For decades, it was a whispered rumor in Las Vegas lounge circles. Now, thanks to HBO, it’s official: entertainer Nelson Sardelli is the biological father of Mariska Hargitay, star of Law & Order: SVU, television’s longest running drama.
The long-held secret was revealed in My Mom Jayne, the deeply personal documentary Hargitay produced about her late mother, bombshell Jayne Mansfield, and the man who raised her, Mickey Hargitay. For Sardelli and his daughters, Pietra and Giovanna, the revelation brought togetherness for the family. For decades, Sardelli remained mum on the subject.
Sardelli’s name graced the second line of scores of Las Vegas marquees as one of those great entertainers whose legacies have been lost over the years. For those who know him best, or those who simply caught his act opening for the likes of Judy Garland or headlining himself, Sardelli’s talents and generosity overshadowed the paternity gossip.
Sardelli was raised in a multi-national neighborhood in Sao Paulo, Brazil. During “buddy trip” near Detroit, on a bet he caught on as an instructor at Arthur Murray’s Dance Studio while also working as a hospital orderly.
“They dressed me like Ben Casey. I looked good, but had no stomach for medicine.” His half-day stint earned him $27.50.
His European-inspired charm benefited him during those Detroit days. “I became more Italian when I came to America,” he jokes.
During those early years crooning and joking his way through the smoky bar circuit, Sardelli’s philanthropic side developed when he witnessed developmentally disabled children. He organized a shoe shining event to raise funds, leading to the venture StarShine, a blueprint replicated nationally.
Sardelli enlisted his cronies, politicians and local celebrities as shoe shiners. “In Las Vegas, I shined shoes with Paul Anka,” he remembered. “There’s nothing more satisfying than helping somebody.”
During his Michigan days, Sardelli developed deep American patriotism. He served two non-war years in the Army before gaining his citizenship while in Brooklyn.
Since 1961, Sardelli has frequently visited veteran’s homes and patients at mental health facilities. For 18 years, he gathered many of Las Vegas’ top entertainers for Father’s Day Shows at Boulder City’s Nevada Veteran’s Home.
After settling in Las Vegas in 1965, Sardelli’s name was regularly displayed on Strip marquees as he continued traveling the nightclub and cruise ship circuit. “The ships are just a hotel that moves, and I’m a lousy sailor.”
The gift of an air pistol inspired him to develop fast draw and gun twirler expertise, leading to work in Hollywood where the “movie bug” bit him. Sardelli landed a role in Mae West’s “Myra Breckenridge”, when costume designer Edith Head suggested, “What about the Italian guy who sang at the Mayor Bradley event?”, beating out 300 others who auditioned.
Today Sardelli has scaled back his schedule, explaining, “When you’re ninety…you’re ninety.” He devotes a majority of his time to the social FIORE Club…Fun Italians Organizing Ridiculous Events. The monthly luncheons at the Italian American Club provide an entrée for emerging talent to Vegas’ entertainment community.
“I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders,” Sardelli said of the decades long secret he kept in an effort to avoid the social stigma of earlier days. Sardelli’s wife Lorraine agreed, adding, “It’s brought our family together.”
