Mariska Hargitay Reveals Shocking Family Secret She's Kept for More Than 30 Years in New Documentary
Mariska Hargitay revealed with the premiere of her documentary My Mom Jayne that her biological father is not Mickey Hargitay, the man who raised her
Her biological father is a former Las Vegas entertainer named Nelson Sardelli
Mariska opened up about the revelation in an interview with Vanity Fair, recounting the moment she first met and introduced herself to Sardelli, who is still alive and in his eightiesMariska Hargitay is opening up about a family secret she's kept for more than 30 years.
At the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday, May 13, the Law & Order: SVU actress, 61, revealed with the premiere of her documentary My Mom Jayne that her biological father is not Mickey Hargitay, the man who raised her, but rather a former Las Vegas entertainer named Nelson Sardelli.
As Mariska explains in the documentary — which marks her feature film directorial debut — she first learned of Sardelli when she was 25. She confronted Mariska, the only father she'd ever known, with the news, and after he insisted he was her father, the two never spoke of it again.
But it left Mariska with many questions, wondering if she was Hungarian like her father and her brothers, Zoltan and Mickey Jr., or if she was really Italian like Sardelli.
The actress opened up further about the revelation about her father in an interview with Vanity Fair. She told the outlet that she went to see Sardelli perform in Atlantic City, N.J., when she was 30 years old, and described his emotional reaction when she introduced herself.
Moved to tears, he said, 'I've been waiting 30 years for this moment.'
But Mariska said she found herself giving him a tough time and going "full Olivia Benson on him," referring to her SVU character.
'I was like, 'I don't want anything, I don't need anything from you.… I have a dad, ' ' she recalled telling him, explaining, 'There was something about loyalty. I wanted to be loyal to Mickey.'
She told Vanity Fair that after the momentous meeting with Sardelli, she grappled with "knowing I'm living a lie my entire life."
Sardelli, who is still alive and now in his late eighties, participates in the documentary, as do his other two daughters — Mariska's half sisters.
Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
In the film, Mariska explains that, at 61 years old, keeping this a secret was no longer necessary.
Mariska also has an older sister, Jayne Marie Mansfield, from her mother's first marriage, as well as a younger brother, Tony Cimber, from her mother's third marriage, both of whom are also featured in My Mom Jayne.
The actress told Vanity Fair that once she eventually built a bond with Sardelli and his daughters, she better understood that her mother returned to Mickey because she knew he would love and provide a stable home life for Mariska.
'I grew up where I was supposed to, and I do know that everyone made the best choice for me,' she said. 'I'm Mickey Hargitay's daughter — that is not a lie.'
'This documentary is kind of a love letter to him, because there's no one that I was closer to on this planet," she noted.
Mariska told Vanity Fair that she and her Sardelli sisters gathered together for a private screening of the documentary in Las Vegas, and recalled how they were overcome with emotion.
'They just wept and wept and wept,' she said. 'These two women that I love so much — I made them secrets! It's so heartbreaking to me.'
For Mariska, sharing her story with the world in the documentary was a way to "unburden all of us.'
Following the film's premiere screening at Cannes on Saturday, the audience gave a five-minute standing ovation. Mariska was joined at the event by her husband, Peter Hermann, and three kids.
Read the original article on People
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
11 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Where's Marty McFly's guitar? Search is on for 'Back to the Future' prop 4 decades later
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Marty McFly grabbed a guitar in 'Back to the Future' and rocked out with the band at a 1950s high school dance, helping him narrowly avoid blinking out of existence before time-traveling back to the 1980s. The guitar, in real life, wasn't as lucky. Filmmakers went looking for the instrument while making the movie's 1989 sequel, but even now it's nowhere to be found. Four decades after the blockbuster film debuted, the guitar's creator has launched a search for the iconic Cherry Red Gibson ES-345.
