Mariska Hargitay

Mariska Hargitay
Hargitay in 2011
Born	Mariska Magdolna Hargitay (1964-01-23) January 23, 1964 (age 60) Santa Monica, California, U.S.
Alma mater	University of California, Los Angeles
Occupations	Actress producer
Years active	1984–present
Spouse	Peter Hermann ​ (m. 2004)​
Children	3[a]
Parents	Mickey Hargitay (father) Jayne Mansfield (mother)
Relatives	Jayne Marie Mansfield (half-sister)
Awards	Golden Globe Award (2005) Emmy Award (2006)
Signature

Mariska Magdolna Hargitay^[1] (/məˈrɪʃkə ˈhɑːrɡɪteɪ/;^[2] born January 23, 1964)^[3][4] is an American actress and producer. The daughter of bodybuilder and actor Mickey Hargitay and actress Jayne Mansfield, her accolades include two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and two People's Choice Awards.

Hargitay's interest in acting began while attending Marymount High School in Los Angeles, followed by enrolling in the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. In 1982, Hargitay was crowned Miss Beverly Hills USA. She left UCLA before completing her degree and pursued acting with minor roles in films and television shows, including the 1995 drama Leaving Las Vegas. Her subsequent notable appearances included recurring roles in 1990s TV dramas, such as Falcon Crest, Tequila and Bonetti, Can't Hurry Love and ER. Hargitay's breakthrough came in 1999 when she was cast to portray Detective Olivia Benson in NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a police procedural crime drama and spin-off of Law & Order, for which she received critical acclaim, including an Emmy and Golden Globe.

In 2019, SVU became the longest-running drama in American prime-time television and Hargitay's portrayal of Benson became the longest-running character in a prime-time American TV drama.^[5] Since 2013, Hargitay is considered one of the highest-paid television actresses in the world.^[6][7] Hargitay's role as Benson influenced her philanthropic work and activism, leading her to found the Joyful Heart Foundation, which provides support to people who have been sexually abused. She became a certified rape counselor and integrated some of the Foundation's work into the show. Hargitay has engaged in initiatives to support domestic violence shelters, raise awareness about untested rape kits, and contributed to other causes, including donating to UCLA. She co-produced the HBO documentary film I Am Evidence, which focused on the backlog of untested rape kits in various police departments. The film won the 2017 News & Documentary Emmy Award for Best Documentary.

Hargitay has two older brothers, Miklós and Zoltán, and three half-siblings. On June 29, 1967, the three-year-old Hargitay was one of the passengers involved in a tragic car accident on U.S. Highway 90 near New Orleans that killed her mother, Jayne Mansfield, and left Hargitay with a zigzag scar on her head. Raised by her father and his third wife following Manfield's death, Hargitay expressed a lifelong impact from the loss of her mother. Her father died in 2006 aged 80.

Early life

Hargitay was born at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California, the daughter of actress and 1950s-era sex symbol Jayne Mansfield. Her father was the Hungarian-born former Mr. Universe, Mickey Hargitay. Her first and middle names are Hungarian and refer to Mary Magdalene (Mariska is a diminutive of Mary). She was raised Catholic and has two older brothers, Miklós and Zoltán, as well as three half-siblings, Jayne Marie Mansfield and Antonio "Tony" Cimber (from her mother's first and third marriages, respectively) and Tina Hargitay (from her father's first marriage).^[8] Hargitay's parents divorced in May 1963, but a judge later found their Mexican divorce invalid. They reconciled a few months before Hargitay's birth in January 1964, but soon separated again. In August 1964, Hargitay's mother successfully petitioned the court to rule the Mexican divorce legal. A few weeks later, Mansfield married the director Matt Cimber, who had directed her in a 1964 production of the William Inge play Bus Stop.^[9] By the summer of 1966, however, Mansfield and Cimber had filed for divorce.

On June 29, 1967, Mansfield was in an automobile accident on a stretch of

episode of Seinfeld, where they had her read for the role of Elaine Benes in "The Pilot". She was considered for the character of Elaine Benes on Seinfeld itself before it began.^[24] Two years later, Hargitay portrayed Didi Edelstein, the sexy next-door neighbor, in the 1995 sitcom Can't Hurry Love, which starred Nancy McKeon. In 1997, Hargitay played detective Nina Echeverria on the drama series Prince Street, and had a recurring role as inept desk clerk Cynthia Hooper during the fourth season of ER.^[25]

Hargitay said in 1986 that she never thought about doing television until a role on the one-hour adventure drama series Downtown was offered.^[22] In fact, she experienced difficulties in her efforts to begin a career as a Hollywood actor.^[10] Hargitay endured frequent comparisons to her mother.^[10]

As of August 2012, Hargitay was earning approximately $400,000[39]–$500,000 per episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.^[40] In 2013 and 2014, she was ranked by Forbes as the second highest-paid television actress, only after Sofia Vergara of Modern Family.^[6] Hargitay continues to be considered one of the highest-paid television actresses in the world,^[7] making well over $500,000 per episode.^[41] In 2013, Hargitay was awarded with the 2,511th star of the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Her star was placed next to the star of her mother, which is located at 6328 Hollywood Boulevard.^[42] At the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, Hargitay won the "Video of the Year" Award, shared with Taylor Swift and all of the celebrities that appeared in the music video for Swift's song "Bad Blood".^[43][44] In July 2021, Hargitay suffered a broken ankle after taking a fall in the rain while leaving the screening of Black Widow.^[45] Her injury caused minor script changes and was written into the season 23 premiere of SVU.^[46] Hargitay was a guest narrator at Disney's Candlelight Processional December 19–20, 2022.^[47]

Philanthropy

Hargitay is the founder and former president of the Joyful Heart Foundation, an organization established in 2004 to provide support to survivors of

On August 28, 2004, in Santa Barbara, California, Hargitay married Peter Hermann, an actor whom she met on the set of Law & Order: SVU,^[63][64] on which he plays the recurring role of defense attorney Trevor Langan. On June 28, 2006, Hargitay gave birth to their son, August, by an emergency caesarean section.^[65][66] In April 2011, she and her husband adopted a baby girl, Amaya, and attended her birth.^[64][67] In October 2011, she and her husband adopted a son, Andrew, who had been born in 2011.^[68][69] In January 2007, she and her older son appeared in a Got Milk? advertisement.^[70]

Hargitay speaks five languages: English, French, Hungarian, Spanish, and Italian.^[71] She is the godmother to Sophia, one of co-star Christopher Meloni's children.^[72] Actress Hilary Swank is her daughter's godmother.^[73] In a 2010 interview with Good Housekeeping, Hargitay stated that she considers herself a Christian.^[74][75]

Filmography

Television

Film

Video games

Music videos

Director

Producer

Awards and nominations

References

General and cited references

• D'Arminio, Aubry. "Mariska Hargitay Biography".
  Allrovi. Archived
  from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2010.

Notes

1. ^ One biological child and two adopted children.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mariska Hargitay.

• Joyful Heart Foundation, founded by Hargitay
• Mariska Hargitay at
  IMDb