In the 1950s, Jayne Mansfield became famous in Hollywood. Her daughter, Mariska Hargitay, was just three years old when Jayne had a fatal car accident in 1967, and Mariska was in the car too.
Luckily, Mariska survived and is doing well. She’s now a famous actor in today’s time. She looks a lot like her mom!
Becoming a Hollywood star usually takes a lot of hard work over many years. Most famous people would say it’s worth it in the end,
In under ten years, Jayne Mansfield became a huge star, mainly because of her roles in popular movies. She was a famous and attractive figure in the 1950s and 1960s.
Sometimes people called her “the poor man’s Marilyn Monroe” because she got similar kinds of roles, often playing a character seen as not very smart. But in reality, she was different from those characters.
Sadly, Jayne Mansfield died in a car accident in 1967, leaving behind five kids. Today, her children are working hard to keep her memory alive.
This is the story of the lively life of Jayne Mansfield and her daughter Mariska Hargitay, who looks a lot like her mom.
Jayne Mansfield had a life that was both glamorous and sad.
In the beginning, when she was known as Vera Jayne Palmer and born on April 19, 1933, in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, she experienced the artistic side of life. Her dad, Herbert, who was a musician, taught her to sing and play the violin when she was a little kid.
But when Jayne was only three, her father passed away from a heart attack while they were traveling. This left her mom, Vera, who used to be a schoolteacher, alone with Jayne. Her mom had to go back to work to support the family.
She said, “Something went out of my life. My earliest memories are the best. I always try to remember the good times when Daddy was alive.”
In 1939, Jayne’s mom got married again, and the family moved to Dallas, Texas. At the same time, Jayne dreamed of becoming a Hollywood star. She loved watching Judy Garland’s movies and even dressed like her, hoping t
Jayne Mansfield didn’t finish high school before she met her first husband. She married Paul Mansfield when she was very young, just 20 years old, in 1950. They went to Southern Methodist University together to study acting, and a year later, Jayne had their first daughter, Jayne Marie Mansfield.
She entered a Miss California competition after taking a course at UCLA in Los Angeles, but she decided to leave. The family then chose to go to the University of Texas in Austin, where Jayne acted in several plays.
Even though it was fun, Jayne still wanted to go to Hollywood. So, in 1954, she moved to Los Angeles with her family.
Getting into the acting business is not easy for anyone. When Jayne started modeling, her curvy figure became a problem. Casting directors thought she was too attractive and seductive for commercials or advertisements. She even got cut out of her very first ad, which was for General Electric.
Jayne really wanted to be in movies, and she finally got a chance. She tried out for Paramount and Warner Brothers, but they didn’t choose her.
However, something important happened when she auditioned for Paramount. The person in charge of casting, Milton Lewis, told her something that changed how she saw herself.
“I had been to three different universities and two or three dramatic schools before I went to Hollywood, preparing myself for my hoped career as an actress. I did a soliloquy for Joan of Arc for Milton Lewis, who was head of casting at Paramount Studios to audition. And he seemed to think I was wasting my ‘obvious talents.’ He lightened my hair and tightened my dresses, and this is the result.”
Jayne Mansfield wanted to be as famous as Marilyn Monroe, who was the biggest Hollywood star at that time. But while her Hollywood career was starting, her husband Paul had enough and they got divorced in 1955. Their daughter stayed with Jayne in Los Angeles.
Jayne’s career finally took off when she got a role in a low-budget film called Female Jungle in 1955, which got her a lot of attention. In the same year, she was named “Playmate of the Month” and appeared on the cover of Playboy Magazine.
Her new style – the pinup, provocative blonde bombshell – was supposed to cement her status as the new Marilyn Monroe, and in a way, she definitely succeeded. Pink proved to be her color, with Jayne even buying a pink Cadillac to drive.
Studios wanted more of her and soon she was signed. Fox began to market her as the “Marilyn Monroe King-Size,” and her success grew. By that point she wasn’t just an actress; she was a sex symbol of the 1950s.
One journalist even claimed: “She suffered so many on-stage strap and zipper mishaps that nudity was, for her, a professional hazard.”
Jayne gained even more attention following her appearance in Fox’s 1957 comedy blockbuster Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?. That same year, she received a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Female. The following year, she starred alongside Kenneth More in the Western The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw (1958).
Jayne scored several other – for the time being – provocative roles, including The Burglar (1957) and Too Hot to Handle (1960). Sadly, however, she was labelled “The Poor Man’s Marilyn Monroe”.
