Tommy Manville

Thomas Frank Manville, Jr., universally known as Tommy Manville (April 9, 1894 – October 9, 1967), was a Manhattan socialite and heir to the Johns-Manville asbestos fortune. He was a minor celebrity in the mid 20th Century, by virtue of his 13 marriages to 11 women. This feat won him an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records, and made him the subject of japes and smirking winks from comedians and scorn from bluestockings. One of these jokes originated from the McWhirter Brothers themselves, who occasionally inserted editorial comments in their Guinness books; in this case, "Manville made his fortune in asbestos, which he unfortunately could not take with him."

He was the subject of a biography, "The Wives and Lives of Tommy Manville" by Anita Manville, the inspiration of a camp musical, "Lucky Wonderful: 13 Musicals About Tommy Manville" by Jackie Curtis, and probably the model for Gary Cooper’s character in the 1938 motion picture "Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife". He is mentioned in Irving Berlin’s song "What Chance Have I With Love", and in many other passing pop culture references and metaphors.

Manville was considered something of a clown (an image he cultivated with his public persona – part bon vivant, part hapless tool of women) but was also sneakily admired for his number of conquests (and, of course, his extravagant bank account).

Manville's unusual lifestyle was probably at least partly due to an oversight in his father's will: he had been left the family money in a trust, from which he was only entitled to the interest -- except that he could draw a million dollars from the when he married. Since the will didn't stipulate the bonus for only a first marriage, Manville had a clear motive to engage in serial monogamy.

Quotes

*"She cried, and the judge wiped her tears with my checkbook" — Tommy Manville
*"When I meet a beautiful girl, the first thing I say is 'will you marry me?'. The second thing I say is, 'how do you do?'" — Tommy Manville

Persondata
NAME=Manville, Tommy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Manville, Thomas Frank, Jr.
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Socialite
DATE OF BIRTH=April 9, 1894
PLACE OF BIRTH=
DATE OF DEATH=October 9, 1967
PLACE OF DEATH=