Heidi Brühl

Biography

Heidi Rosemarie Brühl (German: [ˈhaɪdiː ˈbʁyːl] ; 30 January 1942 – 8 June 1991) was a German singer and actress who came to prominence as a young teenager and had a prolific career in film and television. She was also a successful recording artist, and is known for her participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 1963.

Early career

Brühl's first screen appearance was in the 1954 film Der letzte Sommer with Liselotte Pulver, but in the role of Dalli, in what became known as the "Immenhof films", she became famous in Germany. The Immenhof Girls, adapted from a novel by children's writer Ursula Bruns, appeared in 1955 and was followed by two sequels, Hochzeit auf Immenhof and Ferien auf Immenhof, at yearly intervals. She returned to the role in two more films in 1973 and 1974.
In 1959, Brühl obtained a record deal with the Philips label. At first she formed a duo the Dolly Sisters with Carina Korten. Her first solo single "Chico Chico Charlie" reached number five. In 1960, her recording of "Wir wollen niemals auseinandergehn×Wir wollen niemals auseinandergehn1960 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksAWir wollen niemals auseinandergehnBMister Love (The Way to My Heart)" or "We Will Never Part (Ring of Gold)" sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc.

Eurovision Song Contest

Brühl first took part in the German Eurovision selection in 1960 with Michael Jary's "Wir wollen niemals auseinandergehn×Wir wollen niemals auseinandergehn1960 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksAWir wollen niemals auseinandergehnBMister Love (The Way to My Heart)" ("We Never Want to Be Apart"), which finished in second place but went on to top the German singles chart for nine weeks. She participated again in 1963, and this time was successful when "Marcel" was chosen to go forward to the Eurovision Song Contest 1963 which took place on 23 March in London. "Marcel" finished the evening in ninth place of 16 entries.

Later acting career

Brühl co-starred with Guy Williams in the 1963 film Captain Sindbad. She met American actor Brett Halsey and moved with him to Rome, where they married in December 1964. In 1970, she moved to the United States where she appeared in Las Vegas and in episodes of such television series as Columbo "The Most Dangerous Match" (1973; Peter Falk, Laurence Harvey, Jack Kruschen). She returned to Germany to play in two further Immenhof sequels in 1973–1974, The Twins from Immenhof and Spring in Immenhof. She appeared in The Eiger Sanction in 1975 as Anna Montaigne, the seductive wife of a French climber, with Clint Eastwood and George Kennedy.
Brühl and Halsey divorced in 1976 and she returned to live in Germany the following year. She did dubbing work on films such as The NeverEnding Story and Look Who's Talking Too. Her last roles were in television serials such as Ein Fall für zwei and Praxis Bülowbogen.

Death

Brühl died of breast cancer on 8 June 1991 in Starnberg, aged 49.

Selected filmography

The Country Schoolmaster (1954), as Sternchen
The Last Summer (1954), as Jessika's sister
The Immenhof Girls (1955), as Dalli Voss
Hochzeit auf Immenhof (1956), as Dalli Voss
Confessions of Felix Krull (1957), as Eleanor
Precocious Youth (1957), as Inge
Ferien auf Immenhof (1957), as Dalli Voss
Ooh... diese Ferien (1958), as Monika Petermann
Crime After School (1959), as Ulla Anders
The Shepherd from Trutzberg (1959), as Hilda von Puechstein
Two Times Adam, One Time Eve (1959), as Kaarina
Freddy and the Melody of the Night (1960), as Inge
The Hero of My Dreams (1960), as Marianne Kleinschmidt
I Will Always Be Yours (1960), as Marianne Seibold
One Prettier Than the Other (1961), as Gaby Fabian
The Gypsy Baron (1962), as Arsena Zsupan
Captain Sindbad (1963), as Princess Jana
Columbo: The Most Dangerous Match (1973, TV), as Linda Robinson
The Twins from Immenhof (1973), as Dalli Voss
How to Seduce a Woman (1974), as Doctor Winifred Sisters
Spring in Immenhof (1974), as Dalli Voss
The Eiger Sanction (1975), as Anna Montaigne
Das Gesetz des Clans (1977), as Anne Coronado