Elke Sommer, Star of 'A Shot in the Dark' and Golden Globe Winner for 'The Prize,' Dies at 85
German actress Elke Sommer died of heart failure at her home in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles on the evening of October 28, at age 85. Her stepson, Sebastian Walther, confirmed her death to the German outlet Bild, saying she passed away peacefully around 10 p.m. She would have turned 86 on November 5.
Born Elke Schletz in Berlin on November 5, 1940, Sommer initially hoped to become an interpreter and was discovered while vacationing in Italy. Her performance in the 1963 espionage thriller 'The Prize,' opposite Paul Newman, earned her the 1964 Golden Globe for most promising newcomer.
In 1964 she played Maria Gambrelli, a maid suspected of murder, opposite Peter Sellers' Inspector Clouseau in 'A Shot in the Dark,' the second film in the Pink Panther series — the role for which she remains best known.
Her other films included 'The Art of Love,' 'The Oscar' and 'The Wrecking Crew'; she appeared in more than 70 features and later worked as a painter. Her husband, hotelier Wolf Walther, died of cancer three months ago at 77. She is survived by her stepson and a stepdaughter, and, according to Bild, wished to be buried in her family's grave in Marloffstein, Germany.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：演员埃尔克·索默晚年留影（资料图）。A.k.zehnnullzwo摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons。 / Actress Elke Sommer in later years (file photo). Photo by A.k.zehnnullzwo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
