}</ref> Reputed to be Hollywood's "smartest dumb blonde", she later complained that the public did not care about her brain, saying: "They're more interested in 40–21–35", a reference to her body measurements.<ref name="salon2001">{{cite web |last=Nelson |first=Andrew |url=http://www.salon.com/2001/08/06/jayne_mansfield/ |title=Jayne Mansfield: The Brand Called Two |work=Salon.com |date=August 6, 2001 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121015183608/http://www.salon.com/2001/08/06/jayne_mansfield/ |archive-date=October 15, 2012 }}</ref><ref name="Windsor" />

=== Trademarks ===

====Blonde====
{{See also|Blonde stereotype}}
A natural brunette, Mansfield had her [[hair coloring|hair bleached and colored]] platinum blonde when she moved to Los Angeles,<ref>{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=18}}</ref> and became one of the early "blonde bombshells", along with Marilyn Monroe, [[Betty Grable]], and [[Mamie Van Doren]].<ref>{{harvnb|Jordan|2009|p=213}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Pitkin |first=Roy Macbeth |title=Whom the Gods Love Die Young |publisher=Dorrance |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-4349-9199-7 |page=130}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Kroker |first1=Arthur |last2=Kroker |first2=Marilouise |title=The Hysterical Male: New Feminist Theory |publisher=New World Perspectives |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-920393-69-7 |page=[https://archive.org/details/hystericalmalene0000unse/page/78 78] |url=https://archive.org/details/hystericalmalene0000unse/page/78 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Benshoff |first1=Harry M. |last2=Griffin |first2=Sean |title=America on Film: Representing Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality at the Movies |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-4443-5759-2 |page=213}}</ref> In 1958, she also had her eyebrows dyed platinum.<ref name="farisbeauty">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=135, 271}}</ref> Following [[Jean Harlow]] (who started the [[Mainstream stereotypes|trend]] with her film ''[[Bombshell (1933 film)|Bombshell]]''),<ref>{{cite book |last=Sherrow |first=Victoria |title=Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural History |year=2006 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-313-33145-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofha0000sher/page/201 201] |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofha0000sher/page/201 }}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Jordan|2009|page=213}}</ref> Monroe, Mansfield, and Van Doren helped establish the stereotype typified by a combination of curvaceous physique, very light-colored hair, and a perceived lack of intelligence.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sikov |first=Ed |title=Film Studies: An Introduction |year=2009 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-231-14293-9 |page=134}}</ref> A review of English-language tabloids shows it to be one of the most persistent [[blonde stereotype]]s along with ''busty blonde'', and ''blonde babe''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Conboy |first=Martin |title=Tabloid Britain: Constructing a Community Through Language |url=https://archive.org/details/tabloidbritainco00conb |url-access=limited |year=2006 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9780415355537 |page=[https://archive.org/details/tabloidbritainco00conb/page/n137 127]}}</ref>

Mansfield and Monroe have been described as representations of a historical juncture of sexuality in comedy and popular culture.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wagg |first=Stephen |title=Because I Tell a Joke or Two: Comedy, Politics, and Social Difference |url=https://archive.org/details/becauseitelljoke00wagg |url-access=limited |publisher=Routledge |year=1998 |page=[https://archive.org/details/becauseitelljoke00wagg/page/n86 73]}}</ref> Academics have also named [[Anita Ekberg]] and [[Bettie Page]] as catalysts of the trend of exaggerated [[female sexuality]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Bailey |first=Beth L. |title=From Front Porch to Back Seat: Courtship in Twentieth-Century America |url=https://archive.org/details/fromfrontporchto00bail |url-access=registration |publisher=Johns Hopkins University |year=1988 |page=[https://archive.org/details/fromfrontporchto00bail/page/73 73]|isbn=9780801836091 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Halliwell |first=Martin |title=American Culture in the 1950s |url=https://archive.org/details/americancultures00hall_904 |url-access=limited |publisher=Edinburgh University |year=2007 |page=[https://archive.org/details/americancultures00hall_904/page/n64 42]}}</ref> [[M. Thomas Inge]] describes Mansfield, Monroe, and [[Jane Russell]] as personifications of the bad girl in popular culture.<ref>{{cite book |last=Inge |first=M. Thomas |title=Handbook of American Popular Culture |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofameric03inge |url-access=registration |publisher=Greenwood |year=1989 |page=[https://archive.org/details/handbookofameric03inge/page/1432 1432]|isbn=9780313254062 }}</ref> [[Judy Holliday]] and [[Goldie Hawn]] have also been said to have established the "[[dumb blonde]]" stereotype,<ref>{{cite book |last=Sherrow |first=Victoria |title=Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural History |year=2006 |publisher=Greenwood |isbn=978-0-313-33145-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofha0000sher/page/149 149] |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofha0000sher/page/149 }}</ref> typified by overt sexuality and apparent inability to understand everyday life.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kuhn |first=Annette |title=The Women's Companion to International Film |year=1994 |publisher=University of California |isbn=978-0-520-08879-5 |page=47}}</ref> Instead of the asexualized and virginal "nice girls" of earlier films, the pneumatic blonde bombshells took over the screen in the 1950s and have been consistently emulated since.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hallam |first=Julia |title=Nursing the Image: Media, Culture, and Professional Identity |url=https://archive.org/details/nursingimagemedi0000hall |url-access=registration |year=2000 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9780415184540 |page=[https://archive.org/details/nursingimagemedi0000hall/page/57 57]}}</ref><ref name="human">{{cite book |last1=Ryecroft |first1=Christina |last2=Moxon |first2=David |title=Human Relationships |year=2001 |publisher=Heinemann |isbn=9780435806545 |page=29}}</ref> Social historian [[Joan Jacobs Brumberg]] called the 1950s as "an era distinguished by its worship of full-breasted women" and attributes the [[paradigm shift]] to Mansfield and Monroe.<ref>{{cite book |last=Parkin |first=Katherine J. |title=Food Is Love: Advertising and Gender Roles in Modern America |year=2007 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |page=1973}}</ref> Patricia Vettel-Becker specifically attributed the phenomenon to ''Playboy'' magazine and Mansfield's and Monroe's appearances in it.<ref>{{cite book |last=Vettel-Becker |first=Patricia |title=Shooting from the Hip: Photography, Masculinity, and Postwar America |year=2005 |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |page=107}}</ref>

