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Mariska Hargitay turned a tv icon by taking part in Detective Olivia Benson on Legislation & Order: SVU since 1999. The gritty efficiency on the police procedural even earned her a 2006 Emmy for Excellent Actress. Earlier than hitting it huge with the beloved sequence, Mariska labored her manner up the Tinseltown ladder with small roles in horror films and some recurring ones on exhibits like Falcon Crest and Downtown.
Mariska’s Hollywood roots, nonetheless, don’t cease there, as she is the daughter of well-known of us. Her mom, Jayne Mansfield, was one of many first blonde bombshells to take over the massive display screen, whereas her father, Mickey Hargitay, parlayed his fame as a former Mr. Universe right into a profitable appearing profession. The couple had married in 1958 and welcomed three youngsters: sons Miklós and Zoltán, and daughter Mariska. In 1963, they divorced and rapidly reconciled, solely to formally cut up a 12 months later. In Might 2025, Mariska revealed that Mickey wasn’t her organic father. It seems that in her mother and father’ cut up, Jayne had a short affair with singer and comic Nelson Sardelli, and he’s Mariska’s organic father, the actress advised Vainness Truthful.
Study extra about Mariska’s mother and father under.
Mickey Hargitay
Born in Hungary in January 1926, Mickey started performing in an acrobatic act along with his 4 brothers at a younger age, finally taking the act to the most important opera home in Budapest, in response to NBC. He finally made his option to America and settled down in Cleveland, Ohio the place his bodybuilding goals started to take form. “Mickey skilled arduous all through the ’50s, successful a number of native “physique stunning” competitions,” per the outlet. By 1955, Mickey was able to take the title of Mr. Universe.
The bodybuilder’s championship impressed a era to take up the game. “Bodybuilding was dominated by American champions; there was no hope for anybody else,” Arnold Schwarzenegger advised the L.A. Instances. “That somebody from central Europe turned Mr. Universe gave hope for somebody like myself and others to dream about.”
“Again in these days, bodybuilding was considered a freakish, uncommon exercise that wasn’t fashionable with most people,” Gene Mozee, a bodybuilding historian, advised the outlet. “At the moment, athletic coaches discouraged lifting weights, considering you’d turn into muscle sure. And alongside got here Mickey Hargitay, an excellent all-around athlete.”
Mickey then discovered work as a muscleman in Mae West’s nightclub act, the Mae West Revue, in 1956. In accordance with the L.A. Instances, Jayne caught the act in a New York membership and when she was requested what she would love that night, she reportedly responded: “I’ll have a steak and the person on the left!” Mickey and Jayne would marry two years later.
The couple would go on to work collectively in movies like The Loves of Hercules, Guarantees! Guarantees! and Primitive Love. “I loved my profession,” Mickey as soon as stated, per the outlet. “I by no means needed to be any greater than what I used to be, and I had enjoyable doing it.” He died on the age of 80 on September 14, 2006, from a number of myeloma.
“I’ll take inspiration and data from wherever I can get it, whether or not that’s from my character, from my husband, or from my dad, who at all times stated, ‘Mariska, you possibly can be taught from anybody and everybody,’” Mariska advised Good Housekeeping in 2012. The actress additionally has half-sister, Tina, from her dad’s relationship with Mary Birge.
Jayne Mansfield
Jayne was a mid-western woman born in Pennsylvania on April 19, 1933. After discovering fame with Playboy photograph shoots, Jayne quickly turned a intercourse image on the massive display screen as nicely with movies like The Woman Can’t Assist It (1956), The Wayward Bus (1957) and Too Sizzling to Deal with (1960).
As for the unbelievable fame that adopted and followers clamoring to know extra about her, Jayne appeared grounded about all of it. In a 1960 interview, Jayne defined, “I really feel like a star owes it to her public to convey the general public into her life as a result of the followers really feel like they personal you and in case you stored your life a whole secret it wouldn’t be truthful to them. However my personal life, and once I say personal life I imply my personal life, will at all times be personal.”
Her romance with Mickey seemed to be an on-again/off-again one. In 1963, Jayne attended a five-minute divorce listening to with Mickey in a Mexico courtroom, per the LA Instances. The divorce was dominated invalid in California. After a short reconciliation and a subsequent cut up, Jayne sued for the Mexican divorce to be acknowledged, successful in 1964.
In 1967, Jayne was killed in a automotive crash alongside along with her boyfriend and their driver. Mariska and her brothers had been additionally within the automotive on the time however survived. Mariska was simply 3 years previous on the time, and Jayne was 34.
Nelson Sardelli
Mariska revealed in Might 2025 that Nelson is her organic father, although she insisted that she continues to be Mickey’s daughter since he raised her. The actress delves into her upbringing and her mother and father within the 2025 documentary My Mother Jayne.
Nelson was born in Brazil on September 30, 1934, and he’s of Italian descent. He labored as a performer in Las Vegas, and he reportedly nonetheless lives there. Nelson can also be a father to 2 different daughters — Mariska’s half-sisters — who participated in her HBO documentary.
