Discussions

Numerous actresses have played characters labelled as "dumb blondes", famously including Marilyn Monroe, Jean Harlow, Jayne Mansfield, Marie Wilson, Judy Holliday (most notably in her Academy Award winning role in Born Yesterday), Suzanne Somers (primarily for her role as Chrissy Snow on Three's Company ), and Goldie Hawn (for her persona on the variety show Laugh-In).  
 
The film Legally Blonde starring Reese Witherspoon featured the stereotype as a centerpiece of its plot. Country music legend Dolly Parton, aware of this occasional characterization of her, addressed it in her 1967 hit Dumb Blonde (though Parton's lyrics challenged the stereotype, stating "...just because I'm blonde, don't think I'm dumb 'cause this dumb blond ain't nobody's fool...").  
 
Also, saying she was not offended by "all the dumb-blonde jokes because I know I'm not dumb. I'm also not blond." More recently, Paris Hilton has been characterized as a dumb blonde due to her public persona, which is portrayed by popular culture as promiscuous, and self-absorbed. Jessica Simpson has been seen as one due primarily to her behavior on her TV series, Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica.  
 
A typical Blonde joke goes like this:  
 
DEAR DIARY  
 
MONDAY: It's fun to cook for Tom. Today I made angel food cake. The recipe said, “beat 12 eggs separately”. The neighbours were nice enough to loan me some extra bowls.  
 
 
TUESDAY: Tom wanted fruit salad for supper. The recipe said: “serve without dressing”. So I didn't dress. What a surprise when Tom brought a friend home for supper.  
 
WEDNESDAY: A good day for rice. The recipe said, “wash thoroughly before steaming the rice”. It seemed kind of silly, but I took a bath anyway. I can't say it improved the rice.  
 
THURSDAY: Today Tom asked for salad again I tried a new recipe. It said “to prepare the ingredients: lay on a bed of lettuce one hour before serving”. Tom asked me why I was rolling around in the garden.  
 
 
FRIDAY: I found an easy recipe for cookies. It said ”put the ingredients in a bowl and beat it”. There must have been something wrong with this recipe. When I got back, everything was the same as when I left.  
 
 
SATURDAY: Tom did the shopping today, and brought home a chicken. He asked me to dress it for Sunday. I don't have any clothes that fit it, and for some reason Tom keep’s counting to ten under his breath.  
 
 
SUNDAY: Tom's folks came to dinner. I wanted to serve a roast, but all I had was hamburger. Suddenly I had a flash of genius. I put the hamburger in the oven, and set the controls for roast. Much to my disappointment, it still came out hamburger.  
 
GOOD NIGHT DEAR DIARY.  
 
This has been a very exciting week! I am eager for tomorrow to come so I can try out a new recipe on Tom. If I can talk Tom into buying a bigger oven, I would like to surprise him with a chocolate moose.  
 
T.G.I.F.