====Figure====
Newspapers in the 1950s routinely published Mansfield's body measurements, which once led evangelist [[Billy Graham]] to exclaim, "This country knows more about Jayne Mansfield's statistics than the [[Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image|Second Commandment]]."<ref>Russell, Dennis (2000). "Jayne Mansfield". In Pendergast, Tom; Pendergast, Sara (eds.). St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture. Vol. 3. Farmington Hills, Michigan: St. James Press, Gale. pp. 250–261. ISBN 1-55862-405-8. Archived from the original on August 10, 2011.</ref> Mansfield proclaimed a 41-inch bust line and a 22-inch waist when she made her Broadway debut in 1955, though some scholars dispute those figures.<ref name="kehr">{{cite news|last=Kehr|first=Dave|author-link=Dave Kehr|date=August 8, 2006|title=New DVD's: The Jayne Mansfield Collection|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/08/movies/08dvd.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160106091538/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/08/movies/08dvd.html|archive-date=January 6, 2016}}</ref> She was known as "the Cleavage Queen" and "the Queen of Sex and Bosom".<ref>{{harvnb|Jordan|2009|page=149}}</ref>

It was said that her breasts fluctuated<ref name="thewomens/changes-breasts">{{cite web |title=Normal changes in your breasts |url=https://www.thewomens.org.au/health-information/breast-health/normal-changes-in-your-breasts |website=The Royal Women's Hospital |access-date=May 17, 2023 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="alberta/Breast-Pregnancy">{{cite web |title=Breast Changes During Pregnancy |url=https://myhealth.alberta.ca/Health/Pages/conditions.aspx?hwid=aa87816 |website=myhealth.alberta.ca |access-date=May 17, 2023}}</ref> in size from her pregnancies and nursing her five children. Her smallest bust measurement was 40-D (102&nbsp;cm), which was constant throughout the 1950s, and her largest was 46-DD (117&nbsp;cm), measured by the press in 1967.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Star-Tistics |journal=Celebrity Sleuth |volume=11 |issue=1 |year=1997 |page=55}}</ref> According to [[Playboy]], her vital statistics were 40D-21-36 (102–53–91&nbsp;cm) on her {{convert|5|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}} frame.<ref>"Playboy Data Sheet: Jayne Mansfield, Miss February 1955"</ref>

It has been claimed that her bosom was a major force behind the development of [[History of brassieres#The 1950s|1950s brassieres]], including the ''[[List of bra designs|whirlpool bra]]'', ''cuties'', the ''[[List of bra designs|shutter bra]]'', the ''action bra'', latex pads, cleavage-revealing designs, and uplifted outlines.<ref>{{cite book |last=Massey |first=Anne |title=Hollywood Beyond the Screen: Design and Material Culture |url=https://archive.org/details/hollywoodbeyonds00mass |url-access=limited |publisher=Berg |location=Oxford |year=2000 |page=[https://archive.org/details/hollywoodbeyonds00mass/page/n168 156]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Farrell-Beck |first1=Jane |last2=Gau |first2=Colleen |title=Uplift: The Bra in America |publisher=University of Pennsylvania |year=2002 |pages=116–118}}</ref> R. L. Rutsky<ref>{{cite book |last=Rutsky |first=R. L. |title=High Techne: Art and Technology from the Machine Aesthetic to the Posthuman |url=https://archive.org/details/hightechnearttec00ruts |url-access=limited |year=1999 |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |page=[https://archive.org/details/hightechnearttec00ruts/page/n25 19]}}</ref> and Bill Osgerby<ref>{{cite book |last=Osgerby |first=Bill |title=Playboys in Paradise: Masculinity, Youth and Leisure-Style in Modern America |url=https://archive.org/details/playboysparadise00osge |url-access=limited |year=2001 |publisher=Berg Publishers |page=[https://archive.org/details/playboysparadise00osge/page/n121 109]}}</ref> have said that Mansfield, Monroe, and [[Brigitte Bardot]] popularized the [[bikini]]. Drawing on the [[Freudian]] concept of [[fetishism]], British science-fiction writer and socio-cultural commentator [[J. G. Ballard]] said that [[Mae West]]'s, Mansfield's, and Monroe's breasts "loomed across the horizon of popular consciousness".<ref>{{cite book |last=Kauffman |first=Linda S. |title=Bad Girls and Sick Boys: Fantasies in Contemporary Art and Culture |publisher=University of California |year=1998 |page=72}}</ref> According to [[Dave Kehr]], as the 1960s approached, the anatomy that had made her a star turned her into a joke.<ref name="kehr" /> In that decade, the female body ideal shifted to the slim waif-like features of supermodel [[Twiggy]], actress [[Audrey Hepburn]], and others.<ref name="human" /><ref>{{cite book |last=Müller |first=Jürgen |title=Movies of the 60s |year=2004 |publisher=Taschen |isbn=9783822827994 |page=5}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Twiggy, in Her 'One and Only' Phase |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=May 10, 1983}}</ref>