Associated Press
20 minutes ago
- Associated Press
McCarthy, Vikings value Jefferson's presence and leadership in offseason practices
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings urged Justin Jefferson to fully participate in their offseason program, a commitment some established NFL stars aren't willing to make each spring. The sixth-year wide receiver was already a step ahead of the coaching staff. This is a critical offseason for Jefferson and the Vikings, breaking in a new quarterback in J.J. McCarthy, so he was planning to make his attendance a priority. 'It's definitely important to gain a little bit of a sight of what the new year is coming to look like, to build that connection with my teammates and especially with my quarterback,' Jefferson said after practice on Monday. 'It's definitely great to be out here early to kind of get into the feel.' These late spring practices, known in league parlance as organized team activities, are when the basic installation of the playbook begins, even though only the three-day minicamp next week is contractually mandated. It's also a prime opportunity to build that rhythm and trust between the quarterback and his receivers. 'He's a tremendous talent, tremendous leader, but his leadership really shows up when he's here,' said McCarthy, who accompanied Jefferson to a Timberwolves playoff game last month when they sat together in courtside seats. 'Just being able to get that chemistry building on and off the field has been invaluable.' Jefferson, whose 7,432 receiving yards are the most in league history through a player's first five seasons, said he doesn't concern himself with the style or tendencies of who's throwing. 'As long as the ball gets close to my face, I'm going to try to catch it,' he said. 'It doesn't matter how fast the ball is going, the spin of it or if it's coming from a lefty or a righty. My job is to catch the ball.' What's most important to Jefferson is the quarterback learning to adjust to his route-running preferences, with an exceptional stride length and side-to-side agility that helps set him apart. 'It's that timing, those reps,' McCarthy said. 'All of that has to be built up over time.' Which is why Jefferson being around all the time is so valuable. 'He's an energy igniter of the whole building, and I think he's come back with a purpose and a mindset,' coach Kevin O'Connell said. 'You hear his voice, you hear his interaction with teammates, and they just carry such a long way.' Not just for the quarterback. 'The guys in that locker room know, 'If this guy, one of the best in the world at what he does, is pushing himself in May and June, I sure as heck better be doing the same thing,'' O'Connell said. McCarthy, whose rookie season was spent entirely in the training room recovering from knee surgery, at least had some meaningful time in strategy meetings that helped him start to build the knowledge base in the offense even if he wasn't taking snaps on the field. 'I've been really surprised by some of the things that he does know. You're like, 'Man, we covered that in a 10-minute burst in Week 11 last year. How do you remember that?'' O'Connell said. 'And then there's some other things where you're like, 'Oh, I assumed he knew that.' So it's our job — baseline teaching and stacking days and layered learning so that we're constantly making him feel like he's growing but never comfortable.' Jefferson can see that too. 'He definitely has an arm, that's for sure. He can definitely zip it whenever he needs to,' he said, before recounting his advice to McCarthy at this stage of the offseason. 'Just let everything happen. Don't try to make the best play every single play.' ___ AP NFL:
Associated Press
20 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Where's Marty McFly's guitar? Search is on for 'Back to the Future' prop 4 decades later
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Marty McFly grabbed a guitar in 'Back to the Future' and rocked out with the band at a 1950s high school dance, helping him narrowly avoid blinking out of existence before time-traveling back to the 1980s. The guitar, in real life, wasn't as lucky. Filmmakers went looking for the instrument while making the movie's 1989 sequel, but even now it's nowhere to be found. Four decades after the blockbuster film debuted, the guitar's creator has launched a search for the iconic Cherry Red Gibson ES-345. Gibson, which is based in Nashville, is asking the public for help tracking it down as the movie turns 40 and as the company produces a new documentary about the search and the film, 'Lost to the Future.' In a video by Gibson, with the movie's theme song playing in the background, 'Back to the Future' stars such as Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson and Harry Waters Jr. make a cinematic plea. There's also a surprise appearance by Huey Lewis, whose band Huey Lewis and the News performed the soundtrack's headliner song, 'The Power of Love.' Lloyd, in the cadence of Doc Brown, says in the video that the guitar has been 'lost to the future.' 'It's somewhere lost in the space-time continuum,' says Fox, who played McFly. 'Or it's in some Teamster's garage.' In the film, McFly steps in for an injured band member at the 1955 school dance with the theme 'Enchantment under the Sea,' playing the guitar as students slow dance to 'Earth Angel.' He then leads Marvin Barry and the Starlighters in a rendition of 'Johnny B. Goode,' calling it an oldie where he comes was from even though the 1958 song doesn't exist yet for his audience. Fox said he wanted McFly to riff through his favorite guitarists' signature styles — Jimi Hendrix behind the head, Pete Townshend's windmill and the Eddie Van Halen hammer. After digging and dancing to 'Johnny B. Goode,' the students at the dance fall into an awkward silence as McFly's riffs turn increasingly wild. 'I guess you guys aren't ready for that yet,' McFly says. 'But your kids are gonna love it.'
