Pink Panther and Carry On star Elke Sommer dies aged 85, just three months after the death of her husband
Elke Sommer in *The Pink Panther*, the film series she was known for, alongside a career spanning five languages and Hollywood co-stars including Paul Newman and Peter Sellers.
Elke Sommer, born Elke Schletz in Berlin in 1940, died of heart failure at her Bel Air home on Wednesday night, just one week before her 86th birthday. Her stepson Sebastian Walther confirmed she "passed away peacefully around 10pm," adding: "Now she can finally be with her beloved husband again." A career spanning nearly six decades saw her speak six languages and make around 100 film and television appearances.
Sommer won a Golden Globe in 1964 as Most Promising Newcomer for her role opposite Paul Newman in 'The Prize.'
Her husband of 32 years, German hotelier Wolf Walther, had died of cancer just three months earlier, and friends say her health rapidly declined after his death.
Her friend Erwin Schneider said she 'could never have imagined a life without her beloved Papa Bear' — the nickname she used for Walther.