===Publicity===
Mansfield's drive for publicity was one of the strongest in Hollywood. She gave up all privacy, her doors always open to photographers.<ref name="promo2">{{cite news |last=Bacon |first=James |author-link=James Bacon (author) |title=Jayne Shapes Own Publicity |work=[[The Miami News]] |date=February 8, 1962 |pages=1, 8}}</ref><ref name="promo1">{{cite news |last=Wilson |first=Earl |author-link=Earl Wilson (columnist) |title=Jayne Mansfield's Promotional Campaign |work=[[Sarasota Herald-Tribune]] |date=April 13, 1972 |page=9}}</ref> On Christmas Eve 1954, she walked into publicist James Byron's office with a gift and asked him to oversee her publicity,<ref name="promo2" /> which he did, for the most part, until the end of 1961.<ref name="Strait 1992 110" /> Byron appointed most of the people on her team—William Shiffrin (press agent), Greg Bautzer (attorney), and Charles Goldring (business manager)<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=74}}</ref>—and constantly planted publicity material in the media.<ref name="promo1" /> She appeared in about 2,500 newspaper photographs, and had about 122,000 lines of newspaper copy written about her between September 1956 and May 1957.<ref name="stjames">{{cite book |last=Russell |first=Dennis |editor-first=Tom |editor-last=Pendergast |editor-first2=Sara |editor-last2=Pendergast |year=2000 |title=St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture |volume=3 |publisher=St. James Press, [[Gale (publisher)|Gale]] |location=Farmington Hills, Michigan |isbn=1-55862-405-8 |chapter=Jayne Mansfield |chapter-url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g1epc/is_bio/ai_2419200783/ |pages=250–261 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810022030/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g1epc/is_bio/ai_2419200783/ |archive-date=August 10, 2011 |title-link=St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture }}</ref>

Because of this media blitz, she achieved international renown. On October 10, 1959, she visited [[White Hart Lane]], England, and watched the [[Tottenham Hotspur]] versus [[Wolverhampton Wanderers FC]] football match. By 1960, Mansfield had topped press polls for most words in print, made more personal appearances than any political candidate,<ref name="promo2" /> and was regarded as the world's most-photographed Hollywood celebrity.<ref name="burbank" /> She made news on a regular basis, for malfunctioning dresses, clothing that burst strategically at the seams, and low-cut dresses without a bra.<ref name="promo1" /><ref name="Mannstunt" /> Things worsened when she took charge of her own publicity without advice. According to Shiffrin, "She became a freak."<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=54}}</ref> [[James Bacon (author)|James Bacon]] wrote in the ''[[Los Angeles Herald-Examiner]]'' in 1973: "Here was a girl with real comedy talent, spectacular figure and looks and yet ridiculed herself out of business by outlandish publicity."<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=7, 149}}</ref>

Mansfield received her first truly negative publicity after she and Hargitay pleaded poverty when his first wife, Mary Hargitay, whom he divorced on September 6, 1956, requested additional child support for their first child, Tina, in September 1958. Mansfield said she slept on the floor of her mansion, was unable to buy furniture, and spent only $71 on her daughter Jayne Marie (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|71|1956|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars){{inflation-fn|US}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=18, 148}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=97}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Glamorous Jayne Mansfield Sleeps on Floor in Mansion |work=[[The Herald (Rock Hill)|The Herald]] |location=Rock Hill, North Carolina |date=September 6, 1958 |page=18}}</ref> During this marriage she had three children, Miklós Jeffrey Palmer Hargitay (born December 21, 1958), Zoltán Anthony Hargitay (born August 1, 1960), and Mariska (born January 23, 1964), the biological daughter of [[Nelson Sardelli]].<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/mariska-hargitay-was-living-a-lie-for-30-years? |title=Mariska Hargitay Was "Living a Lie" for 30 Years. Now She's Embracing Her Mother, Jayne Mansfield—and Her Biological Father |magazine=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |first=Joy |last=Press |date=May 17, 2025 |access-date=June 17, 2025 |url-status=live |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250517211347/https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/mariska-hargitay-was-living-a-lie-for-30-years |archive-date=May 17, 2025}}</ref>

====Publicity stunts====
In January 1955, Mansfield appeared at a Silver Springs, Florida, press junket promoting the film ''[[Underwater!]]'', starring [[Jane Russell]]. She purposely wore a too-small red bikini lent to her by photographer friend [[Peter Gowland]]. When she dived into the pool for photographers, her top came off, creating a burst of media attention. The ensuing publicity led [[Warner Bros.]] and ''[[Playboy]]'' to approach her with offers.<ref name="wed1" /><ref name="stjames" /><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=67–68}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Jayne Mansfield Biography |publisher=jaynemansfield.com |url=http://www.jaynemansfield.com/about/bio.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120618032049/http://www.jaynemansfield.com/about/bio.html |archive-date=June 18, 2012 }}</ref> On June 8 of that year, her dress fell down to her waist twice in a single evening, once at a movie party and later at a nightclub.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=118}}</ref> In February 1958, she was topless at a [[Carnival]] party in Rio de Janeiro.<ref name="Windsor" /><ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=186}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield Loses Her Shirt |work=[[Oxnard Press-Courier]] |agency=UPI |date=February 9, 1959 |page=8}}</ref> She [[Shimmy|shimmied]] out of her polka-dot dress in a Rome nightclub in June 1962.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Cagle |first=Jess |title=Jayne Weds Tarzan |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=January 15, 1993 |url=http://www.ew.com/article/1993/01/15/jayne-mansfields-short-lived-union |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112161158/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20217346,00.html |archive-date=November 12, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=No Striptease Just an Accident Claims Mansfield in Rome |work=[[Star-Banner]] |location=Ocala, Florida |agency=AP |date=June 8, 1962}}</ref> In the three years since making her Broadway debut in ''Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?'', Mansfield had become the most controversial star of the decade.<ref name="Mannstunt">{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=26}}</ref>

In April 1957, her breasts were the focus of a publicity stunt intended to deflect media attention from [[Sophia Loren]] during a dinner party in Loren's honor. Photographs of them were published around the world. The [[Jayne Mansfield–Sophia Loren photo|best-known]] showed Loren gazing at Mansfield's cleavage (she was seated between Loren and her dinner companion, [[Clifton Webb]]) when Mansfield leaned over the table, allowing her breasts to spill over her low neckline, exposing one of her nipples.<ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=95}}</ref> The photo was a [[UPI]] sensation, appearing in newspapers and magazines with the word "censored" hiding Mansfield's nipple.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|pp=115}}</ref>

