Mariska Hargitay had an auspicious debut in Hollywood, where minions of fans remember her as Donna from the horror/comedy film Ghoulies. Not quite Gremlins, and not quite Goonies, Ghoulies was still a hit, launching the career of Hargitay, who would, over time, become one of Hollywood’s highest paid TV actors.

But, more relevant to this blog, is Hargitay’s lineage. She is the daughter of iconic sex symbol Jayne Mansfield and former Mr. Universe, Mickey Hargitay. It’s body-building Hargitay who gave his daughter her Hungarian genes. He was born Miklós Hargitay in Budapest back in 1926. He moved to the United States in 1947, and won the title of Mr. Universe in 1955 (Hargitay was also an accomplished speed skater, and underground fighter durning WWII). He met Jayne Mansfield in 1956. The two married, resulting in three children, Mariska being the baby of the family. Mickey Hargitay was most famous for playing — not surprisingly — Hercules, in The Loves of Hercules. Hargitay would posthumously be portrayed by none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1980’s made for TV film, The Jayne Mansfield Story.

Mariska had big shoes to fill. After limited success on the beauty pageant circuit, she turned her attention to acting. With inevitable comparisons to her mother, it was a slow start, with small parts in television dramas, including Falcon Crest and Baywatch. It wasn’t until 1999’s Law and Order: Special Victims Unit debuted, with Hargitay in a lead role, that she came into her own. Thus far, the police procedural has shot 23 seasons, and shows no sign of slowing. Indeed, it is the longest running live action series in the history of English-language television. Mariska Hargitay was awarded an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in 2006.

While Mickey Hargitay died in the same year, his daughter continues in her Law and Order role, and has taken an active role in philanthropy. The younger Hargitay was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013, next the star that bears the name of her mother.

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