This former shoe designer entered the entertainment biz through the reality backdoor — she was America's sweetheart when she competed on the second season of
Survivor — and while she wasn't savvy enough to win, Hasselbeck did parlay what could have been 15 minutes of fame into a career. Because of her background in the fashion industry, she was a natural to host the Style Network series
The Look for Less. In 2003 she got her big break when she guest-hosted
The View and soon she became a full-fledged member of the all-female morning chatfest. Now married to her college sweetheart, NFL quarterback Tim Hasselbeck, the formerly bubbly blonde became much blunter. An outspoken, pro-Bush, pro-life and pro-war conservative who spoke at the 2004 Republican National Convention, Hasselbeck was a polarizing personality. And when über-liberal Rosie O'Donnell joined the series for a season, the two engaged in wildly heated political and social debates that often found their way onto YouTube. Initially, they claimed to be good friends off-camera but — after a particularly heated May 2007 spat that resulted in O'Donnell's premature departure from the show — the comedian claimed they weren't speaking. But no matter how outnumbered or outmatcthed Hasselbeck was, she always stood her ground.
Elisabeth Hasselbeck Fast Facts:
- Was captain of Boston College's Division I softball team.
- An avid runner who has completed the Boston Marathon.
- Suffers from Coeliac disease.
- Due to a 2006 stalking incident, she became very upset when a character named "Elizabeth Hassenback" was raped and murdered on an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Although the writers denied any wrongdoing, she saw it as a below-the-belt dig.
- Has worked with numerous charity organizations, including Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Making Memories Foundation and Habitat for Humanity.
- Elisabeth Hasselbeck Relationships:
- Elizabeth DelPadre - Mother
- Grace Elisabeth Hasselbeck - Daughter
- Isaiah Timothy Hasselbeck - Son
- Ken Filarski - Brother
- Kenneth Filarski - Father
- Taylor Thomas Hasselbeck - Son
- Tim Hasselbeck - Husband
- College:
- Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA (1999)
