Who was Anita Ekberg? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Also Known As: Kerstin Anita Marianne Ekberg was

Died At Age: 83

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Anthony Steel (m. 1956–1959), Rik Van Nutter (m. 1963–1975)

father: Gustav Ekberg

mother: Alva Ekberg

Born Country: Sweden

Actresses Swedish Women

Height: 5'7" (170 cm), 5'7" Females

Died on: January 11, 2015

place of death: Rocca di Papa, Italy

Ancestry: Swedish Italian

Cause of Death: Illness

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Childhood & Early Life

Anita Ekberg was born in Malmo, Skåne, in Sweden, on 29 September 1931. Her parents were Gustav Fredrik Ekberg and Alva Maria Larsson. She was the sixth of eight children.

At an early age, she began working as a fashion model and won the Miss Sweden contest in 1950.

In 1951, she went to the US, as she wanted to compete for the Miss Universe. She was one of the six finalists.

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Career

Anita Ekberg soon started appearing in movies, mostly in minor roles. Her first credited role was in the sci-fi comedy film ‘Abbott and Costello Go to Mars’, where she played the minor role of a Venusian Guard.

In 1955, she was seen in the adventure film ‘Blood Alley’, where she had a supporting role. The film won her the Golden Globe Award in the category of ‘Most Promising Newcomer’.

She was next seen in several films, over the years, such as ‘War and Peace’ (1956), ‘Man in the Vault’, (1956), ‘Interpol’ (1957), and ‘The Man Inside’ (1958). Her popularity reached new heights after she played a main role in the 1960 Italian comedy-drama film ‘La Dolce Vita’, which was directed and co-written by Federico Fellini. The film won the Golden Palm at the 1960 Cannes Film Festival. It was also nominated for four Oscars, out of which it won one for ‘Best Costume Design’.

In 1960, she was also seen in the film ‘The Dam on the Yellow River’. She was next seen in the films ‘Le tre eccetera del colonnello’ and ‘Anonima cocottes’, the same year.

In 1961, he was seen in the films ‘A porte chiuse’, and ‘The Mongols’. Over the years, she appeared in many films, some of them including ‘4 for Texas’ (1963), ‘The Alphabet Murders’ (1965), ‘Woman Times Seven’ (1967), ‘Death Knocks Twice’ (1969), ‘Northeast of Seoul’ (1972) and ‘Killer Nun’ (1979).

She also appeared in a television film in 1979, titled ‘Gold of the Amazon Women’. Some of the later works in her career include ‘Ambrogio’ (1992), ‘Bambola’ (1996) and ‘Le nain rouge’, (1998).

Major Works

One of Anita Ekberg’s major works is the 1955 American adventure film ‘Blood Alley’, which was directed by William A Wellman. The story takes place during the Cold War, and revolves around an American military officer Captain Tom Wilder, who gets imprisoned by the Chinese communists for two years. The film was not too successful commercially, and earned $ 2.2 million on a budget of $ 2 million. Ekberg played a Chinese villager named Wei Ling, for which she received the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer.

Ekberg’s most important work is ‘La Dolce Vita’, an Italian comedy-drama film which released in 1960. Directed and co-written by Federico Fellini, the film was about a journalist, who wrote for gossip magazines, and is on a search for love and happiness.

The film won the Golden Palm at the 1960 Cannes Film Festival. The film was nominated for four Oscars as well, winning one in the ‘Best Costume Category’. It was a critical and commercial success, and is also considered one of the best films ever made.

Anita Ekberg appeared in many other movies in her career, one of them including ‘The Alphabet Murders’, a British detective film, which released in 1965. The film was directed by Frank Tashlin. It was based on the novel ‘The A.B.C. Murders’, by renowned British writer Agatha Christie. The film revolves around the murder of a clown named Albert Aachen. Ekberg played the role of a woman named Amanda Beatrice, who becomes the main focus on the investigation.

Family & Personal Life

Anita Ekberg was married to Anthony Steel from 1956 till their divorce in 1959.

In 1963, she got married the second time to Rik Van Nutter. Her second marriage also ended in a divorce in 1975.

Anita Ekberg passed away on 11 January 2015, at the age of 83. Her death was caused by complications of her various illnesses. Three days later, her funeral service was held at the Lutheran-Evangelical Christuskirche in Rome. Her body was cremated and then her remains were buried at the cemetery of Skanör Church in Sweden.

Anita Ekberg Biography