Norris Church Mailer (born Barbara Jean Davis, January 31, 1949, Arkansas – died November 21, 2010, in Brooklyn Heights, New York City) was an American artist, actress, model, and author of several books. Her publications include the memoir, A Ticket to the Circus and the novels Cheap Diamonds and Windchill Summer.

Photo courtesy of the Norris Church Mailer Estate.

Early Life & Legacy

Originally from Atkins, Arkansas, Norris Church Mailer had successful careers in various fields. After graduating from Arkansas Polytechnic College, she became an art teacher and, later, a successful model for the Wilhelmina modeling agency. She held several one-woman shows featuring her paintings and also acted in television and features films, including Ragtime (1981) and The Executioner's Song (1982), and the television soap opera, All My Children.

Life with Normal Mailer

Norris Church Mailer's near 33-year marriage to her second husband, Norman Mailer, is frequently the focus of reviews about her life. She described Mailer as "the Henry Higgins to my Eliza Doolittle", often seeking his advice on drafts of her novels and defending him against critics who claimed he was misogynistic. A Ticket to the Circus in part chronicles her relationship with Mailer. She was the mother of two children and stepmother of Norman Mailer's five children.

Death & Posthumous Honor

In 2004, Wilkes University established the Norris Mailer Church Fellowship in creative writing in her honor. She died in 2010 of complications from gastrointestinal cancer.

Citations

Works Cited

Berger, Joseph (November 22, 2010). "Norris Church Mailer, Artist and Ally, Dies at 61". New York Times. New York.
Bragg, M. A. (November 23, 2010). "Provincetown Arts 'hero' Mailer is missed". Newsgroup: CapeCodOnline.com. Retrieved 2010-11-26.
Harris, Ellen (December 2010). "The Norman Conquest, or The Last Wife of Norman Mailer Speaks". Belle Lettres. 11 (1): 22–23.
Italie, Hillel (November 22, 2010). "Norris Mailer; her memoir tells of life as author's 6th wife". Boston Globe. New York.
Klemesrud, Judy (April 22, 1979). "Life With Norman Mailer: So far it has been good to Norris Church". St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Klemesrud, Judy (April 22, 1979). "Mailer's Latest Love Story". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. New York.
Mailer, Norris (April 1989). "The Very Versatile, Mrs. Mailer" (Interview). Interviewed by Frazier Moore.
Mansfield, Stephanie (January 26, 1986). "Norris Mailer, Out of Arkansas The Author's Sixth Wife, Her Art and Her Roots". Washington Post.
Wire Reports (2010-11-26). "Norris Mailer, 6th wife of Norman Mailer, dies". Tulsa World.