Elke Sommer, the German actress who starred opposite Peter Sellers in "A Shot in the Dark" from the Pink Panther series, has died at 85.
Sommer died Oct. 28 at her home in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles, her stepson Sebastian Walther told the German news outlet Bild.
"Elke passed away peacefully around 10 p.m. Now she can finally be with her beloved husband again," Walther told the outlet. The '60s actress died of heart failure after an extended period of illness.Sommer would have turned 86 on Nov. 5.
A Golden Globe winner and international sex symbol, Sommer became one of Germany's best-known Hollywood stars in the '60s, building a career that spanned film, television and theater.
suicide at 95
Born Elke Schletz in Berlin in 1940, Sommer initially hoped to become an interpreter. A beauty contest during a vacation in Italy helped open the door to acting, leading to roles in European films before her move into Hollywood.
Her performance in the 1963 film "The Prize" opposite Paul Newman earned her a Golden Globe in 1964. The awards organization's database lists her win in the new star of the year, actress category.
That same year, she appeared in Blake Edwards' "A Shot in the Dark," part of the "Pink Panther" series. Sommer played Maria Gambrelli, a maid suspected of murder whose innocence Sellers' Inspector Clouseau insists on proving.
Her other films included "The Art of Love," "The Oscar," "The Wrecking Crew" and "The Prisoner of Zenda."
Sommer also appeared in Playboy pictorials published in September 1964, December 1967 and September 1970.
Elke Sommer's husband died in July
Sommer's death came three months after that of her husband, hotelier Wolf Walther, who died July 22 at 77 following a cancer diagnosis, according to Bild. The couple married in 1993.
"She could never have imagined a life without her beloved 'Papa Bear,' her husband Wolf Walther," Erwin Schneider, a friend of Sommer, told Bild. "Her health had steadily declined since then. Now Elke has finally been able to join him."
Bild reported that Sommer wanted to be buried in her family's grave in Marloffstein, Germany, where her parents are buried. Her stepson is arranging for Sommer and her husband to be laid to rest together there.
Sommer's death comes just over a year after fellow "Pink Panther" actress Claudia Cardinale died at 87 in September 2025.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Elke Sommer, 'Pink Panther' movie star, dies at 85
