Biography

Born Elisabeth DelPadre Filarski to a Catholic school teacher mother and an architect father, Hasselbeck spent her formative years in between Cranston and Providence, Rhode Island, until she moved to Boston to attend Boston College, where she studied large paintings and industrial design. It was also there that she met her husband and father of her two children, former NFL quarterback Tim Hasselbeck. Before being cast on Survivor, Hasselbeck worked for Puma as a member of their design team.

After losing out on the $1,000,000 to personal nurse Tina Wesson, Hasselbeck began her career in television as a judge at the 2001 Miss Teen USA pageant and then as the host of he Style Network's bargain style show The Look For Less. When Lisa Ling decided to leave The View in 2002, Hasselbeck was involved in a three-way competition with Rachel-Campos Duffy and Erin Hershey Presley for the vacant spot -- a competition that Hasselbeck eventually won. She's been getting on the nerves of liberals and her co-hosts ever since.

elisabeth hasselbeck marries her college sweetheart

It's kind of fitting that Hasselbeck, who plays the part of the wholesome, morally astute, religious, white American woman so well, got together with the star quarterback at her college and lived happily ever after. The only difference here is that the quarterback in question, Tim Hasselbeck, never developed into a star outside of school and was doomed to a middling career as a less than average backup quarterback in the NFL. Despite his career woes and Elisabeth's triumphs, the couple have a daughter, Grace Elisabeth, born in 2005, and a son Taylor Thomas, born in 2007.They also have a third child due in August 2009. So despite all of Elisabeth's propagating of traditional American values, she seems to be the major bread winner of the family. Gotta love irony!

elisabeth hasselbeck vs. rosie o'donnell

When producers selected Rosie O'Donnell as The View's new moderator in 2006, they must have known that the outspoken liberal comedienne was bound to clash with Hasselbeck, a proud conservative. The two developed a friendship early on, but when O'Donnell began openly criticizing the Bush administration on the regular -- and particularly the war in Iraq -- Hasselbeck felt compelled to put O'Donnell in her place. The two engaged in some heated and widely publicized debates over the course of season 10, none more so than when O'Donnell was crucified in the media for likening U.S. soldiers to terrorists, and Hasselbeck failed to come to her defense. We all remember the now-infamous split screen that pitted Hasselbeck against O'Donnell as they argued for an entire segment, and pulled in ratings gold for the show. Say what you will about Hasselbeck's unwavering and often radical opinions about politics and religion -- her fuel with O'Donnell entrenched them both in the cultural zeitgeist, which is more than we can say for Regis and Kelly. When O'Donnell left the show soon after the argument aired, we all gasped at the idea that the petite, seemingly harmless Elisabeth had taken down the mighty and abrasive O'Donnell.

elisabeth hasselbeck supports sarah palin

If we were to try to envision Hasselbeck as a middle-aged woman, perhaps she would look and act a little something like Sarah Palin. Although Hasselbeck may be a tad more educated when it comes to -- well, pretty much everything -- we're not even slightly shocked that the talk show host and the Alaskan Governor hit it off so swimmingly. After Hasselbeck all but broke out her pom-pom's when Palin's candidacy was announced, she began to openly campaign for the governor and became one of her biggest and highest profile supporters. In October of 2008, Hasselbeck hit the campaign trail with Palin, introducing her at a rally in Florida. Hasselbeck made sure to illuminate several key reasons why Palin would be qualified to be president, including this gem: "She sure is a woman who knows how to dress." Sure she is Elisabeth... sure she is.
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