At the same time, the media were quick to condemn Mansfield's stunts. One editorial columnist wrote: "We are amused when Miss Mansfield strains to pull in her stomach to fill out her bikini better; but we get angry when career-seeking women, shady ladies, and certain starlets and actresses ... use every opportunity to display their anatomy unasked."<ref name="straitanatomy" /> By the late 1950s, Mansfield began to generate a great deal of negative publicity because of repeated exposure of her breasts in carefully staged public "wardrobe accidents".<ref>{{cite book |last=Luciani|first=Jene|title=The Bra Book|page=127|publisher=BenBella Books|year=2004|isbn=1933771941}}</ref><ref name="pocono">{{cite news |last=Komar |first=Susan |title=Fans Honor Hollywood Star Jayne Mansfield in Small-town Cemetery |work=[[Pocono Record]] |date=April 4, 2008 |url=http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080427/NEWS/804270338 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160221122609/http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20080427%2FNews%2F804270338 |archive-date=February 21, 2016 }}</ref> [[Richard Blackwell]], her [[Wardrobe stylist|wardrobe designer]] (who also designed for Jane Russell, [[Dorothy Lamour]], [[Peggy Lee]] and [[Nancy Reagan]]), dropped her from his client list because of this.<ref>{{cite news |title=Stylist Rejects Jayne Mansfield |work=The News and Courier |date=August 19, 1962 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DJ5IAAAAIBAJ&pg=3900,3063408 }}{{Dead link|date=March 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> In April 1967, the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote: "She confuses publicity and notoriety with stardom and celebrity and the result is very distasteful to the public."<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=157}}</ref>

{{See also|Wardrobe malfunction}}

===Signature color===
[[File:Pink Palace gate.jpg|thumb|Front of the Pink Palace in 1997]]
Mansfield adopted pink as her color in 1954, and was associated with it for the rest of her career.<ref name="JaynePaul" /><ref name="pink2">{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=92}}</ref> Her original choice was purple, but she thought it too close to lavender, [[Kim Novak]]'s signature color.<ref name="JaynePaul" /> "It must have been the right decision," she said, "because I got more column space from pink than Kim Novak ever did from lavender."<ref name="pink2" /> In November 1957, shortly before their marriage, using money from an inheritance, Mansfield bought the 40-room Mediterranean-style mansion (formerly owned by [[Rudy Vallée]]) at 10100 Sunset Boulevard in [[Holmby Hills, Los Angeles|the Holmby Hills]] section of Los Angeles.<ref name="faris02" /> Mansfield had the house painted pink, with [[cupid]]s surrounded by pink fluorescent lights, pink fur in the bathrooms, a pink heart-shaped bathtub, and a fountain spurting pink champagne; she then dubbed it the "[[Jayne Mansfield's Pink Palace|Pink Palace]]". Hargitay (a plumber and carpenter before taking up bodybuilding) built the pink heart-shaped swimming pool. The year after reconstructing the "Pink Palace" as a "pink landmark", she began riding in a pink [[Cadillac Eldorado]] Biarritz convertible with [[tailfins]], then the only pink Cadillac in Hollywood.<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=93}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=105}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Van Bogart |first1=Angelo |last2=Earnest |first2=Brian |title=Cadillac: 100 Years of Innovation |year=2003 |publisher=Krause Publications |isbn=978-0-87349-690-2 |page=78}}</ref>

===Rivalry===
Throughout her career, Mansfield was compared by the media to the reigning sex symbol of the period, [[Marilyn Monroe]].<ref name="manndance">{{harvnb|Mann|1974|p=112}}</ref> [[20th Century Fox]] groomed her and [[Sheree North]] to substitute for Monroe, their resident blonde bombshell, while [[Universal Pictures]] launched Van Doren as its substitute.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Denisoff|first1=Serge|title=Risky Business: Rock in Film|last2=Romanowski|first2=William D.|author-link2=William D. Romanowski|publisher=Transaction Publishers|year=1991|isbn=9780887388439|page=64}}</ref> The studio launched Mansfield with a grand 40-day tour of England and Europe from September 25 to November 6, 1957.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=5–6}}</ref> She adopted Monroe's vocal mannerisms instead of her original husky voice and Texas accent,<ref name="kehr" /> performed in two plays that were based on Monroe vehicles, ''[[Bus Stop (play)|Bus Stop]]'' and ''[[Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (musical)|Gentlemen Prefer Blondes]],''<ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=212}}</ref> and her role in ''The Wayward Bus'' was strongly influenced by Monroe's character in ''Bus Stop''.<ref name="playfaris" />

