Did you know that some of the legendary Hollywood “dumb blondes” were actually intellectual giants?
Bombshells like Jayne Mansfield, Marilyn Monroe, and others were known to have incredibly high IQs
and used their supreme intellect to advance their careers, push the bounds of publicity,
and even become poets, inventors, and more. So stick around, as Facts Verse presents,
Old Hollywood Bombshells Who Hid Their Genius IQ Levels!
Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield was
an enigmatic and successful performer who rose to stardom not because of her towering intellect, but
because she could play roles that were decidedly lacking intelligence. She was originally hired
and promoted by 20th Century Fox to be another Marilyn Monroe. The era of the “blonde bombshell”
had begun, and studios were clamoring to get their hands on women who could bring the glamour,
charm, and general ditziness that Monroe seemed to do so effortlessly. And so Jayne was basically
given the assignment by 20th Century Fox of becoming an exact copy of Monroe. It worked
fairly well, as Mansfield became a big name in Hollywood before her tragic and untimely death.
She was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania in 1933 to an attorney father and a schoolteacher
mother. Sadly, her father died of a heart at attack when Jayne was three years old.
Despite the hole that this left in young Jayne’s life, she was an excellent student. Her mother
pushed her to excel in school and to perform artistically as well. Jayne had an early interest
in dancing and playing the violin. She reportedly would play violin outside on her driveway,
entertaining anyone who happened to walk by. After attending SMU and the University of
Texas at Austin, she tried her hand at acting in Hollywood. These initial years were rough,
as she was rejected for contracts with Paramount and Warner Bros., and even was
let go from a modeling gig for G.E. for being too seductive. But eventually, she broke out in the
film business in the late 1950s and early ‘60s. She’s known for films like as Kiss Them For Me,
The Wayward Bus, and It Takes a Thief. At the same time, Mansfield was a cunning
businesswoman and had a mind for marketing. In an attempt to separate herself from the other
actresses vying for the throne of the most popular voluptuous blonde actress, she started wearing
only pink. She had decided pink was going to be her signature tone, and not only did she wear it
all the time, but she also drove a pink car and decorated her home in the color as well. As such,
she referred to her house as “the pink palace.” Mansfield pushed the boundaries when it came
to PR. For example, she participated in a Playboy interview in 1963 that was so racy
for the time that it landed Hugh Hefner in prison. This obviously garnered that issue
a ton of press. And that same year she was the first American actress to bare it all on screen
in “Promises! Promises!” which gave a much-needed publicity boost to her slightly fading career. And
when we consider how often this type of strategy has been used ever since, it’s hard not to see
Mansfield’s influence. She essentially originated the ‘wardrobe malfunction’ by regularly showing a
little too much skin “accidentally.” She even sold bottles of her used bath water to fans
as keepsakes, netting $10 with each one. Mansfield was said to have an IQ of 149.
Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe was perhaps the original blonde
bombshell, and she took Hollywood, and the world by storm when she became a movie star and pinup
icon. She had looks and talent, and an allure that was hard to define, yet easy to see. Yet Monroe,
like Jayne Mansfield, was far more intelligent than her ‘dumb blonde’ roles would suggest.
According to historians, most of what the public saw from Monroe was an act, and one she didn’t
particularly enjoy putting on. And yet the powers that be knew that they had a gold mine on their
hands, and they exploited her to the fullest. Monroe was essentially used as a sex object,
becoming the demure, and seemingly dumb caricature that she became globally famous for. She often was
given roles as a mistress or a gold-digger. But Monroe only begrudgingly went along with this kind
of marketing, because she knew she had an ‘it’ factor that other women couldn’t match. But her
intellect and talents made this typecasting a hard pill to swallow. She even disliked one of her most
famous scenes and images, that of the subway grate that blew up her dress in Billy Wilder’s “The
Seven Year Itch.” Monroe said of the shoot that initially, she was having fun and that it was an
innocent enough scene. But then Wilder insisted on shooting it over and over, and that ended up
drawing crowds of men around to leer at Monroe and shout at her, which she didn’t appreciate.
