Legendary Hollywood actress Elke Sommer dies at 85 as stepson shares her last request
Hollywood has lost another beloved star. Elke Sommer, the German-born actress who became one of 1960s Hollywood’s most recognizable faces in comedies and espionage films, has died at 85.
One of the 1960s’ big stars has left us. Elke Sommer, who starred alongside Hollywood’s biggest names including Dean Martin, Paul Newman and DIck van Dyke, has died at the age of 85.
Speaking to the German news outlet Bild, her stepson Sebastian Walther said Sommer died at home in Bel Air, in Los Angeles, on Wednesday, OCtober 28.
The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to the associated press that it responded to the death of an 85-year-old woman on Sommer’s block Wednesday night. Her last wish was to be buried in the family grave in Marloffstein, Germany
Elke Sommer became one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, but her path there was far from easy. Born Elke Schletz in Berlin on November 5, 1940, Sommer grew up during the difficult years of World War II.
Her family was forced to leave Berlin and move to southern Germany in 1942. Meanwhile, Elke’s father, a Protestant pastor, died when she was just 14 years old
We lived in poverty. At one point, I milked ten cows a day, seven days a week, for a few Marks to make ends meet. Then my father [a Lutheran Minister] passed away when I was fourteen, and until I started working as an actress, we lived on seventy Marks a month. So I was very fortunate when I started acting,” Elke Sommer told film talk in 2014.
Elke Sommer, legendary Hollywood actress, dies at 85
As she grew older, Sommer wanted to study languages. But one trip to Italy in 1958 changed everything. She was crowned ‘Miss Viareggio’ in the Italian seaside resort of Viareggio, and photos of her soon caught the attention of acclaimed Italian director Vittorio De Sica
He brought her to Rome, which opened the door for Elke into the entertainment business, starring her in her first film, The Friend of the Jaguar. In 1959, Berlin film producer Artur Brauner signed her, and she went on to star alongside Horst Buchholz in The Death Ship.
More roles in Germany followed, but the dream of becoming a star in Hollywood, which many German actors and actresses dreamt of, was for pretty much everyone just that. A dream.
But Elke Sommer would defy the odds. She eventually made her way to Hollywood, where producer Pandro S. Berman offered her a role in the drama ‘The Prize, starring alongside the one and only Paul Newman.
The role became a major moment in her career, with Sommer moving on to win a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer. However, her role in the Pink Panther film A Shot in the Dark not only helped Elke Sommer become a household name, but also cemented her place in Hollywood history.
Worked with some of the biggest stars
Starring alongside Peter Sellers, Sommer played Maria Gambrelli, a maid framed for murder who becomes the object of Inspector Clouseau’s affection. Throughout the 1960s, she continued working alongside Hollywood’s biggest stars.
Other films included The Art of Love, starring alongside James Garner and Dick Van Dyke, Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number!, and The Wrecking Crew, where Elke acted alongside Dean Martin and Sharon Tate.
Her blonde hair and striking looks often led people to describe Sommer as a sex symbol at the height of her fame. However, she herself was never bothered about it. In a 2014 interview with filmi talk , Sommer reflected on how she viewed the attention surrounding her appearance.
“My whole life, I have been directed, I have been produced, I spoke the lines written for the character,” she said
Elke Sommer was married to German hotelier Wolf Walther. Sadly, he died in July earlier this year at the age of 77. Now, just months later, Sommer has joined him.
Rest in peace, Elke Sommer, and thank you for all the wonderful films. Our thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones.