Other studios also tried to find their own versions of Monroe. [[Columbia Pictures]] tried [[Cleo Moore]], [[Warner Bros.]] [[Carroll Baker]], [[Paramount Pictures]] [[Anita Ekberg]], and [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] [[Barbara Lang (film actress)|Barbara Lang]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Kobal|first=John|title=Hollywood Color Portraits|publisher=William Morrow & Company|year=1981|isbn=978-0688007539|page=150}}</ref> while [[Diana Dors]] was dubbed England's answer to Mansfield.<ref>{{cite book|last=Landy|first=Marcia|title=The Historical Film: History and Memory in Media|publisher=Rutgers University Press|year=2000|isbn=9780813528564|page=143}}</ref> [[Jacqueline Susann]] wrote, "When one studio has a Marilyn Monroe, every other studio is hiring Jayne Mansfield and Mamie Van Doren."<ref>{{cite book|last=White|first=David Manning|title=Popular Culture|publisher=Ayer Publishing|year=1975|isbn=9780405066498|page=67}}</ref> The contenders also included Sheree North, [[Kim Novak]], [[Joi Lansing]], [[Beverly Michaels]], [[Barbara Nichols]] and [[Greta Thyssen]], and even two brunettes— [[Elizabeth Taylor]] and [[Jane Russell]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Halliwell|first=Martin|url=https://archive.org/details/americancultures00hall_904|title=American Culture in The 1950s|publisher=Edinburgh University|year=2007|isbn=9780748618859|page=[https://archive.org/details/americancultures00hall_904/page/n192 170]|url-access=limited}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Lisanti|first=Tom|title=Glamour Girls of Sixties Hollywood: Seventy-five Profiles|publisher=McFarland|year=2008|isbn=978-0-7864-3172-4|pages=12, 41, 62, 88, 103, 109, 111, 112, 173, 203, 205, 228, 236}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Lane|first=Laura|year=1957|title=Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo: Who will be the first?|journal=[[Photoplay]]|issue=March|pages=38–41}}</ref> Van Doren, Dors, and Novak also acted in productions of ''Gentlemen Prefer Blondes''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Magill|first=Frank N.|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofte0000unse/page/1106|title=Chronology of Twentieth-century History: Arts and Culture|publisher=Fitzroy Dearborn|year=1998|isbn=9781884964664|page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofte0000unse/page/1106 1106]}}</ref> Even when Mansfield's film roles were drying up, she was still considered Monroe's primary rival. Mansfield considered Van Doren her professional nemesis.<ref>{{cite book|last=Betrock|first=Alan|title=Jayne Mansfield vs. Mamie Van Doren: Battle of the Blondes|publisher=Shake Books|year=1993|isbn=978-0-9626833-4-3}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=April 2025}} At one point, Monroe, Mansfield, and Mamie were known as ''The Three M's''.<ref>{{cite news|date=November 7, 1988|title=Mamie Van Doren has Few Regrets in Life|page=7|work=[[The Miami News]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=August 29, 1995|title=Mother of Actress Mamie Van Doren Dies of Cancer|page=6|work=Los Angeles Times|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/21428765.html?dids=21428765:21428765&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Aug+29%2C+1995&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Mother+of+Actress+Mamie+Van+Doren+Dies+of+Cancer&pqatl=google|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105221211/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/21428765.html?dids=21428765:21428765&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Aug+29%2C+1995&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Mother+of+Actress+Mamie+Van+Doren+Dies+of+Cancer&pqatl=google|archive-date=November 5, 2012}}</ref>

==Death==
{{multiple image
|direction = horizontal
|align = right
|image1 = Grave of Jayne Mansfield 2007.jpg
|caption1 = Gravestone at Fairview Cemetery ([[Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania]])
|width1 = 138
|image2 = Jayne Mansfield Cenotaph.jpg
|caption2 = Mansfield's [[cenotaph]] (with incorrect birth year) at [[Hollywood Forever Cemetery]], Hollywood
|width2 = 264
}}

On June 28, 1967, Mansfield was in [[Biloxi]], Mississippi, for an engagement at the [[Gus Stevens Supper Club]]. After midnight, Mansfield; her attorney and partner Sam Brody; Ronald B. Harrison, a 19-year-old driver for the Gus Stevens Supper Club, who was driving; three of her children; and her four Chihuahuas left Biloxi for [[New Orleans]], where Mansfield was to appear on WDSU's ''Midday Show''. At about 2:25&nbsp;a.m. on June 29, on [[U.S. Route 90 in Louisiana|U.S. Highway 90]], {{convert|1|mi}} west of the [[Rigolets Bridge]], their car crashed while traveling between {{convert|60 and 80|mph|0}} into the rear of a [[tractor-trailer]] that had slowed down from {{convert|50 to 35|mph|0}} due to an approaching mosquito insecticide fog-spraying truck that was flashing a red light. The three adults in the front seat and two of the dogs died instantly. The children, asleep in the rear seat, survived with minor injuries.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/actress-jayne-mansfield-dies-in-car-crash | title=Actress Jayne Mansfield dies in car crash | date=November 13, 2009 | publisher=[[History Channel]] }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-salina-journal-mansfield-jayne-1967/17495595/ | title=Crash Kills Jayne Mansfeld | agency=[[Associated Press]] | work=[[Salina Journal]] | location=[[Salina, Kansas]] | date=June 29, 1967}}</ref><ref name=beverly>{{Cite web | url=https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/438/1148/21245/ | title=Beverly Jane Brody, Individually, Etc., et al., Plaintiffs-appellants, v. Aetna Casualty & Surety Company et al., Defendants-appellees, 438 F.2d 1148 (5th Cir. 1971) | publisher=Justia | date=February 12, 1971}}</ref>{{efn|In ''[[My Mom Jayne]]'', Zoltán Hargitay recalled his mother and Sam Brody were fighting in the front seat, and that she had moved to the back seat next to him at one point. He also recalled that she had screamed at the time of the crash.}}  They were rushed to [[Ochsner Foundation Hospital]], where Mickey Hargitay arrived that same day after learning what had happened.<ref name="Wolfe">{{cite news |last1=Wolfe |first1=Poet |title=A scrutinized Hollywood bombshell died in a Louisiana car crash decades ago. Who was she really? |url=https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/jayne-mansfield-slidell-crash/article_48509aed-60c3-4c31-8b16-79f6bc09d46e.html |access-date=July 3, 2025 |work=Nola.com |date=June 25, 2025}}</ref>

