Jayne Mansfield died on June 29, 1967, but that night she was not traveling alone. Her three children were asleep in the back seat of her Buick Electra 225, including the famous Mariska Hargitay, just 3 years old, unaware of what was happening up front.
The car crashed underneath the trailer of a stopped truck. Mansfield, her partner, and the driver died instantly from the impact. The children, however, woke up with minor injuries, protected by the position in which they were sleeping.
From that tragedy came the “Mansfield Bars”, the system that now prevents cars from sliding under trucks. Decades later, it continues to save entire families on roads around the world.
