The Kessler Twins Die In Assisted Suicide In Germany: Alice & Ellen Kessler Were 89
Alice and Ellen Kessler, the German performers known as the Kessler Twins, died together Monday in an assisted suicide in Germany. They were 89.
Born on August 20, 1936, in Nazi Germany, the identical twins rose to international stardom in the 1950s and 1960s as dynamic dancers, singers and actresses. Their career began in ballet at the Leipzig Opera, and, after fleeing East Germany for the West in 1952, they found fame performing at the Lido cabaret in Paris.
Alice Kessler, left, and Ellen Kessler on a 1966 TV show
Arthur Grimm/United Archives via Getty Images
They shared the stage with such legends as Frank Sinatra, Fred Astaire and Harry Belafonte and represented West Germany in the 1959 Eurovision Song Contest. They later became beloved European entertainment figures, particularly in Italy, where their stage presence earned them the nickname “The Nation’s Legs,” after posing in Italian Playboy in the ’60s.
Their U.S. television credits include appearances on major variety shows including The Ed Sullivan Show and The Red Skelton Hour. In Italy, they were popular on the 1960s RAI variety show Studio Uno. Their film work, often featuring them as dancers or in light musical roles, includes such movies as Sodom and Gomorrah (1962), Erik the Conqueror (1961) and a number of German-language productions including The Count of Luxemburg and Gräfin Mariza.
Alice Kessler, left, and Ellen Kessler in October 2025
Photo by Hannes Magerstaedt/Getty Images)
The sisters died after opting for a medically assisted death at their home in Grünwald, Germany. Their decision reflected a lifelong wish to remain together, as they had previously expressed their desire to “leave together, on the same day.” They requested that their ashes be placed in a single urn, alongside those of their mother and their dog, Yello.