Reports that Mansfield was [[decapitated]] are untrue, although she suffered severe [[head trauma]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/05/04/magazine/jayne-mansfield-s-head.html |title=Jayne Mansfield's Head |work=[[The New York Times Magazine]] |date=May 4, 1997 | url-access=limited | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150520181217/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/05/04/magazine/jayne-mansfield-s-head.html| archive-date=May 20, 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> This [[urban legend]] started with the appearance in police photographs of the crashed car with its top virtually sheared off and what resembled a blonde-haired head tangled in the car's smashed windshield. Mansfield's death certificate gives her immediate cause of death as "crushed skull with [[Avulsion injury|avulsion]] of [[cranium]] and brain".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.neworleansradioshrine.com/faq-jayne-mansfield-s-death-certificate.html | title=Jayne Mansfield's Death Certificate | work=New Orleans Radio Shrine}}</ref> The identity of the head-like shape has not been definitively determined, but it is speculated to have been either a [[wig]] Mansfield was wearing or carrying, the top of her real hair and [[scalp]], or something else.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jayne Mansfield |date=January 3, 2001 |work=Snopes.com |url=http://www.snopes.com/movies/actors/jayne.htm |access-date=December 13, 2006}}</ref> After her death, the [[National Highway Traffic Safety Administration]] recommended requiring an [[underride guard]] (a strong bar made of steel tubing) on all tractor-trailers; the trucking industry was slow to adopt this change. In America, the underride guard is sometimes known as a "Mansfield bar."<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.autoweek.com/car-life/but-wait-theres-more/a2142281/heres-why-those-extensions-semi-trailers-are-called-mansfield-bars/ | title=Here's Why Those Extensions On Semi-Trailers Are Called Mansfield Bars | work=[[Autoweek]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.jdpower.com/cars/shopping-guides/what-are-mansfield-bars | title=What Are Mansfield Bars? | first=Dustin | last=Hawley | work=[[J.D. Power]] | date=May 11, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.motortrend.com/news/the-story-behind-jayne-mansfield-and-the-mansfield-bar/ | title=The Story Behind Jayne Mansfield and the Mansfield Bar | first=Zach | last=Gale | work=[[Motor Trend]] | date=March 20, 2009}}</ref>

Mansfield's body was flown from New Orleans to New York and a private funeral took place on July 3 at the chapel of the Pullis Funeral Home in [[Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania]], officiated by a pastor of the Zion [[Methodist]] Church who had known Mansfield since her childhood. Mansfield was buried in Fairview Cemetery next to her father. Mickey Hargitay was the only ex-husband of Mansfield present at the funeral.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-obituary-for-jayne-mansfield/56895808/ | title=Jayne Flown to Childhood Home | work=[[New York Daily News]] | via=[[Newspapers.com]] | date=July 2, 1967}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-morning-call-obituary-for-jayne-mans/75661708/ | title=Jayne Mansfield is 'Home' | work=[[The Morning Call]] | date=July 2, 1967 | via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref><ref name=playstrait/><ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.poconorecord.com/story/entertainment/local/2008/04/27/fans-honor-hollywood-star-jayne/52431700007/ | title=Fans honor Hollywood star Jayne Mansfield in small-town cemetery | first=SUSAN | last=KOOMAR | work=[[Pocono Record]] | date=April 27, 2008}}</ref>

In 1968, two wrongful-death lawsuits were filed on behalf of Mansfield and ex-husband Matt Cimber.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1968/06/23/archives/jayne-mansfield-suit-filed.html | title=Jayne Mansfield Suit Filed | work=[[The New York Times]] |date=June 23, 1968 | url-access=subscription}}</ref> After a 16-day trial in 1971, the jury found that Harrison, the driver of the car, was negligent, that Richard Rambo, the driver of the truck into which Mansfield crashed, was not negligent, and that James McLelland, the driver of the fog-spraying truck, was negligent but his negligence was not a proximate cause of the accident; a rehearing was denied.<ref name=beverly/>

The crashed car was saved by a private collector in Florida, where it became a roadside attraction in the 1970s, then was on display by the [[Dearly Departed Tours & Artifact Museum]] until the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], when it went into storage.<ref>{{cite news | last=Ross | first=Martha | url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2017/11/24/los-angeles-the-truly-essential-hollywood-tour/ | location=Los Angeles | title=The truly essential Hollywood tour |work=[[Mercury News]] | date=November 24, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | last=Bartlett | first=James | url=https://www.laweekly.com/a-new-improved-hollywood-death-tours-and-museum-is-opening-across-from-hollywood-forever/ | title=A New, Improved Hollywood Death Tours and Museum Is Opening Across From Hollywood Forever| work=[[LA Weekly]] | date=April 20, 2017 | archive-date=August 2, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180802152533/http://www.laweekly.com/arts/dearly-departeds-hollywood-death-museum-is-opening-across-from-hollywood-forever-cemetery-with-jayne-mansfields-death-car-8140480 | url-status=live}}</ref>

An endeavour to recreate her death and stage the scene of the crash was made by [[Elias Koteas|Elia Koteas]]' character (playing a car-crash fetishist) in [[David Cronenberg]]'s techno-erotic thriller [[Crash (1996 film)|''Crash'']] (1996), offering one of the film's seminal climactic moments.

==Achievements and legacy==

=== Awards and nominations ===
[[File:The Jayne Mansfield Hollywood Walk Of Fame Star.jpg|thumb|Mansfield's star on [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] at 6328 Hollywood Boulevard.<ref name=hollywoodwof/> Her daughter Mariska's star was placed next to hers more than 50 years later in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://walkoffame.com/mariska-hargitay/ | title=Mariska Hargitay | date=October 25, 2019 | publisher=[[Hollywood Walk of Fame]]}}</ref>|alt=Jayne Mansfield's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame]]
* Mansfield received a [[Theatre World Award]] (Promising Personality) for ''[[Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (play)|Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?]]'' in 1956.<ref name="TheatreAwards"/>
* She received a [[Golden Globe Award]] (New Star of the year, Actress) for ''[[The Girl Can't Help It]]'' in 1957.<ref name="Jayne Mansfield"/><ref>{{cite book |last=O'Neil |first=Thomas |title=Movie Awards: The Ultimate, Unofficial Guide to the Oscars, Golden Globes, Critics, Guild and Indie Honor |publisher=Penguin USA |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-399-52922-1 |page=839 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zMSROkev7ksC |access-date=June 24, 2012}}</ref>
* She received a Star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] on February 8, 1960, for her contribution to motion pictures.<ref name=hollywoodwof>{{Cite web | title=Jayne Mansfield | url=https://walkoffame.com/jayne-mansfield/ | website=[[Hollywood Walk of Fame]]| date=October 25, 2019 }}</ref>
* On [[Mother's Day]] of 1960, the Mildred Strauss Child Care Chapter of Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City declared her family as the "Family of the Year".<ref name="Faris 1994 24, 163">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|pp=24, 163}}</ref>
* Italian film, radio and television journalists awarded her the Silver Mask award in 1962.<ref name="Faris 1994 140">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=140}}</ref>
* Mansfield received the Oscar of the Two World award in Italy.<ref name="Filming in Italy Rough on Star">{{cite news |title=Filming in Italy Rough on Star |work=[[The News and Courier]] |date=July 27, 1962 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2506&dat=19620727&id=RWNJAAAAIBAJ&pg=576,4353852 }}{{Dead link|date=March 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="Faris 1994 26">{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=26}}</ref>
* In 1963, Mansfield was voted one of the top-10 box-office attractions by an organization of American theater owners for her performance in ''[[Promises! Promises!]]'' (a film banned in parts of the U.S.).<ref name=deboltbaugess2011/><ref name=Faris01/>
* In 1968, the Hollywood Publicists Guild declared a "Jayne Mansfield Award" would be given to the actress who received the most exposure and publicity in a year.<ref name=farisbeauty/> [[Raquel Welch]] was the first winner of the award in 1969.<ref name=saxton1975-153>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=153}}</ref>

