An alluring German-born blonde, Elke Sommer was a minister's daughter who studied English while working as an au pair in London. Intellectually inclined (she is fluent in seven languages), she attended university with the intention of working as a diplomatic translator. A brief modeling career led to her first film role in the German-language "Das Totenschiff" (1959). Later, she was spotted by a producer and cast in "Femmine di Lusso" (1960) Her nude scenes in "The Victors" (1963) garnered her press in America and she landed opposite Paul Newman in the engaging drama "The Prize" (1963) and