As far as her IQ goes, there are rumors that it was around 168, which is astonishingly high.
Although Scott Forner, who runs a website about Marilyn, disputes that specific number, pointing
out that she never actually took an IQ test. However, it is well known that she was a voracious
reader. Despite being a high school dropout, she owned a 400+ book library that consisted of books
on things ranging from poetry to politics, to philosophy. Monroe wrote poetry as well.
It's also said that Marilyn had a keen and biting sense of humor.
According to author Sarah Churchwell, who authored The Many Lives of Marilyn Monroe,
Monroe used her humor and intellect to even mess with journalists sometimes. Churchwell points out
a time when, after Monroe had recently divorced from playwright Arthur Miller,
a reporter asked her the rude question of whether she thought Miller had only married her so as to
have a muse. Monroe reportedly agreed to answer the question, with the stipulation that the
reporter had to print her full answer and not edit it. When he agreed, she replied, “No comment.”
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Hedy Lamarr Before Mansfield and
Monroe took the world by storm, there was Hedy Lamarr. Lamarr was called the most beautiful
woman in the world during the 1940’s and was an international pinup and movie star. She made a
name for herself for starring in the film Ecstasy in 1933, in which she not only appeared fully nude
but also appeared to have an orgasm on screen. Though Lamarr later revealed that the love scene
was basically the director shouting loudly at her and even poking her skin with a pin
to make her squirm. And yet it made Lamarr a big star, despite the film being banned in the US.
Though her notoriety was likely helped by the many secret screenings of the film in America.
She was also the inspiration for both Snow White and Catwoman, and her beauty was so highly
regarded that it was the most requested look for women seeking plastic surgery in the 1940s.
But despite being a major Hollywood actress and sex symbol, Lamarr’s biggest achievements weren’t
in tinsel town at all. Hedy was an incredible inventor. In between takes, and between movies,
she would tinker with all sorts of inventions and ideas that flowed out of her.
In her early inventing days she had some unsuccessful attempts,
like coming up with tablets that could be dropped into water to make soda. But she also had early
success, like helping her then-boyfriend Howard Hughes streamline his racing plane.
But Lamarr’s biggest achievement by far was an invention that helped the US Navy in World War II.
She and her inventing partner, composer George Antheil developed a secret communication system
for the Navy. It utilized what’s known as frequency hopping, and in particular,
it allowed the Navy to operate its radio-guided missiles underwater without them being picked
up by enemy radar. It was not only a huge triumph for the Navy, but it had lasting
effects for years to come, including the modern era. Lamarr’s ideas for frequency hopping were
the precursor to modern WiFi technology! So we have this brilliant woman to thank for
the way the world communicates today, 80 years after Lamarr and Antheil’s patent. While it’s
unknown if Lamarr ever took an IQ test, it’s clear her IQ was basically through the roof.
Judy Holliday Another very early starlet in the mold of
Mansfield, Monroe, and Lamarr was Judy Holliday. She played a string of classic “dumb blonde”
roles in the 1940s. There was perhaps no better example of this than the movie “Born Yesterday.”
It was first a stage play, and Holliday exhibited her brilliant mind when she landed the role.
She was a last minute fill in, and had to memorize the tricky role in three days. She did so without
issue, and the show was a hit. She then went on to play the role again in the movie adaptation
and won an Academy Award for their efforts. Holliday was reported to have had an IQ of 172,
which is staggeringly high. And there was one notable occasion where she was able to use her
intellect as well as her on screen persona to her advantage and to help others. In 1952, she was
brought before a Senate subcommittee that was part of the blacklisting and anti-Communist witch hunt
in Hollywood. Holliday, however, was determined not to sell out her friends and coworkers.
So she tapped into her “Born Yesterday” character of a rather idiotic girl with a silly voice
and managed to charm the Senators grilling her, all the while giving them no relevant information.
She sailed through the hearing, keeping her friends safe, and fooling the Senate effortlessly.
Now it’s time to hear from you. Which one of these brilliant and sexy women is your
favorite? Let us know in the comments section below. And before you go,
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