===Legacy===
Mansfield left behind five children and a crumbling estate,<ref>Claudia Luther, "Jayne Mansfield Estate Depleted of Funds for Heirs", ''Saratosa Herald-Tribune'', page 3E, September 30, 1977</ref><ref>UPI, "Jayne Mansfield left a penniless estate", ''Lodi News Sentinel'', page 12, September 30, 1977</ref><ref>AP, "Mansfield's Children Find Estate Empty", ''The Daily Courier'', page 8A, September 30, 1977</ref> including the Pink Palace.

Mansfield is known for helping shape the "[[Blonde stereotype|dumb blonde]]" stereotype.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 4, 2013 |title=Top 10 Hollywood Actresses Playing Dumb Blondes |url=https://www.mensxp.com/entertainment/gossip/9006-top-10-hollywood-actresses-playing-dumb-blondes.html |access-date=July 9, 2023 |website=mensxp.com |language=en-IN}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |title=Jayne Mansfield, 1933-1967 The girl couldn't help it|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/interviews/jayne-mansfield-1933-1967-the-girl-couldnt-help-it |access-date=July 9, 2023 |website=rogerebert.com/ |date=December 14, 2012 |language=en}}</ref> Contrary to her public persona, Mansfield was quite intelligent, and at one point could speak up to five different languages.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 18, 2013 |title=The Smartest 'Dumbest' Blonde Ever? |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/jayne-mansfield-blonde-bombshell_n_3110418 |access-date=July 9, 2023 |website=HuffPost |language=en}}</ref>

Her daughter Mariska became an actress and star of ''[[Law & Order: Special Victims Unit]]''. She has won several awards for her work on the show, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in 2005 and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in 2006.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mariska Hargitay|url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/person/mariska-hargitay|access-date=December 11, 2020|website=goldenglobes.com|language=en}}</ref> Hargitay released ''[[My Mom Jayne]]'', a documentary about Mansfield, in June 2025.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mariska Hargitay Directing HBO Documentary About Her Mother, Jayne Mansfield|url= https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/mariska-hargitay-hbo-documentary-jayne-mansfield-1236184679/|access-date=April 25, 2025|website=The Hollywood Reporter|date= April 8, 2025}}</ref>

====Estate====
After Mansfield's death, Hargitay, Cimber, Vera Peers (Mansfield's mother), William Pigue (Jayne Marie's legal guardian), and Charles Goldring (Mansfield's business manager), as well as Bernard B. Cohen and Jerome Webber (both administrators of the estate) filed unsuccessful suits to gain control of her estate.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=163}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Muir |first=Floralbel |title=Mansfield Estate Causes Problems |work=[[The News and Courier]] |date=August 17, 1967 |page=3}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Mansfield's Death Brings Suit |work=[[The Morning Journal]] |location=Daytona Beach, Florida |date=June 23, 1968 |page=6}}</ref> Mansfield's estate was appraised initially at $600,000 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|0.6|1971|r=1}}}}&nbsp;million in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars),{{inflation-fn|US}} including the Pink Palace, estimated at $100,000 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|100000|1971|r=-4}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars), a sports car sold for $7,000 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|7000|1971|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars), her jewelry, and Sam Brody's $185,000 estate left to her in his last will (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|185000|1971|r=-4}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).<ref>{{cite news |title=Actresses' Estate Settled |work=[[The Tuscaloosa News]] |date=February 3, 1971 |page=22}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jayne Mansfield Named Heir to Lawyer's Estate |work=Reading Eagle |date=August 1, 1967 |page=24}}</ref> In 1971, Beverly Brody sued the Mansfield estate for $325,000 (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|325000|1971|r=-4}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars) worth of presents and jewelry given to Mansfield by Sam Brody; the suit was settled out of court.<ref>{{harvnb|Faris|1994|p=38}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Saxton|1975|p=218}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Strait|1992|p=302}}</ref> However, her four eldest children (Jayne Marie, Mickey, Zoltan, and Mariska) went to court in 1977 to find that approximately $500,000 in debt that Mansfield had incurred (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|0.500000|1971|r=1}}}}&nbsp;million in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars), including $11,000 for lingerie (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|11000|1971|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars), $11,600 for plumbing of the heart-shaped swimming pool (${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|11600|1971|r=-3}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars), and litigation had left the estate insolvent.<ref>{{cite news |last=Luther |first=Claudia |title=Jayne Mansfield Estate Depleted of Funds for Heirs |work=[[Sarasota Herald-Tribune]] |date=September 30, 1977 |page=3}}</ref>

