Elke Sommer

Elke Sommer

After becoming "Miss Viareggio" during a holiday in Italy, she was discovered by director Vittorio De Sica (1958).

Cousin of Gudy Somer.

Cousin of Brazilian 1974 Miss Universe Mariza Sommer.

Currently lives in Los Angeles, California, and works as a painter, mostly influenced by Marc Chagall.

Hosted the 1981 Miss Universe pageant along with Bob Barker.



In the 1960s, while living in Beverly Hills, she and her then husband, Joe Hyams, believed their house to be haunted.

Measurements: 36-22-36 (source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine).

She was nominated for a 1975 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Guest Artist for her performance in the play, "Born Yesterday," at the Drury Lane Theatre North in Chicago, Illinois.

She's the daughter of a Lutheran minister who died when she was only fourteen.

Was considered for the leading female role in the Elvis Presley picture G.I. Blues (1960), but the role was eventually played by Juliet Prowse.

When she appeared in Carry on Behind (1975), she received £30,000. She became one of the only two actors in the films (with Phil Silvers) to receive the highest ever Carry On salary. Kenneth Williams only received £5,000, a sixth of what she received.


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