Ellen Kessler
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- August 20, 1936
- Died
- November 17, 2025 (aged 89)
- Birthplace
- Nerchau, Germany
Biography
Alice and Ellen Kessler (born 20 August 1936 in Nerchau, Saxony, Germany) are twin entertainers known in Europe, especially Germany and Italy, from the 1950s and 1960s for their singing, dancing, and acting. They are usually credited as the Kessler Twins (Die Kessler-Zwillinge in Germany and Le Gemelle Kessler in Italy), where they remain popular. The Kessler sisters enjoyed a significant degree of popularity in the US, appearing on national television programs such as The Ed Sullivan Show. The Kesslers made their American television debut on the CBS variety show, The Red Skelton Hour. They also appeared in the 1963 film Sodom and Gomorrah as dancers and were featured on the cover of Life Magazine that same year. Their parents, Paul and Elsa, sent them to ballet classes at the age of six, and they joined the Leipzig Opera's child ballet program at age 11. When they were 18, their parents used a visitor's visa to escape to West Germany, where they performed at the Palladium in Düsseldorf. They performed at The Lido in Paris between 1955 and 1960, where they met Elvis Presley, on leave from the Army on June 17, 1959, and represented West Germany in the 1959 Eurovision Song Contest, finishing in 8th place with Heute Abend wollen wir tanzen geh'n (Tonight we want to go dancing). They moved to Italy in 1960 and gradually moved to more serious roles. They became very popular thanks to the RAI television variety show Studio Uno (1961–1966). At the age of 40, they agreed to pose on the cover of the Italian edition of Playboy. That issue became the fastest-selling Italian Playboy to that date. They moved back to Germany in 1986 and live in Grünwald. They have received two awards from both the German and Italian governments for promoting German-Italian cooperation through their work in show business. Source: Article "Kessler Twins" from Wikipedia in english, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Known For
Filmography
Ringlstetter
TV · as self · 1 ep
Wer weiß denn sowas?
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Heimat - Deine Filme
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Markus Lanz
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Ein Leben wie im Flug
Movie · as Self
Inas Nacht
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Lafer! Lichter! Lecker!
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Filmlegenden. Deutsch
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Herzlichen Glückwunsch - Die Michael Schanze Jubiläumsgala
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Johannes Heesters: Eine Legende wird 100
Movie · as Self
Menschen bei Maischberger
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Ein roter Teppich für....
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Aeschbacher
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Menschen der Woche
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Alles Liebe V.I.P.
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Alpha Forum
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Lukas
TV · as Ellen Kessler · 1 ep
Zimmer frei!
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Die Harald Schmidt Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Balko
TV · as Ira Adomeit · 1 ep
Versteckte Kamera
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Lebens-Künstler
TV · as Self · 1 ep
alfredissimo! Kochen mit Bio
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Die Feste mit Florian Silbereisen
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Auf eigene Gefahr
TV · as Lucie Grindel · 1 ep
Riverboat
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Boulevard Bio
TV · as Self · 1 ep
DAS!
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Ein Schloß am Wörthersee
TV · as Erika Strassberg · 1 ep
Mini Playback Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Pssst ...
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Alles Nichts Oder?!
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Nachtcafé
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Showgeschichten
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Die verflixte 7
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Wortwechsel
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Menschen
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Heut' abend
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Die Pyramide
TV · as Self · 1 ep
NDR Talk Show
TV · as Self · 3 eps
Just a Gigolo
Movie · as Dancer (uncredited)
Bio’s Bahnhof
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Auf los geht's los
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Domenica In
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Kölner Treff
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Music & Guests
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Treffpunkt Herz
Movie · as Gast
Numéro un
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Am laufenden Band
TV · as Self - Guest · 1 ep
Die Montagsmaler
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Klimbim
TV · as Self · 1 ep
8 x 1 in Noten
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Hätten Sie heut’ Zeit für mich?
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Alice und Ellen
Movie · as Self
Dalli Dalli
TV · as Self - Contestant · 1 ep
Die diebischen Zwillinge
TV · as Kathy · 7 eps
Anneliese Rothenberger gibt sich die Ehre
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Scene of the Crime
TV · as Mutter Bemering · 1 ep
Festival der Stars
Movie · as Self
Peter Alexander präsentiert Spezialitäten
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Wünsch dir was
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Paris nach Noten
Movie · as Self
Starparade
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Night-Club
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Andere Zeiten - andere Sitten
Movie · as Self
Playgirl
Movie · as Self
Continental Showcase
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Die Caterina-Valente-Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Complexes
Movie · as Self (segment "Guglielmo il Dentone")
Show - Charme - Chansons
Movie · as Self
The Thursday
Movie · as Self
Dead Woman from Beverly Hills
Movie · as Tiddy Sister Nr. 1
Songs, Bullies and Chicks
Movie · as Self
Maskenball bei Scotland Yard
Movie · as Kessler-Zwillinge
Perpetuum Musicale - Eine Revue ohne Aufenthalt
Movie · as Self
The Danny Kaye Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Hochzeitsnacht im Paradies
Movie · as Milli
Der Vogelhändler
Movie · as Tänzerin
Sodom and Gomorrah
Movie · as Dancer
Lieben Sie Show ?
TV · as Self - Host · 4 eps
Wieder zurück: Siegfried Arno - Eine Musik-Show aus Studio 3
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Raise Your Glasses
TV · 1 ep
Erik the Conqueror
Movie · as Daya
Die lachende Dritte
Movie · as Ellen
Rocco e le sorelle
Movie
Hotel Victoria
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Love and the Frenchwoman
Movie · as L'autre jumelle, un mannequin de publicité (segment "L'Adultère")
The Magician
Movie · as Hildegarde
Stars in der Manege
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Discorama
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Countess Mariza
Movie · as Rosika
Mein Schatz ist aus Tirol
Movie · as Lo
Der Bettelstudent
Movie · as Katja
Das Posthaus im Schwarzwald
Movie · as Cilli
The Beautiful Legs of Sabrina
Movie · as Tänzerin
Tabarin
Movie · as Self
Vier Mädels aus der Wachau
Movie · as Hanni
Scherben bringen Glück
Movie · as Flora Fleuron
The Count of Luxemburg
Movie · as Franzi
Mit Rosen fängt die Liebe an
Movie · as Lotte
Die Zwillinge vom Zillertal
Movie · as Tänzerin
Zum blauen Bock
TV · as Self · 2 eps
Eurovision Song Contest
TV · as Self -Germany Contestant · 1 ep
Solang es hübsche Mädchen gibt
Movie · as Ellen
The Ed Sullivan Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Bambi
TV · as Self - Laudation · 1 ep