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 involved in a car accident that killed her mother, Jayne Mansfield, and her mother's boyfriend, Sam Brody, yet left the three children miraculously unharmed.
- Was crowned Miss Beverly Hills in 1982.
- Founder and president of Joyful Heart Foundation, which helps rape and sexual-assault victims, as a result of her work on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
- 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 and underwent surgery to repair it in January 2009.
- Mariska Hargitay Relationships:
- Andrew Nicolas Hargitay Hermann - Son
- Amaya Josephine Hermann - Daughter
- Jayne Mansfield - Mother
- Miklos 'Mickey' Hargitay Jr. - Brother
- Peter Hermann - Husband
- Antonio Raphael Ottaviano Cimber - Half Brother
- August Miklos Friedrich Hermann - Son
- Jayne Marie Mansfield - Half Sister
- Mickey Hargitay - Father
- Tina Hargitay - Half Sister
- Zoltan Hargitay - Brother
- Mariska Hargitay Awards:
- 2008 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2006 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2005 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2003 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2010 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2011 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
- 2005 Golden Globe: Actress in a Television Series - Winner
- 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
- 2010 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series - Nominee
- 2009 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series - Nominee
- College:
- University of California, Los Angeles, CA