Although NBC is mum on the financial particulars, Variety reports that Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni have signed on for two more years of Law & Order: SVU, inking deals that provide them each with $6.5 million-plus salaries, and in Hargitay's case, makes her (at the very least) one of network television's highest-paid actresses. As L&O creator Dick Wolf says he is happy "that Chris and Mariska have decided to stay with a show that they’ve made an indelible stamp upon," Hargitay's 7-month-old son, August, issued his own statement saying he is happy to now use $100 bills for baby wipes.
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Mariska Hargitay
What a beautiful and bittersweet year 2006 was — the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. I became a mother, something I had dreamed about all my life. Then shortly after my son, August, arrived, I lost my father, Mickey. He was my greatest champion, always encouraging me to follow my dreams with everything I had and to never give up. He is responsible for the person I am today, and I will always be grateful that he had a chance to look into his grandson's eyes and pass along his love and strength.
It was devastating to lose the man who gave me so much courage and confidence, but August is as much an inspiration as his grandfather. From Day 1, he has filled our lives with more light and joy than I could have ever imagined. I am so happy to be a member of the Moms' Club, and of course my husband,
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When you reach 5,000 episodes, you deserve a celebration, so Jeopardy!, that game show of a certain age, will do it up big with two weeks of Celebrity Jep. TV Guide has learned that among the 30 names hitting the buzzers for charity for November-sweeps broadcasts are hopefully smart-and-nimble Desperate Housewives guys James Denton and Doug Savant, Law & Order franchisees Sam Waterston, Christopher Meloni and Kathryn Erbe (all competing against each other), Anderson Cooper, Rachael Ray, Paul Shaffer, Martin Short and Regis Philbin, who says he wants to make up for the "broken buzzer" he had during his last time on the show.Additional reporting by Ileane Rudolph
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Christopher Meloni, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
In his seventh year playing Elliot Stabler on NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Christopher Meloni snagged his first Emmy nomination. We asked the 45-year-old newbie about finally getting recognized and what his costar (and three-time nominee) Mariska Hargitay had to say.
TV Guide: How are you feeling about your first Emmy nomination? Christopher Meloni: I'm feeling… quite honestly, the best part about it is the congratulatory calls I've gotten from friends, colleagues. I think, actually, they're a little happier than I am. [Laughs] So I pretty much
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Question: I thought some of the best performances this past season occurred on Numbers, CSI, CSI: NY, Cold Case and NCIS, but those shows don't get recognized anymore. Do you think the procedurals will come back around and be recognized by the industry for their quality work, or has that ship sailed for "mainstream" dramatic TV?
Answer: It's very rare for these kinds of shows to get noticed at awards time, and that's nothing new. Their formulaic nature tends to cause the performances to be taken for granted, especially during a period when there are so many rich and innovative drama series airing on networks other than CBS. There is one procedural that escaped the jinx this season: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, which earned nominations for Mariska Hargitay and first-timer Christopher Meloni. ...
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Question: After the Emmy nominations were announced, I was angrier than I've been any other year. The new voting system and the greatness of some shows gave me hope to see some new faces on this year's list. I can overlook the mistake of no Kristen Bell. I can see why Lauren Graham and Kelly Bishop didn't make the cut. And I could have predicted that no Lost stars were going to be nominated. But what I can't stand is the fact that Marcia Cross wasn't on the comedy-actress list. In a year when Housewives was terrible, Cross' Bree was the only thing that kept me watching. She delivered the most amazing performance on the show, carrying the torch of a once-hilarious dramedy. The fact that Stockard Channing, Lisa Kudrow or even Debra Messing earned a spot over Cross is the biggest insult the Emmys made this year. And Hugh Laurie was overlooked in place of Christopher Meloni. I am sorry, but this makes no sense to me. For the first time in several years, I won't be watching this awards ...
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Question: Here's a non-Desperate Housewives/Arrested Development/Scrubs/24/Lost/Alias/Grey's Anatomy-related question for ya: What do you think of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit? I know you've spoken of it in your column a few times in the past, but I thought I'd add my own commentary. Of the three L&Os on air right now, SVU is far and away the best of the bunch. True, the formula is unchanged since the show's inception: Solve crime, catch the perpetrator. But the cast, particularly Christopher Meloni as Det. Eliot Stabler and Mariska Hargitay as Det. Olivia Benson, have a dynamic chemistry. The stories, while often uncomfortable or just downright disturbing, galvanize the actors into churning out some fine performances. They also help to provide insight into the detectives' motivations, something the original Law & Order has mainly shied away from during its 16-year history. Whether it's Eliot's struggles with his emotions (a running plot since almost the very beginning) and his ...
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Jon Stewart, the 78th Annual Academy Awards
For complete minute-by-minute Watercooler coverage of the Academy Awards ceremony and of Joan and Melissa's live preshow, click here.
ConvictionI've had many obsessions in my life — love, shiny jewelry, chocolate — but none as devastating as Law & Order. My addiction to Dick Wolf's franchise (save for the deservedly short-lived Trial by Jury) has distracted me from finishing freelance assignments, deprived me of adequate sleep and even chased away a boyfriend or two. That said, Wolf's new series Conviction — which technically isn't part of the L&O family, even though it stars Special Victims Unit's cast
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