Anita Ekberg

 

Kerstin Aita Marianne (Swedish pronunciation (listen) 29/09/1931 until 11/01/2015) was a Swedish actress, well-known for her beauty and striking figure. She became prominent in her role as Sylvia in the Federico Fellini film La Dolce Vita (1960). Ekberg was primarily employed in Italy which she later made her permanent resident in 1964. Anita Ekberg was the eighth child in a family of eight. Anita was a model during her teens. Ekberg entered the Miss Malmo competition in 1950 at her mother's urging. She won the Miss Sweden contest. Despite having a very limited knowledge of English the contestant traveled to the United States to compete for the 1951 Miss Universe title (an unofficial pageant in the year 1951, the pageant became official in 1952). Even though Ekberg was not crowned the Miss Universe pageant, as one of six contestants, she did earn a starlet's contract with Universal Studios. As a starlet at Universal they gave her lessons in elocution and drama, horseback riding, dancing and fencing. The film she appeared in was The Mississippi Gambler (1953), Abbott and Costello (as a woman in Venus), Take Me to Town (1853), and The Golden Blade (1953).