Mariska Hargitay - Beauty Queen of Law and Order

Mariska Magdolina Hargitay is an American actress best known for her role as detective Olivia Benson on the famous prime time show Law and Order SVU. Mariska hargitay has a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy that adds to her long list of lifetime achievements.

Mariska Hargitay was born on Jan. 23, 1964, in St. Johns Hospital in Santa Monica, California, to Jayne Mansfield (the 1950s-era sex symbol) and Mickey Hargitay (former Mr. Universe). Mariska Hargitay comes from a family of five children with two blood brothers, one step brother, and two step sisters. Mariska Hargitay's parents divorced slightly before she was born in May 1963, but it was a Mexican divorce and was later found invalid by a California judge. They got back together for a short time after Mariska's birth but later separated again in August 1964 when the Mexican divorce was finally ruled legal. Only weeks later her mother Jayne Mansfield married a director named Matt Cimber who was her director in a 1964 play called Bus Stop. Jayne Mansfield died in an automobile accident on June 29, 1967 on a long road on Highway 90. Mariska Hargitay was in the car at the time of the accident with her two brothers, she was three and a half years old and was left with curved s shaped scar on the side of her head; although not noticeable on television. After Mansfield died the three children were raised by Hargitay's father and third wife Ellen Siano. Years later after Mariska won her first Emmy she made a point in her speech for thanking her father for all the contributions he had made in her life on August 27, 2006. Her father died 17 days later at the age of 80.

Mariska Hargitay is well educated and speaks four languages other than her native tongue English including: Hungarian, French, Spanish, and Italian. Mariska was active in in theatre beginning in her early years at Marymount High School and later attended UCLA School of Theatre, Film, and Television; Mariska was a member of the sorority Kappa Kappa Gamma, she left six months before graduating to pursue her acting career. Which began in 1985 and continued to the present day. Her list of notable movie roles include Ghoulies, Welcome to 18, Jocks, Mr. Universe, The Perfect Weapon, Bank Robber, Leaving Las Vegas, Lake Placid, Perfume, and a cameo in The Love Guru. Her made for television acting career is where she has had the most success beginning in her earlier days with Downtown, Baywatch, Thirty Something, Ellen, Seinfeld, Prince Street, and 11 years on Law and Order SVU where she is most easily recognized.

Other noticeable accomplishments that Mariska Hargitay has had include being crowned Miss Beverly Hills USA, and also being fourth runner up at the Miss California USA Pageant in Oxnard. Hargitay was acknowledged as the "highest paid TV actress" working today in the Guinness Book of World Records 2008 Edition. Hargitay is founder and president of the Joyful Heart Foundation, an organization that was designed in 2004 to provide support to women who have been sexually assaulted. Mariska Hargitay has also worked with the Mount Sinai Sexual Assault and Violence Intervention program; NBC's "The More You Know" campaign and also a community called Safe Horizon. She does pro bono work for the Santa Monic Rape Crisis Center, Girl Scouts of America, The James Redford Institute for Transplant Awarness, and is an honorary member of the Myeloma Research Foundation which is the disease her father Mickey Hargitay died from.