On the occasion of what would have been her mother Jayne Mansfield’s 90th birthday, Mariska Hargitay, the renowned star of Law & Order: SVU, chose to honor her in a remarkable manner.
Taking to Instagram, the actress shared a poignant snapshot of her mother accompanied by an affectionate caption penned by Hargitay herself. “Happy birthday Mama. We live to love you more each day” she expressed warmly.
The protagonist of “Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?” also took to her Instagram Story to share a brief video featuring her mother. Mansfield, originally named Vera Jayne Palmer, arrived on April 19, 1933, and swiftly ascended to stardom during the 1950s and 1960s, earning a reputation as one of Hollywood’s foremost blonde bombshells. Often regarded as Marilyn Monroe’s contemporary and aptly dubbed the “Everyman’s Monroe,” she gained prominence.
Beyond her movie roles like “The Girl Can’t Help It,” “Promises! Promises!,” and “The Sheriff of a Fractured Jaw,” she also graced Playboy magazine as a Playmate. However, her life tragically curtailed in 1967 due to a fatal car accident, leaving her at the age of 34.
Hargitay, who was merely three years old at that time, was among the passengers seated in the car’s backseat along with her two siblings. While the children survived the accident, Mansfield, her attorney and partner Sam Brody, as well as their driver Ronnie Harrison, met an instantaneous demise.
“I believe I grasped the concept of crisis at an early age. It became apparent to me that unexpected setbacks occur, and assurances are rare. However, we persist in moving forward and in the process, we metamorphose,” she confided to Glamour in 2021. “This has become somewhat of my superpower, an offering stemming from the adversity I encountered during my formative years.”
“Evidently, a considerable part of my childhood I spent in a state of emotional suspension, focused on sheer survival.” she appended. “My life has thus evolved as a journey to gradually shed these layers, rediscover trust, and embrace the act of trusting once more.”