Newlyweds Jayne Mansfield and Mickey Hargitay bought this seven-bedroom Mediterranean mansion in 1958 for $76,000 (nearly 700,000 today.) The couple painted it pink — the actress’ trademark color — and dubbed it the Pink Palace. Features added by Mansfield included a heart-shaped pool and pink shag carpeting, even on the walls and ceilings. The actress lived there until her death in 1967, and it was part of her public persona.” (HollywoodReporter.com)
The incredibly intelligent and multilingual Jayne Mansfield or as the tabloids loved to call her, the other Blonde, the Working Man's Marilyn, and The Real Life Barbie Doll was a sex symbol and the one who made Marilyn Monroe uncomfortable with her proud display of sexual enjoyment. That's right, Jayne had often been compared to Marilyn Monroe, the more openly sexual version. Word circulated that Marilyn had even hoped to pursue legal action against Jayne for her raunchy likeness to Marilyn. To Jayne, it was all apart of her persona, the sexualization of everything and overly feminine joie de vivre. A woman who was ahead of her time and knew that people weren't interested in her high IQ or ability to speak 5 languages. Her proficiency in classical instruments wasn't enough to keep anyone's attention either. According to Jayne herself, "No one wants to see or read about a dull subject. I don't consider myself a dull subject.
No, no she most definitely was not dull. She was quite vibrant and loud in her approach to life. She knew very well who she was and what she wanted from life, always on the search for self-betterment.
When she purchased her home on 10100 Sunset blvd she not only wanted the house to be painted in her favorite trademark color of pink she also wanted hearts throughout the house. The pool as well as bath, fireplace, outdoor dining area stonework, furniture, and more were all heart-shaped.
The photo above shows the wall along the staircase in her home filled with framed magazines that Jayne was on the cover of or featured in.
Her master bedroom and bathroom were all covered in pink shag carpet, walls included. Some of the late 50s and 60s photos of her show bruisings on her upper thighs, you can assume she lived a very colorful and rousing love life. It was even rumored her dirty bath water was sold for $10 a bottle. If that is true then that is rather impressive. She worked quite hard for everything she had and always figured out another way to make an appearance or book another gig to make more money. She had expressed on a few different occasions that she enjoyed the finer things in life and never accepted those things from anyone, she worked hard for her own luxuries. I respect that a lot because history tried to write her off as a dumb blonde chasing the limelight. She has lasted through her fans as a highly intelligent and hard-working female who knew all too well how to work her body and grab you under her spell.
Jayne lived in this house until her untimely death on June 29th, 1967. A bank president and his family were the first occupants of the house after Jayne’s death. The banker’s son found a pink Honda that late actor, Nick Adams had given Jayne during a brief affair. The boy took it for a spin around the estate and then decided to try it out on the road. He was struck and killed by an oncoming car just as he was leaving the gates. Allegedly, the banker and his family moved out the same day.
Singer Cass Elliot of the Mamas & the Papas later bought the house. Cass left her husband to oversee the redecorating while she went off to record some television commercials in London. Cass’s death occurred while she was away.
The next occupant of the house experienced strange phenomena as well. She began to feel the urge to dye her hair blonde, dress in Jayne’s clothing that she had found in storage, and even consulted a plastic surgeon about breast enlargements. When questioned by her concerned friends, she could give no explanation for her strange behavior. One night she claimed to hear a woman’s voice begging her to “get out.” The woman packed up her belongings and fled the Pink Palace.
Beatle Ringo Starr, a former friend of Jayne’s was the next to occupy the mansion. Ringo had the exterior of the house painted white, however, it began turning pink again soon after. The house was repainted again using a sealer and two coats of paint but turned pink once more. Finally, the house was repainted a third time and remained white until it was torn down.
Singer Englebert Humperdinck, who had once been romantically involved with Jayne purchased the house in 1977. Upon moving in he had the house blessed by a Catholic priest and stated that he did not believe the house was haunted any longer. He sold the Pink Palace to developers in 2002 where it was demolished later that year. (StLouis.style)
To think that the home of such an iconic celebrity from Hollywood's golden age was demolished really saddens me. More and more historic properties are being torn down for either larger dwellings or sometimes made into a street. I wish Jaynes Pink Palace was still around, it was a unique property that had such a direct link to Hollywood.
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