Mickey Hargitay (January 6, 1926 – September 14, 2006), born Miklós Karoly Hargitay, was a Hungarian-American actor and the 1955 Mr. Universe. Born in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, Hargitay moved to the United States in 1947 and eventually became a U.S. citizen. He was married to actress

Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, singer, nightclub entertainer, and ''Playboy'' Playmate. A sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s while under contract at 20th Century Fox, Man ...

and is the father of actress

Mariska Hargitay Mariska Magdolna Hargitay (; born January 23, 1964) is an American actress, director and philanthropist. The daughter of bodybuilder and actor Mickey Hargitay and actress Jayne Mansfield, her accolades include a Primetime Emmy Award, a Peopl ...

. During their marriage, Hargitay and Mansfield made four movies together: ''

Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? ''Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?'' is a 1957 American satirical comedy film starring Jayne Mansfield and Tony Randall, with Betsy Drake, Joan Blondell, John Williams, Henry Jones, Lili Gentle, and Mickey Hargitay, and with a cameo by Groucho M ...

'' (1957), ''

The Loves of Hercules ''The Loves of Hercules'' ( it, Gli amori di Ercole) is a 1960 international co-production film starring Jayne Mansfield and her then husband Mickey Hargitay. The film was distributed internationally as ''Hercules vs. the Hydra''. Plot While H ...

'' (1960), ''

Promises! Promises! ''Promises! Promises!'' (presented as ''Promises... Promises!'' on screen) is a 1963 American sex comedy film directed by King Donovan and starring Tommy Noonan (who also served as coproducer) and Jayne Mansfield. Released at the end of the Produ ...

'' (1963), and ''

Primitive Love ''Primitive Love'' is the ninth studio album and second English-language record by the Miami Sound Machine, released in August 1985, by Epic Records. A 2CD remastered version of the album was scheduled for March 31, 2017 by Vibe on Records, bu ...

'' (1964).

Early life and early career

Miklós Karoly Hargitay (or Hargitai) was born in

, Hungary on January 6, 1926. He was the son of Ferenc and Mária (Rothsischer) Hargitay (or Hargitai). Hargitay was one of four children of an athletic father. He and his brothers were all brought up as athletes. During his youth, Hargitay was part of an acrobatic act with his brothers. The act was so popular that the brothers performed throughout all Hungary, including the largest opera house in Budapest. After being introduced to the sport by his brother, Hargitay began competing in

speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors racing, race each other in travelling a certain distance on Ice skate, skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marath ...

. In 1946, he won the Middle European championship at 500 and 1,500 meters, and placed second in the 5,000 meter race. He was also a proficient

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player, and was an underground fighter during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1947, aged 21, Hargitay left Hungary to emigrate to the United States to avoid being drafted into military service by the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. He settled in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, where he worked as a plumber and carpenter and also performed in an acrobatic act with his first wife, Mary Birge. He was inspired to begin

bodybuilding Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...

after seeing a magazine cover featuring Steve Reeves, famed for playing

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

. Hargitay won the

National Amateur Body-Builders' Association The National Amateur Body-Builders' Association, more commonly referred to as NABBA, was founded in 1950 by the Health & Strength League to promote bodybuilding. Although the original intention was to promote physique contests in the United Kin ...

(NABBA) Mr. Universe award in 1955. Hargitay "is credited with stimulating the enormous interest in physical culture prevalent in the US of the Fifties". He appeared as a pin-up model in fitness magazines. After

Mae West Mae West (born Mary Jane West; August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American stage and film actress, playwright, screenwriter, singer, and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned over seven decades. She was known for her breezy ...

saw his photo on a magazine cover, Hargitay joined West's muscleman revue.

Acting career

Mickey hargitay 1955 strength and health cover

Hargitay's first film role came when

demanded that he be cast in her movie, ''

'' (1957). The two fell in love and were described as inseparable.