At that time, Mansfield had gotten married to second-husband, actor and bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay. They tied the knot in 1958, at a press-filled ceremony in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Before long, the family was growing. In 1959, they welcomed son Mickey Hargitay, and two more children followed. Son Zoltan Hargitay was born in 1960, and daughter Mariska Magdolna Hargitay was welcomed in 1964.
Following her performance in Too Hot to Handle, Jayne went into her first legal battle regarding film censorship. The release date of the film was delayed because of her appearing nude in what was at the time considered a scandalous dress.
A couple of years later, she got into another battle regarding the same thing. Her film Promises! Promises! (1963) sparked a huge talking point when Mansfield became the first American Hollywood movie star to appear nude on screen. The scene was considered to be way too explicit, leading to censoring and, in some cases, it being banned across the world.
By this point, Mansfield was a huge Hollywood star, with an image that at the time was considered to be “owned by the public.”
It was something she enjoyed and thought was mandatory.
”Actually, I feel that a star own it to her public, to bring the public into her life,” she said in 1960.
“The fans feel that they kind of own you and if you kept your life a complete secret it wouldn’t be fair to them. But my private life, and when I say private life, is always very private.”
As quick as Jayne had risen to fame, her career also began to fail. She was dropped from 20th Century Fox in 1962, and instead went on to appear in several TV programs and game shows. Instead of just focusing on Hollywood, Mansfield decided to go International in the 1960s, starring in several German, Italian and British films. She began also appearing onstage at nightclubs, touring both in the US and in the UK.
In 1967, a tour was put together by Don Arden, the legendary music manager, as well as father of Sharon Osbourne. One week, she was performing in the town of Batley.
Her Hollywood glamour sure did something to the people there.
“My dad thought that all these not-so-glamorous ladies would show up at Batley with their hair rollers and headscarves,” explained Neil Sean, an entertainment reporter for NBC News. “But as the week went on, they became more and more glamorous, showing up with their hair done and lipstick.”
At that point, Jayne Mansfield and Mickey Hargitay had gotten divorced, and she married director Matt Cimber. They had her fifth child, Anthony Cimber, in 1965, but they divorced the same year.
The UK tour was the last one Jayne Mansfield did. On the way from a nightclub in Mississippi to New Orleans, she got into a car accident and died at the age of 34. The accident also took the lives of her then-boyfriend Sam Brody and their driver. She was buried next to her father in Fairview Cemetery in Pennsylvania.
In the car were three of her children, who were sleeping in the backseat and thankfully were not hurt. Mariska Hargitay, who was just three years old at the time, went to live with her father, Mickey Hargitay.
So, what happened to Mariska? Well, she followed her mother into acting, and she looks a lot like her!
“Losing my mother at such an early age is the scar of my soul,” she told Redbook in 2009.
“But I feel like it ultimately made me into the person I am today. I understand the journey of life. I had to go through what I did to be here.”
Mariska decided to study theater at UCLA in California. In 1984, she made her film debut in Ghoulies. She spent the 1980s performing in several TV series in order to pursue a career on the bigger stage. But, unlike her mother, she didn’t change her name or the color of her hair. People advised her to change her name and appearance, and even copy her mother’s sexy image. At one point, she turned down doing a nude scene in the movie Jocks (1986).
Being the daughter of a Hollywood icon hasn’t been easy. And sometimes, it even has been a burden for Mariska.
“I used to hate constant references to my mom because I wanted to be known for myself,” she told Closer. “Losing my mother at such a young age is the scar of my soul.”
Before Mariska got her big role, she had been acting for 15 years. She started playing Olivia Benson in the TV show Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 1999, and she has been in a total of 481 episodes. The show is still being made.
Because of this popular show, Mariska has built a successful career. She won an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for her role as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. She was also nominated for eight other awards.
Mariska Hargitay is now a well-known actress, just like her mother. She even looks a lot like her with that beautiful smile!
In 2004, Mariska married actor and producer Peter Hermann, and they have three children.
Mariska was very young when her mother died in a car accident, but becoming a mom herself has made her feel closer to the mom she lost so early in life.
“Being a wife and mother is my life, and that gives me the most joy,” she said. “I understand [my mother] in a new way that gives me peace. Now I understand the love she had in her, and it makes me feel closer to her.”
When their stars were placed next to each other on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013, Mariska Hargitay and her mother Jayne Mansfield were reconnected in a way.
Jayne Mansfield’s remarkable performances will live on in memory forever.
Although she is no longer with us, she will always be remembered, and Mariska, her daughter, is an amazing actress. Don’t they resemble one another?
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I Was Excited to Meet My Fiancé’s Parents, but Dinner Turned Into a Nightmare – Story of the Day
Meeting my fiancé’s parents should have been exciting, but nothing prepared me for the tension and judgment that followed. Between the quiet stares, sharp words, and unexpected secrets, the evening turned into a whirlwind I’ll never forget.
