ELKE SOMMER BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:
 
Elke Sommer was born on November 5th, 1940 in Berlin, Germany with the birth name Elke Scheltz.  Her father was a Lutheran Minister and during World War II the family was forced to evacuate to a small University town in Southern Germany.  When she was only fourteen years old, her father passed away and so she relocated to live in Britain working as an au pair and learning English. 
 
When she decided to attend college, she relocated back to Germany and had the intention of getting a degree to become a diplomatic translator, however after studying this for sometime, she changed her mind and decided instead to pursue a career in modeling.
 
While vacationing in Italy, she won a beauty contest earning the title of, "Miss Viareggio Turistica" and then caught the attention of a film actor and director, Vittorio De Sica.  She began to show an interest now in acting and made her film debut on an Italian feature film , "Men and Noblemen" (1960) followed by her first starring role in, "Love, the Italian Way" (1960). 
 
She was beginning to be well known not only in Italy but also Germany and was establishing herself as a European sex symbol.  With her 'pouty' lips and high cheek bones, she was blonde, beautiful and captivating.
 
Her first English speaking feature film was, "Why Bother to Knock" (1961).  She then caught the eye of Hollywood and made her move to Los Angeles.  She was cast in a variety of films such as, "The Victors" (1963), "The Prize" (1963) and "A Shot in the Dark" (1964).  She even won a "Best Newcomer" Golden Globe Award.
 
She used her beauty and sexuality to move her way up the ladder.  Sommer posed in Playboy spreads and was working on screen with some of Hollywood's most desired male actors.  As her career progressed into the mid 60's, she was still being cast in a number of films, but sadly they were of lower level stature.  Some of these films that did not help her career were, "The Wrecking Crew" (1969) and "The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz" (1968).
 
Her roles in these low rated films caused her career to head downward and she was forced to take roles in Europe in low budget films.  The 70's had her in films such as, "Lisa and the Devil" (1974) and "It's Not the Size that Counts" (1974).  
 
Sommer tried her chances as a television actress and this was a good career move for her.  She worked on the TV pilot, "Probe" (1972) as well as a series of mini movies in 1980.  Her acting career began to slow down and she began to put her efforts and talents into writing and painting.  She married twice, first to a writer and journalist, Joe Hyams from 1964 through 1981 and then in 1993 she married Wolf Walther whom she remains with today.      

Elke Sommer's currently resides in Los Angeles and makes a living as a painter which is mostly influenced by the work of Marc Chagall.   

Filmography

2010 Das Leben ist zu lang 
2005 Ewig rauschen die Gelder 
2005 Reblaus 
2000 Flashback - Mörderische Ferien 
2000 Nicht mit uns 
1999 Doppeltes Spiel mit Anne 
1999 Gisbert
1996 Alles nur Tarnung 
1994 Florian III 
1993 Destiny Ridge
1993 Happy Holiday
1992 Counterstrike 
1992 Severed Ties 
1989 Himmelsheim 
1987 Der Stein des Todes
1987 Adventures Beyond Belief 
1986 Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna
1986 St. Elsewhere
1986 Peter the Great 
1985 Jenny's War 
1984 Niemand weint für immer 
1984 Lily in Love 
1981-1984 The Love Boat
1984 Heut' abend 
1982 Inside the Third Reich 
1981 Der Mann im Pyjama 
1981 Fantasy Island
1980 Top of the Hill 
1980 Exit Sunset Boulevard 
1979 The Double McGuffin 
1979 The Fantastic Seven 
1979 The Prisoner of Zenda 
1979 Jamaican Gold 
1979 A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square 
1978 I Miss You, Hugs and Kisses
1977 Nicht von gestern 
1977 Forever Fernwood
1976 The Six Million Dollar Man 
1976 Meet Him and Die
1976 The Swiss Conspiracy
1976 The Astral Factor 
1976 One Away
1975 Carry on Behind
1975 The Net
1974 Ten Little Indians 
1974 It's Not the Size That Counts 
1974 One or the Other 
1974 Lisa and the Devil 
1973 Die Reise nach Wien 
1972 Lodynski's Flohmarkt Company
1972 Baron Blood 
1972 Probe
1971 Perlico - Perlaco 
1971 Zeppelin
1971 Percy 
1970 The Dean Martin Comedy Hour 
1970 The Invincible Six 
1969 The Wrecking Crew
1968 They Came to Rob Las Vegas 
1968 The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz
1967 Deadlier Than the Male 
1967 The Corrupt Ones
1967 The Venetian Affair 
1966 Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number! 
1966 The Oscar
1965 The Money Trap
1965 The Art of Love 
1965 The Dolls
1964 Frontier Hellcat
1964 A Shot in the Dark 
1964 Juke Box Jury
1964 Seven Tons of Gunfire
1963 The Prize 
1963 ...denn die Musik und die Liebe in Tirol 
1963 The Victors 
1963 Verführung am Meer 
1963 Who Stole the Body?
1962 Bahía de Palma
1962 Un chien dans un jeu de quilles 
1962 Le chien 
1962 Das Mädchen und der Staatsanwalt 
1962 Sweet Ecstasy 
1962 Café Oriental 
1962 The Phone Rings Every Night 
1961 Auf Wiedersehen 
1961 Geliebte Hochstaplerin 
1961 Why Bother to Knock
1961 Daniella by Night 
1961 Und sowas nennt sich Leben 
1960 Love, the Italian Way 
1960 The Warrior Empress 
1960 Himmel, Amor und Zwirn 
1960 Men and Noblemen 
1960 Howlers of the Dock 
1960 Lampenfieber 
1959 Hallmark Hall of Fame
1959 The Day It Rained 
1959 Ship of the Dead 
1959 Ragazzi del Juke-Box 
1959 L'amico del giaguaro 
1959 La pica sul Pacifico