Biography

merican actress and sexual icon of the 1950s and 1960s. Born in Pennsylvania, she moved to Dallas, Texas after the death of her father, attended the University of Dallas, and participated in little theatre productions. She won small beauty contests (such as "Miss Magnesium Lamp"), and attended the University of Texas in Austin, taking drama classes. In 1954 she arrived in Los Angeles, where she studied acting at UCLA and worked in bit parts in television. She landed a small but sexy role in _Pete Kelly's Blues (1955), which led to roles which were more prominent in several ways. A job in the Broadway production of "Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?" brought her a good deal of attention for her scantily clad appearance therein, and she repeated the role in the film version. Her high- pitched squeal of delight and the studied ease with which she flaunted her pulchritude led to a succession of roles as sex kittens and dumb blonde bimbos. Although she occasionally appeared in films of some quality, and though she apparently aspired to respectability as an actress on occasion, her public persona was too extreme to be taken seriously, and she became a sort of poor man's Marilyn Monroe, though without the onscreen vulnerability and ability that Monroe possessed. By the 1960s, Mansfield's career had declined into one of cheesy sexploitation and jokey guest appearances. While traveling between nightclub engagements, she was killed in a highway accident in 1967, when the car in which she was riding slammed into a semi- tractor trailer truck.

Filmography

Single Room Furnished (1968) .... Johnnie/Mae/Eileen
A Guide for the Married Man (1967) .... Technical Adviser (Girl with Harold)
The Fat Spy (1966) .... Junior
The Las Vegas Hillbillys (1966) .... Tawny
Dog Eat Dog (1964) .... Darlene
Panic Button (1964) .... Angela
Promises! Promises! (1963) .... Sandy Brooks
Heimweh nach St. Pauli (1963) .... Evelyne
It Happened in Athens (1962) .... Eleni Costa
The George Raft Story (1961) .... Lisa Lang
Monte Carlo (1961) (TV)
Too Hot to Handle (1960) .... Midnight Franklin
Amori di Ercole, Gli (1960) .... Queen Dianira/Hippolyta
The Challenge (1960) .... Billy
The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw (1958) .... Kate
Kiss Them for Me (1957) .... Alice Kratzner
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957) .... Rita Marlowe
The Burglar (1957) .... Gladden
The Wayward Bus (1957) .... Camille Oaks
The Girl Can't Help It (1956) .... Jerri Jordan
Sunday Spectacular: The Bachelor (1956) (TV) .... Robin
Illegal (1955) .... Angel O'Hara
Pete Kelly's Blues (1955) .... Cigarette Girl
Hell on Frisco Bay (1955) .... Blonde Who Dances with Mario
Female Jungle (1954) .... Candy Price