Mark and I had been together for about a year, and just recently, he proposed. It wasn’t the dreamy, candlelit proposal I had imagined as a little girl, but it was heartfelt, and I knew it came from a place of love.
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Besides, Mark and I would’ve ended up engaged anyway—it was just a matter of timing.
He proposed shortly after we found out I was pregnant. The pregnancy wasn’t planned, but the moment we saw those two little lines, everything changed. We were thrilled, nervous, and ready to tackle parenthood together.
That evening, we had dinner plans with Mark’s parents, and I was a bundle of nerves.
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Mark always described them as strict and traditional, which made me feel like I was stepping into an interview instead of a family meal.
Still, I told myself I could win them over. I’d always been good at making people like me—or so I hoped.
When Mark got home from work, I immediately began rifling through my closet.
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I must have tried on ten outfits, spinning in front of the mirror, asking, “Is this okay?”
Each time, Mark smiled and said, “You look great.”
But “great” wasn’t enough. I needed to look flawless. First impressions were everything.
In the end, I laughed at myself, realizing I had chosen the very first outfit I’d tried on.
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“Do you think they’ll like me?” I asked, twisting my hair into place.
“Of course, they’ll like you. How could they not?” Mark said, watching me in the mirror.
“But what if they don’t?” I asked, turning to face him.
“Then it doesn’t matter,” he said, his voice calm. “The only thing that matters is that I like you.”
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“Like?” I teased, raising an eyebrow.
Mark smirked. “I like you more than anyone. I love you even more.”
I laughed softly. “Good save.”
Mark leaned in and kissed me, his grin warm and reassuring. “You’ll be perfect.”
Once we were ready, I carefully picked up the cherry pie I had baked for the dinner.
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The warm, sweet scent was comforting, like a small reminder that I had put effort into tonight. Mark opened the car door for me, and we both climbed in.
During the drive to his parents’ house, I couldn’t help but notice Mark gripping the steering wheel a little too tightly.
His jaw was set, and his eyes focused straight ahead. “Are you okay?” I asked softly.
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“Yeah,” he said, but his voice wavered. I reached over, taking his hand. I wasn’t sure if I was trying to calm him or myself.
When we pulled up in front of the house, Mark sighed and looked at me. “Just… don’t say anything unnecessary, okay?”
“I won’t,” I promised.
We walked to the door, hearts pounding, and Mark rang the bell. A moment later, his mother appeared.
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“Hi, we’ve been waiting for you,” she said, her tone sharp but polite. “I’m Erin, though I assume you already know that,” she added, her eyes fixed on me.
“Yes, I’m Danica,” I replied, forcing a smile as I held out the pie. “I baked a cherry pie. Mark told me it’s your favorite.”
Erin’s face changed instantly, her smile fading. “A pie, hmm? I thought the host was supposed to handle the food. Or do you think I can’t bake my own pie?”
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“No, of course not!” I said quickly. “I just wanted to bring something special. I didn’t mean to offend you.”
She looked at the pie, then back at me. “It’s fine. Come in,” she said, stepping aside without another word.
Dinner was painfully quiet. The only sounds were the clinking of silverware and the occasional scrape of a chair.
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Mark had warned me his family didn’t talk during meals, but I thought he was joking.
Sitting there in silence felt awkward and unnatural. I glanced at Mark, but he just gave me a small, reassuring smile.
When we finished eating, I stood up to help Erin clear the table. She didn’t say much, just nodded and muttered a quick “thank you.”
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We moved to the living room, where Mark’s father, George, sat stiffly, barely looking at me.
He seemed uninterested, like I was a guest he didn’t ask for. Conversation turned to the wedding, but I had little to share.
“What kind of dress are you thinking of?” Erin asked, her eyes scanning me like she was already judging my answer.
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Before I could respond, George spoke up. “Erin, leave the girl alone. You’ve been bombarding her with questions all evening.” His tone was gruff, but it was the first time he had addressed me.
“It’s fine. I don’t mind,” I said, offering a small smile, though my nerves were fraying.
“See, George? She doesn’t mind,” Erin said, smiling back at me for the first time. It felt almost like approval, and I let out a small breath of relief.
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I looked at Mark and smiled, taking his hand. His touch grounded me. But the warmth of the moment vanished as Erin’s smile hardened.
“Danica, dear, in our family, we don’t show affection in front of others, especially before marriage,” she said, her tone sharp.
I dropped Mark’s hand like it was on fire. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, embarrassed.
