Global InformationMariska Hargitay information
Mariska Hargitay | |
|---|---|
 Hargitay in 2011 | |
| Born | Mariska Magdolna Hargitay January 23, 1964 Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1984–present |
| Spouse |
Peter Hermann (m. 2004) |
| Children | 3[a] |
| Parents |
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| Relatives | Jayne Marie Mansfield (half-sister) |
| Awards |
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| Signature | |
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Mariska Magdolna Hargitay[1] (/məˈrɪʃkə ˈhɑːrɡɪteɪ/;[2] born January 23, 1964)[3][4] is an American actress and producer. The daughter of bodybuilder and actor Mickey Hargitay and actress Jayne Mansfield, her accolades include two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and two People's Choice Awards.
Hargitay's interest in acting began while attending Marymount High School in Los Angeles, followed by enrolling in the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. In 1982, Hargitay was crowned Miss Beverly Hills USA. She left UCLA before completing her degree and pursued acting with minor roles in films and television shows, including the 1995 drama Leaving Las Vegas. Her subsequent notable appearances included recurring roles in 1990s TV dramas, such as Falcon Crest, Tequila and Bonetti, Can't Hurry Love and ER. Hargitay's breakthrough came in 1999 when she was cast to portray Detective Olivia Benson in NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a police procedural crime drama and spin-off of Law & Order, for which she received critical acclaim, including an Emmy and Golden Globe.
In 2019, SVU became the longest-running drama in American prime-time television and Hargitay's portrayal of Benson became the longest-running character in a prime-time American TV drama.[5] Since 2013, Hargitay is considered one of the highest-paid television actresses in the world.[6][7] Hargitay's role as Benson influenced her philanthropic work and activism, leading her to found the Joyful Heart Foundation, which provides support to people who have been sexually abused. She became a certified rape counselor and integrated some of the Foundation's work into the show. Hargitay has engaged in initiatives to support domestic violence shelters, raise awareness about untested rape kits, and contributed to other causes, including donating to UCLA. She co-produced the HBO documentary film I Am Evidence, which focused on the backlog of untested rape kits in various police departments. The film won the 2017 News & Documentary Emmy Award for Best Documentary.
Hargitay has two older brothers, Miklós and Zoltán, and three half-siblings. On June 29, 1967, the three-year-old Hargitay was one of the passengers involved in a tragic car accident on U.S. Highway 90 near New Orleans that killed her mother, Jayne Mansfield, and left Hargitay with a zigzag scar on her head. Raised by her father and his third wife following Manfield's death, Hargitay expressed a lifelong impact from the loss of her mother. Her father died in 2006 aged 80.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
- ^ Gelt, Jessica (November 10, 2013). "Mariska Hargitay". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
Born Mariska Magdolna Hargitay on Jan. 23, 1964 in Santa Monica, CA ... .
- ^ "Say How: H". National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled. Archived from the original on November 6, 2018. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
- ^ "Focus Forum". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans, LA. October 1, 1995. p. T14.
- ^ Inside the Actors Studio: Mariska Hargitay (television production). The Actors Studio. September 22, 2014. Mariska says her own first name and the name of her father; the interviewer, James Lipton, also says her full name near the start of the show.
- ^ Kaplan, Ilana (September 25, 2019). "As 'SVU' Makes History, Mariska Hargitay Makes Olivia Benson's Mission Her Own". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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