Blonde and Beautiful Bombshells of the Golden Era
Onscreen beauties were never quite as lovely as they were during Hollywood's golden era. Glamour and sex appeal were more in vogue than ever, and nothing was more popular than a beautiful blonde. Here is a quick run-down on some of the most popular blonde and beautiful bombshells of the golden era.
Jayne Mansfield: Before Marilyn Monroe became the epitome of the blonde bombshell, there was Jayne Mansfield. She was almost a caricature of herself: lively, blonde, and extravagantly sexy. During Hollywood's famed golden era, Jayne Mansfield reigned as one of the brightest stars. She was born Vera Jayne Palmer on April 19, 1933 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Jayne Mansfield first caught the public's attention in a somewhat unusual manner. During a press junket for the Howard Hughes' produced film Underwater, she fell into a pool while sunbathing, causing the strap of her red lame sun suit to snap, giving the reporters quite a show. Photos were published in Variety, and a star was born. She became a hit on Broadway in the popular Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter. Her big film breakthrough came in 1956, when she starred in A Girl Can't Help It. With a roaring rock and roll soundtrack, the movie proved to be one of the biggest hits of the year. The film also helped cement her status as one of the all-time most popular blonde bombshells of the Hollywood golden era.
Marilyn Monroe: No compendium of blonde bombshells would be complete without a nod to Marilyn Monroe. After a rough start, Marilyn becomes iconic as a breathy, beautiful blond bombshell. For many years, she got bit parts in the movies. Her first starring role came with Niagara. Next came her prototypical blond bombshell roles that would come to define her image. Gentleman Prefer Blondes (1953) and How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) cemented her status as the leading blonde bombshell in Hollywood. Other memorable film roles came in the The Seven Year Itch (1955) and Some Like it Hot (1959). But Marilyn was more than just a blonde bombshell. She showed off her acting chops in Bus Stop (1956), purposely de-glamorizing herself for the role. Her last role, in The Misfits, also proved that she could extend herself beyond her blond bombshell identity.
Mamie Van Doren: Mamie Van Doren completes a triumvirate of fabulous blonde bombshells of Hollywood's golden era. She was born in a small farming community in South Dakota in 1931. Her family relocated to California in the 1940s. After doing modeling and singing, she secured a contract with Universal Pictures in 1953. She married popular bandleader Ray Anthony in 1956. Shortly after her marriage she left Universal because she felt underused. She also had a child in 1956. Instead of signing a new contract with another studio, she freelanced with major studios like Warner Bros. and MGM. She starred in the memorable film Teacher's Pet in 1955. Then she starred in a string of memorable B pictures that include The Beat Generation (1958), The Big Operator (1959), and Sex Kittens Go to College (1960).
Betty Grable: Betty Grable was one of the top blonde bombshells of Hollywood's golden era. Grable become one of the most famous of all the pin-up girls of the World War II era. Her famous over the shoulder pose graced the lockers of thousands of young soldiers during the war, of which it is believed over five million copies were distributed. She got her big break as a chorus girl at Twentieth Century Fox, where she earned $50 a week. She signed a five-year contract with RKO pictures in 1934. Her big break came in 1940 when she starred in Down Argentina Way, a musical that also marked the screen debut of the famous Brazilian singer and dancer Carmen Miranda. The film was made under the Good Neighbor Policy, which was meant to nurture the relationships between the United States and Latin America. In the years of 1942, 1943, and 1944, she was voted the screen's most beautiful blonde and was the number one female box office attraction. In 1944, she starred in Darryl F. Zanuck's Pin Up Girl, the perfect vehicle to capitalize on Grable's extraordinary popularity.