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“So,” Erin continued, her focus shifting back to me, “what kind of dress do you want? You have such a lovely figure. Something fitted and long would suit you perfectly.”
I hesitated, feeling my cheeks heat up. “Well, I won’t have this figure for long. I’ll be five months along by the wedding, so I was thinking of something more flowing.”
Mark groaned softly and buried his face in his hands. My stomach dropped.
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“Five months along?” Erin’s voice was clipped, her eyebrow arched in disbelief.
I nodded. “Pregnant,” I said simply.
The room felt like it froze. Erin gasped, clutching her chest like I had just confessed to a crime. “Oh, my God,” she whispered. “What a disgrace! My son is going to have a child out of wedlock!”
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I blinked, stunned. “Excuse me, what?”
“This is shameful! You’re a disgrace to our family! How could you do such a thing before marriage?” Erin shouted, her voice rising with each word.
“We’re adults,” I said, trying to stay calm. “We’re excited about this baby—”
“Danica, stop talking,” Mark muttered under his breath.
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“How could you choose such a shameless fiancée?” Erin yelled at Mark. “She must have seduced you!”
“Erin, stop yelling at her. She’s pregnant,” George said, his voice cutting through her tirade.
“That’s the problem! What will people say?” Erin wailed. “Get out of my house! I don’t want to see you again!”
Tears spilled over as I stammered, “What did I do? I don’t understand…”
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“You and your illegitimate child are a stain on this family!” Erin spat. “Maybe it’s not too late for an abortion?”
I gasped. “What? What are you saying?” I cried, choking on my tears. Mark stayed silent, his face unreadable.
“Danica, let’s go,” Mark finally said, grabbing my hand.
Outside, his frustration boiled over. “What was that?!” he yelled at me.
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“I should be asking you that!” I shot back, my voice shaking.
“I told you not to say anything unnecessary!” he snapped.
“I didn’t know our child was ‘unnecessary’ to you!” I yelled.
“Not to me—to them,” he replied sharply.
“You said their opinions didn’t matter!” I cried, shaking my head.
“I warned you they were conservative,” he said, his voice flat.
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I looked at him, my heart breaking. “I’m staying at my place tonight,” I said, my tone firm, before turning away.
I still had a month left on the lease for my old apartment, so Mark drove me there. The ride was silent, tense.
When he pulled up, I stepped out without a word. Once inside, I sat on the couch, tears streaming down my face.
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My chest ached as I replayed the dinner over and over. Mark hadn’t defended me or our baby.
How could he let his mother say those things? My thoughts spiraled, and I placed a hand on my stomach, wondering if all this stress was hurting the baby.
The next morning, a firm knock startled me awake. Groggy, I shuffled to the door and opened it. George stood there, his expression unreadable.
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“How are you?” George asked, his voice calm but firm.
“What are you doing here?” I snapped, crossing my arms.
“I came to apologize for Erin,” he said, glancing down briefly. “She can be… overly emotional.”
I hesitated, then stepped back. “Would you like to come in?”
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“No, I won’t stay long,” he replied, shaking his head. “I just wanted to explain. This is personal for her. Her parents were very conservative, even more than she is. When we got married, she was already pregnant with Mark.”
I stared at him, stunned. “What? Then why did she react so negatively to me being pregnant?”
George sighed, shifting uncomfortably. “She has always felt ashamed of it. She thinks we should have waited. She doesn’t regret having Mark, but it’s something she struggles with. I wanted you to know.”
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I frowned, still hurt but trying to understand. “That’s why she treated me like that? To protect some old-fashioned idea of pride?”
George nodded. “Yes. You can share this with Mark or even tell Erin’s relatives if she keeps making a fuss.”
“I won’t tell anyone,” I said softly. “I don’t want her to feel as hurt as I do now.”
George gave me a small nod, then turned to leave.
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After he left, I decided to return to Mark. But as I stepped outside, I froze. He was standing there, holding a bouquet of flowers.
“I’m sorry,” Mark said, looking right at me. “I should have stood up for you and the baby. I didn’t know what to do, and I was scared.”
“Thank you for apologizing. It hurt so much,” I admitted.
“It won’t happen again. I promise, I’ll always be on your side,” he said, his voice steady.
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I nodded, a small smile breaking through. “Thank you.”
Mark leaned in, and I kissed him.
Suddenly, his phone buzzed. He stepped aside to answer it.
“It was my mom,” he said when he came back. “She wants to apologize. She asked what your favorite pie is.”
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I smiled faintly. “Tell her I love cherry pie too.”
Mark grinned. “Looks like you already have something in common.”
“You have no idea,” I whispered, letting him pull me into a warm hug.
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