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

did not want Hargitay to appear in ''Rock Hunter'' because they disliked Mansfield's view of Hargitay as her "only" lover; Fox preferred their sex symbols to be single. In 1960, Hargitay and Mansfield played the lead roles in ''

''. The film was shot in Italy, and has never been released in movie theaters in the United States, though it is available on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

under the title ''Hercules vs. Hydra'' and under its original title as episode 1108 of ''

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy film review television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. ...

'' (2017). Over the next four years, Hargitay and Mansfield would appear together in ''

'' (1963) and ''

'' (1964). In 1965, Hargitay played the lead role in ''

Bloody Pit of Horror ''Bloody Pit of Horror'' ( it, Il Boia Scarlatto) is a 1965 gothic horror film. The film, set in Italy, was directed by Domenico Massimo Pupillo and stars Mickey Hargitay, Walter Brandi, Luisa Baratto and Rita Klein. It tells the story of a g ...

'' without Mansfield. Hargitay's acting career was not limited to the United States; he also appeared in many Italian productions, and acted in Hungarian director

György Szomjas György Szomjas (26 November 1940 – 7 April 2021) was a Hungarians, Hungarian film director and screenwriter.Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'', the series in which his daughter Mariska stars; he portrayed a witness to a violent crime.

Personal life

Hargitay's first wife was fellow acrobat Mary Birge. Hargitay had a daughter, Tina, with Birge in 1949. Hargitay and Birge later divorced. Hargitay and Jayne Mansfield met in 1956 while he was performing in ''The Mae West Show'' at the Latin Quarter. When Mansfield noticed Hargitay performing, she allegedly told the waiter, "I'll have a steak and that tall man on the left." The couple married on January 13, 1958. They had three children: Miklós, Zoltán, and Mariska.

grew up to be an actress, starring on '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit''. Hargitay remodeled much of his and Mansfield's

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

mansion, known as " The Pink Palace", Jayne Mansfield Pink Palace building its famous heart-shaped swimming pool. In November 2002, the house was razed by developers who had purchased it from Engelbert Humperdinck. In May 1963, Hargitay and Mansfield filed for divorce in Ciudad Juárez. The divorce was ruled invalid, and the two reconciled in October 1963. After Mariska's birth, Mansfield sued for the Juárez divorce to be declared legal, and ultimately won. The divorce was recognized in the United States on August 26, 1964. After Mansfield's death in a car crash on June 29, 1967, Hargitay sued Mansfield's estate for over $5,000 to support the children. In their divorce decree, Mansfield had agreed to pay child support, as well as to give Hargitay approximately $70,000 in cash and property. Hargitay married Ellen Siano on April 14th, 1968. Hargitay and Siano remained married until his death.

Death

On September 14, 2006, Hargitay died in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, aged 80, from

multiple myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone pain, an ...

. In Hargitay's obituary, the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' quoted bodybuilding historian Gene Mozee as stating the following: "

Walter Winchell Walter Winchell (April 7, 1897 – February 20, 1972) was a syndicated American newspaper gossip columnist and radio news commentator. Originally a vaudeville performer, Winchell began his newspaper career as a Broadway reporter, critic and co ...

once said that what

resident Resident may refer to: People and functions * Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country * Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training * Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceuti ...

Eisenhower did for golf, Mickey Hargitay did for bodybuilding, because he brought it to the forefront... Back in those days, bodybuilding was thought of as a freakish, unusual activity that wasn't popular with the general public... At that time, athletic coaches discouraged lifting weights, thinking you'd become musclebound. And along came Mickey Hargitay, a great all-around athlete".

In popular culture

Hargitay was portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1980 television film ''

The Jayne Mansfield Story ''The Jayne Mansfield Story'' is a 1980 American made-for-television biographical drama film directed by Dick Lowry starring Loni Anderson as the actress, and Arnold Schwarzenegger as her bodybuilder husband, based on the life of Jayne Mansfield. ...

''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References and footnotes

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hargitay, Miklos 1926 births 2006 deaths Hungarian emigrants to the United States Hungarian bodybuilders Deaths from multiple myeloma Deaths from cancer in California 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors Male actors from Budapest Hungarian resistance members American male film actors American male television actors Naturalized citizens of the United States People associated with physical culture Jayne Mansfield United Service Organizations entertainers