The daughter of bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay and tragic Hollywood bombshell Jayne Mansfield, Hargitay embarked on an acting career in the early '80s. Primarily a small-screen player, Hargitay floundered in a succession of short-lived series (
Tequila and Bonetti,
Prince Street) before a recurring part as Dr. Greene's ditzy girlfriend on
ER jump-started her career in the late '90s. In 1999 she landed a leading role on
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as a tough but empathetic sex-crime detective. Her work on the show earned her an Emmy in 2006 — the same year she gave birth to her son with husband Peter Hermann — and inspired her to found the Joyful Heart Foundation, which assists sexual-assault survivors.
Mariska Hargitay Fast Facts:
- Speaks fluent French, Hungarian and Italian.
- On June 29, 1967, Hargitay and her two brothers were in the backseat of the car with their mother, Jayne Mansfield, and her mother's boyfriend, Sam Brody. Their car slammed into a tractor trailer, instantly killing Mansfield and Brody, but leaving the three children miraculously unharmed.
- Was crowned Miss Beverly Hills in 1982.
- Enjoys traveling and says Rome is her favorite city.
- Suffered a collapsed lung while doing her own stunts on the set of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; underwent surgery to repair it in January 2009.
- Mariska Hargitay Relationships:
- Antonio Raphael Ottaviano Cimber - Half Brother
- August Miklos Friedrich Hermann - Son
- Jayne Mansfield - Mother
- Jayne Marie Mansfield - Half Sister
- Mickey Hargitay - Father
- Miklos 'Mickey' Hargitay Jr. - Brother
- Peter Hermann - Husband
- Tina Hargitay - Half Sister
- Zoltan Hargitay - Brother
- Mariska Hargitay Awards:
- 2007 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2008 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2009 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama - Nominee
- 2009 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2005 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama - Winner
- 2004 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2005 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2006 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - Winner
- College:
- University of California, Los Angeles, CA
