The Kessler Twins, German entertainment duo, die together by assisted suicide
Alice and Ellen Kessler, German twin sisters whose singing and dancing talents made them famous across Europe in the 1950s and 1960s, died Monday by assisted suicide, according to the German Society for Humane Death.
There were 89 of them.
“They had been considering this option for some time. They had been members of the organization for over a year. A lawyer and a doctor held preliminary discussions with them,” the organization said in a statement in English.
“People who choose this option in Germany must be absolutely lucid, that is to say free and responsible,” adds the organization. “The decision must be thoughtful and consistent, that is, taken over a long period of time and not impulsive.”
Germany’s highest court overturned a ban on physician-assisted suicide in 2020, ruling that the previous law infringed on constitutional rights.
Alice and Ellen Kessler were born on August 20, 1936 in Nazi Germany, where they trained as ballet dancers. In the early 1950s, their family fled East Germany for West Germany, where they launched their professional careers in entertainment.
The Kessler Twins, as they were professionally known, delighted audiences around the world with their spirited performances. They reached the height of their stardom in post-war Germany and Italy, but they also found fans in the United States.
In early February 1963, the Kesslers made their American television debut on the CBS variety show “The Red Skelton Hour,” performing a song-and-dance version of “Les Girls.” The same month, they appeared on the cover of Life magazine.
“SENSATIONS FROM GERMANY: KESSLER TWINS”, headlined the cover of Life.
They also performed on CBS’s “The Ed Sullivan Show.” In an Instagram post from an account dedicated to the show’s legacy, the Kesslers were hailed as “dazzling stars, true legends and sisters whose grace, charm and magic will shine forever.”
The two women moved to Italy in the 1960s and posed on the cover of the Italian edition of Playboy. They starred in various European film productions throughout the decade and briefly appeared in the Hollywood biblical epic “Sodom and Gomorrah.”
The sisters eventually returned to Germany in the 1980s, settling in a house near Munich. They never married.
They have received honorary awards from the German and Italian governments for their contributions to the entertainment industry, including the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1987.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis lifeline. You can also call the network, formerly known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255text HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.