The Pink Palace was sold. Its subsequent owners included [[Ringo Starr]] and [[Engelbert Humperdinck (singer)|Engelbert Humperdinck]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Wallace |first=David |title=Hollywoodland |publisher=Thorndike |year=2003 |isbn=9780786252039 |page=284}}</ref> [[Cass Elliot]] is often falsely claimed to have owned the home. In 2002, Humperdinck sold it to developers, and the house was demolished in November of that year.<ref>{{cite book |last=Byles |first=Jeff |title=Rubble: Unearthing the History of Demolition |url=https://archive.org/details/rubbleunearthing00byle |url-access=registration |publisher=Harmony |year=2005 |isbn=0-9534787-0-X |page=[https://archive.org/details/rubbleunearthing00byle/page/7 7]}}</ref> What remained of her estate was subsequently managed by CMG Worldwide, an intellectual property-management company.<ref>{{cite web|title=List of Clients |work=CMG Worldwide |url=http://cmgworldwide.com/corporate/clients.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728124851/http://www.cmgworldwide.com/corporate/clients.html |archive-date=July 28, 2013 }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Jayne Mansfield performances]]
* [[Jayne Mansfield in popular culture]]
* ''[[The Jayne Mansfield Story]]''
* [[Playboy]]
** [[List of people in Playboy 1953–1959]]
** [[List of people in Playboy 1960–1969]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==Citations==
{{reflist}}

==Biographies==

===Internet===
* {{cite web|title=Biography |publisher=[[Biography.com]] |url=http://94.236.123.155:8082/biographies/jayne-mansfield.html |access-date=July 2, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722014914/http://94.236.123.155:8082/biographies/jayne-mansfield.html |archive-date=July 22, 2012 }}
* {{cite encyclopedia|title=Biography |encyclopedia=[[St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture]] |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g1epc/is_bio/ai_2419200783 |access-date=July 2, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810022030/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g1epc/is_bio/ai_2419200783/ |archive-date=August 10, 2011 }}
* {{cite news |title=Biography |work=[[Salon.com]] |url=http://www.salon.com/2001/08/06/jayne_mansfield/ |access-date=July 2, 2012|date=August 6, 2001 }}
* {{cite news |title=Biography |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/person/45173/Jayne-Mansfield/biography |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130130103445/http://movies.nytimes.com/person/45173/Jayne-Mansfield/biography |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 30, 2013 |department=Movies & TV Dept. |work=[[The New York Times]] |first=Hal |last=Erickson |author-link=Hal Erickson (author) |access-date=July 2, 2012| ref=none}}

===Books===
* [[Michael Feeney Callan]] (1986) ''Pink Goddess: The Jayne Mansfield Story''. W H Allen. {{ISBN|978-0863791642}}
* {{cite book |last=Mann |first=May |author-link=May Mann |title=Jayne Mansfield: A Biography |publisher=Abelard-Schuman |year=1974 |isbn=978-0-200-72138-7 }}
* {{cite book |last=Strait |first=Raymond |year=1974 |title=Tragic Secret Life of Jayne Mansfield |publisher=Robert Hale |isbn=0709155433| ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Saxton |first=Martha |author-link=Martha Saxton |title=Jayne Mansfield and the American Fifties |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |year=1975 |location=New York |isbn=978-0-395-20289-0 }}
* {{cite book |last=Strait |first=Raymond |year=1992 |title=Here They Are Jayne Mansfield |publisher=S.P.I. Books |location=New York |isbn=978-1-56171-146-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1SdKmX_KPqAC }}
* {{cite book |last=Faris |first=Jocelyn | title=Jayne Mansfield: A Bio-Bibliography |publisher=Greenwood Press |location=Westport, CT |date=November 1994 |isbn=978-0-313-28544-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XAolFaC9PbIC }}
* {{cite book |last=Ferruccio |first=Frank | year=2007 |title=Diamonds to Dust: The Life and Death of Jayne Mansfield |publisher=Outskirts Press |isbn=978-1432712419| ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Jordan |first=Jessica Hope |title=The Sex Goddess In American Film 1930–1965: Jean Harlow, Mae West, Lana Turner and Jayne Mansfield |publisher=Cambria Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-60497-663-2 }}
* {{cite book |last=Ferruccio |first=Frank |year=2010 |title=Did Success Spoil Jayne Mansfield? Her Life in Pictures & Text |publisher=Outskirts Press |isbn=978-1432761233| ref=none}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|d=Q229507|n=no|c=Category:Jayne Mansfield|b=no|v=no|voy=no|m=no|mw=no|species=no|wikt=no|s=no}}

'''Papers'''
* {{cite web |title=Jayne Mansfield Death Certificate |work=Findadeath.com |year=1967 |access-date=March 9, 2012 |url=http://www.findadeath.com/Deceased/m/Mansfield/dc.jpg |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120404094803/http://www.findadeath.com/Deceased/m/Mansfield/dc.jpg |archive-date=April 4, 2012 |url-status=dead }}

'''Media'''
* [https://texasarchive.org/2019_01288 Jayne Mansfield arrives in Houston in 1963 KPRC2 video] from [[Texas Archive of the Moving Image]]

'''Metadata'''
* {{IBDB name}}
* [https://catalog.afi.com/Person/80003-Jayne-Mansfield AFI|Catalog]
* {{Tcmdb name}}
* {{IMDb name}}

{{Jayne Mansfield}}
{{Playmates of 1955}}
{{Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year Actress}}
{{Burlesque Hall of Fame}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mansfield, Jayne}}
[[Category:Jayne Mansfield| ]]
[[Category:1933 births]]
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[[Category:American beauty pageant winners]]
[[Category:American film actresses]]
[[Category:American people of Cornish descent]]
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[[Category:American people of German descent]]
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[[Category:New Star of the Year (Actress) Golden Globe winners]]
[[Category:People from Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:People from Phillipsburg, New Jersey]]
[[Category:1950s Playboy Playmates]]
[[Category:Road incident deaths in Louisiana]]
[[Category:University of Dallas alumni]]
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[[Category:Pseudonymous actors]]
[[Category:Actresses from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania]]
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