Entertainment TV Mariska Hargitay Commemorates Late Mom Jayne Mansfield on What Would've Been Her 90th Birthday Hargitay's mother, actress Jayne Mansfield, died in a 1967 car accident at age 37 By Kelly Wynne Kelly Wynne Kelly Wynne has been a TV writer at PEOPLE digital since 2021. Her work has been seen in Newsweek, where she acted as a reality TV and true-crime writer, Atwood Magazine and her mental health blog, The Chronically. People Editorial Guidelines Published on April 20, 2023 10:17AM EDT Close Photo: Taylor Hill/Getty Images; Earl Leaf/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images Mariska Hargitay is remembering her late mom Jayne Mansfield. In honoring Mansfield on what would have been her 90th birthday, the Law & Order: Special Victims Unit star shared a sweet throwback photo of her pin-up girl mother in her Hollywood heyday. "Happy birthday Mama," Hargitay, 59, captioned the post. "We live to love you more each day." Hargitay also shared a two-second video to her Instagram Story of her mother in full glam. Though no words are spoken, Mansfield lifts her head and looks to the side. Mariska Hargitay Remembers Her Famous Mom: 'All I Have to Do Is Look in the Mirror' Archive Photos/Getty Images Mansfield was a Hollywood sex symbol in the 1950s and 1960s with roles in films like The Girl Can't Help It and Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? She died in a car accident at age 37. At the time of the accident, Hargitay and two of her siblings were in the back seat. Though all three children survived, Hargitay — who was 3 years old when the incident occurred — still lives with that trauma. The True Story Behind Sophia Loren's Iconic Side-Eye to Jayne Mansfield Alamy Stock Photo "I think I learned about crisis very young, and I learned very young that s--- happens and there's no guarantees, and we keep going," she told Glamour in 2021. Hargitay added that she's spent much of her time trying to work through the trauma of her mother's death. "I clearly was in that frozen place for a lot of my childhood — of trying to survive, actually trying to survive," she explained. "My life has been a process of unpeeling the layers and trust and trusting again." Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit returns Thursday, April 27 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.