Elke Sommer
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- November 5, 1940
- Died
- October 28, 2026
- Birthplace
- Berlin, Germany
Elke Sommer (born Elke von Schletz; 5 November 1940 – 28 October 2026) was a German actress, entertainer and artist, who has starred in many Hollywood films. She was spotted by film director Vittorio De Sica while on holiday in Italy, and began appearing in films there in 1958. Also that year, she changed her surname from Schletz to Sommer, which was easier to pronounce for a non-German audience. Quickly becoming a noted sex symbol and moved to Hollywood in the early 1960s, Sommer also became one of the most popular pin-up girls of the time, and posed for several pictorials in Playboy magazine, including the September 1964 and December 1967 issues. Sommer became one of the top film actresses of the 1960s. She made just shy of 100 film and television appearances between 1959 and 2005, including A Shot in the Dark with Peter Sellers, The Art of Love with James Garner and Dick Van Dyke, The Oscar with Stephen Boyd, Boy Did I Get a Wrong Number! with Bob Hope, the Bulldog Drummond extravaganza Deadlier Than the Male, The Wrecking Crew with Dean Martin, and The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz. In 1964, she won a Golden Globe award as Most Promising Newcomer Actress for The Prize, a film in which she co-starred with Paul Newman and Edward G. Robinson. A frequent guest on television, Sommer sang and participated in comedy sketches on episodes of The Dean Martin Show and on Bob Hope specials, made 10 appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and was a panelist on the Hollywood Squares game show many times between 1973 and 1980, when Peter Marshall was its "Square-Master", or host. Sommer's films during the 1970s included the thriller Zeppelin, in which she co-starred with Michael York, and a remake of Agatha Christie's frequently filmed murder mystery Ten Little Indians. In 1972, she starred in two Italian horror films directed by Mario Bava: Baron Blood and Lisa and the Devil. The latter was subsequently re-edited (with 1975 footage inserted) to make a different film called House of Exorcism. Sommer went back to Italy to act in additional scenes for Lisa and the Devil, which its producer inserted into the film to convert it to House of Exorcism, against the wishes of the director. In 1975, Peter Rogers cast her in the British comedy Carry On Behind as the Russian Professor Vrooshka.[2] She became the Carry On films' joint highest-paid performer, at £30,000; this was an honor that she shared with Phil Silvers (who starred in Follow That Camel). Most of her film work during the decade came in Europe. After the 1979 comedy The Prisoner of Zenda, which reunited her with Sellers, the actress did virtually no more acting in Hollywood films, concentrating more on her artwork. She provided the voice for Yzma in the German release of The Emperor's New Groove. Sommer also performed as a singer, recording and releasing several albums. Description above from the Wikipedia article Elke Sommer, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
Albert Speer und der Traum von Hollywood 2021
as Self (archive footage)
A Thousand Kisses 2017
as Nette (voice)
- In der Folterkammer des Barons
In der Folterkammer des Barons 2017
as Self
Life Is Too Long 2010
as Alfis Mutter
Elke Sommer erzählt... 2010
as Self
- Ewig rauschen die Gelder
Ewig rauschen die Gelder 2005
as Mrs. von Korff
- Reblaus
Reblaus 2005
as Maria Rüppel
Mario Bava: Operazione paura 2004
as Self
The Curious Case of Inspector Clouseau 2002
as self
Flashback 2000
as Frau Lust
- Nicht mit uns
Nicht mit uns 2000
as Andrea Paretti
- Doppeltes Spiel mit Anne
Doppeltes Spiel mit Anne 1999
as Frau Lorenz
