Mariska Hargitay has a family secret she is ready to share with the world after more than 30 years of keeping it to herself.
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In the new documentary My Mom Jayne, the Law & Order: SVU star revealed that legendary bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay was not her biological father. She said her biological father turned out to be a Las Vegas showman, Nelson Sardelli.
“It was like the floor fell out from underneath me,” Mariska said upon learning the truth. She felt as though she had been living a lie for decades. “Like my infrastructure dissolved.”
Mariska said her mother, Jayne Mansfield, had a brief affair with Sardelli before reconciling with Mickey. The couple was married from 1958 to 1964.
The actress then shared how she first found out about her biological father’s identity. She recalled finding a photo of Sardelli in her 20s and demanding Mickey tell her the truth. Mickey initially insisted he was her biological father. He died in 2006 at the age of 80.
Mariska said she met Sardellif for the first time while he was performing in Atlantic City. She was 30 at the time. He told her, “I have been waiting 30 years for this moment.”
Mariska Hargitay Went “Full Olivia Benson” on Her Biological Father When They First Met
While talking to Vanity Fair about her family secret, Mariska Hargitay recalled the exchange between her and her biological father.
“[I went] full Olivia Benson on him,” she explained. “I was like, ‘I don’t want anything, I don’t need anything from you… I have a dad.’ There was something about loyalty. I wanted to be loyal to Mickey.”
Pointing out what led to her revealing her family secret after so long, Mariska said she didn’t feel the need to keep the identity of her biological father a secret from the public anymore.
“I grew up where I was supposed to,” she added. “And I do know that everyone made the best choice for me. I’m Mickey Hargitay’s daughter – that is not a lie.”
Along with Mariska and her half-siblings with Sardelli, Jayne Mansfield was the mother of Jayne Marie with her first husband, Paul Mansfield, sons Miklós “Mickey” and Zoltán with Hargitay, and son Antonio “Tony” with her third husband, Italian film director Matt Cimber.
Mansfield tragically passed away in a car crash in June 1967. She was 34 years old. Mariska, alongside her siblings Mickey Jr. and Zoltan, were also involved in the crash. They all survived.
Sardelli and his two daughters, who turned out to be Mariska’s half sisters, also participated in the documentary.