The Last Days of Sharon Tate 1999
Actor
What's a Carry On? 1998
as Professor Anna Vooshka (archive footage) (uncredited)
- Sunset Boulevard - 27 Meilen Amerika
Sunset Boulevard - 27 Meilen Amerika 1997
as Self - Actress
Alles nur Tarnung 1996
as Jutta
Twisted Sex Vol. 5 1993
as (archive)
Severed Ties 1992
as Helena Harrison
Training Your Best Friend 1989
as Self
- Himmelsheim
Himmelsheim 1989
as Helga Münzel
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous: The World's Most Exotic Vacation Resorts 1988
as Self
Death Stone 1987
as Kris Patterson
- Hollywood Ghost Stories
Hollywood Ghost Stories 1986
as Herself
Jenny's War 1985
as Eva Gruenberg
Niemand weint für immer 1984
as Lou Parker
Lily in Love 1984
as Alicia Braun
Der Mann im Pyjama 1981
as Frau Lachmann
A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square 1980
as Miss Pelham
Jamaican Gold 1979
as Ursula
The Prisoner of Zenda 1979
as Countess Montparnasse
The Double McGuffin 1979
as Prime Minister Kura
The Fantastic Seven 1979
as Rebecca Wayne
I Miss You, Hugs and Kisses 1978
as Magdalene Kruschen
The Astral Factor 1978
as Chris Hartman
That's Carry On! 1977
as Professor Anna Vooshka (archive footage)
US Against the World 1977
as Self
- Nicht von gestern
Nicht von gestern 1977
as Billie Dawn
Meet Him and Die 1976
as Perrone's Secretary
The Swiss Conspiracy 1976
as Rita Jensen
One Away 1976
as Elsa
The Net 1975
as Christa Sonntag
Carry On Behind 1975
as Professor Anna Vooshka
The House of Exorcism 1975
as Lisa Reiner
Lisa and the Devil 1974
as Lisa Reiner
And Then There Were None 1974
as Vera Clyde
Percy's Progress 1974
as Clarissa
One or the Other of Us 1974
as Miezi
The Journey to Vienna 1973
as Toni Simon
Baron Blood 1972
as Eva Arnold
Probe 1972
as Heideline 'Uli' Ullman
- Perlico - Perlaco
Perlico - Perlaco 1971
Actor
Zeppelin 1971
as Erika Altschul
Percy 1971
as Helga
The Invincible Six 1970
as Zari
The Wrecking Crew 1968
as Linka Karensky
They Came to Rob Las Vegas 1968
as Ann Bennett
The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz 1968
as Paula Schultz
Mondo Hollywood 1967
Actor
Deadlier Than the Male 1967
as Irma Eckman
The Corrupt Ones 1967
as Lilly Mancini
The Venetian Affair 1966
as Sandra Fane
Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number! 1966
as Didi
The Oscar 1966
as Kay Bergdahl
The Jack Benny Hour 1965
as Elke Sommer / Maria Poppenini
Tausend Takte Übermut 1965
as Herself
The Money Trap 1965
as Lisa Baron
The Art of Love 1965
as Nikki Dunnay
Hotel der toten Gäste 1965
as Herself
The Dolls 1965
as Ulla (segment "Il Trattato di Eugenetica")
Frontier Hellcat 1964
as Annie Dillman
A Shot in the Dark 1964
as Maria Gambrelli
The Prize 1963
as Inger Lisa Andersson
… denn die Musik und die Liebe in Tirol 1963
as Singer
The Victors 1963
as Helga
Seduction by the Sea 1963
as Eva
Who Stole the Body? 1963
as Brigitte
- Nachts ging das Telefon
Nachts ging das Telefon 1962
as Mabel Meyer
Bahía de Palma 1962
as Olga
Un chien dans un jeu de quilles 1962
as Ariane
Le Chien 1962
as Elle
Das Mädchen und der Staatsanwalt 1962
as Renate Hecker
Sweet Ecstasy 1962
as Elke
Café Oriental 1962
as Sylvia
Auf Wiedersehen 1961
as Suzy Dalton
Geliebte Hochstaplerin 1961
as Barbara Shadwell
Don't Bother to Knock 1961
as Ingrid
Daniella by Night 1961
as Daniella
Und sowas nennt sich Leben 1961
as Britta
Love, the Italian Way 1960
as Greta
The Warrior Empress 1960
Actor
- Himmel, Amor und Zwirn
Himmel, Amor und Zwirn 1960
as Eva
Howlers of the Dock 1960
as Giulia Giommarelli
Lampenfieber 1960
as Evelyne
The Day the Rains Came 1959
as Ellen
Ship of the Dead 1959
as Mylène Loureau
The Jukebox Kids 1959
as Giulia Cesari
La Pica sul Pacifico 1959
as Rossana
Men and Noblemen 1959
as Caterina
L'amico del giaguaro 1959
as Greta
Credits from TMDB.