![Laya Raki and reporter in Jakarta Dunia Film 15 Jan 1954 p4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Laya_Raki_and_reporter_in_Jakarta_Dunia_Film_15_Jan_1954_p4.jpg)
Laya Raki (born Brunhilde Marie Alma Herta Jörns; 27 July 192721 December 2018) was a dancer and film actress popular in Germany in the 1950s and early 1960s. She also became an international star for her roles in British films and TV productions.
Biography
Laya Raki was born in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
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, utc_offset1 = +1
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, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
, Germany, to acrobat Maria Althoff, and her partner, acrobat and clown Wilhelm Jörns. As she was an admirer of the famous dancer
La Jana and liked to drink
raki, she assumed the stage name Laya Raki.
She attracted attention for the first time in 1947–1950 as a dancer in
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
and other German cities. When she performed in Berlin, her star began to rise: her 38–23–36 figure (5.35 ft, 110 lbs) and erotic radiance became the talk of the town.
The film company
DEFA
DEFA (''Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft'') was the state-owned film studio of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) throughout the country's existence.
Since 2019, DEFA's film heritage has been made accessible and licensable on the PRO ...
engaged her for a small role as a dancer in the film ''
The Council of the Gods
''Der Rat der Götter'' (''The Council of the Gods'') is an East German black-and-white film, directed by Kurt Maetzig. It was released in 1950.
Plot
In the early 1930s, Dr. Scholz is a chemist working for IG Farben. While he develops new types ...
'', which went on to win two awards. One newspaper, the ''
Berliner Morgenpost
''Berliner Morgenpost'' is a German newspaper, based and mainly read in Berlin, where it is the second most read daily newspaper.
History and profile
Founded in 1898 by Leopold Ullstein, the paper was taken over by Axel Springer AG in 1959. It ...
'', wrote that she was a great dancer with an expressive face rich in nuances. In the same year the press department of
Real Film
Real Film or Real-Film was a West German film production company. It was established in 1947 in Hamburg, then part of the British Zone of Occupation. Its founders were Walter Koppel and the Hungarian Gyula Trebitsch. The company released some rub ...
presented her as a new discovery in ("The Third from the Right"), a dance film, the highlight of which was a scene in which scantily clad dancer Laya Raki (with only two white stars covering her nipples) exposes herself to the male cinema audience. In 1953 she danced in the film ("Marriage for One Night"). Her next film was ("The Rose of Stamboul"), in which the Austrian actor
Paul Hörbiger
Paul Hörbiger (29 April 1894 – 5 March 1981) was an Austrian theatre and film actor.
Life and work
Paul Hörbiger was born in the Hungarian capital Budapest, then part of Austria-Hungary, the son of engineer Hanns Hörbiger, founder of the ...
wants to marry her after seeing her dance. In ("Red Poppy") she plays the
gypsy
The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
girl Ilonka, who acts opposite Viennese comic actor
Hans Moser.
In 1954 she was lured to London by empty promises of film roles in the United Kingdom and in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
. There, she found herself unemployed, but her situation made headlines that soon opened up opportunities. The
J. Arthur Rank Film Company, which needed an exotic type for a film in New Zealand, received her with open arms.
She was played the role of the
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...
chieftain's seductive wife in ''
The Seekers
The Seekers were an Australian folk-influenced pop quartet, originally formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the United States. They were ...
'' and created a worldwide stir by baring her breasts, 10 years before
Rudi Gernreich
Rudolf "Rudi" Gernreich (August 8, 1922 April 21, 1985) was an Austrian people, Austrian-born American fashion designer whose avant-garde clothing designs are generally regarded as the most innovative and dynamic fashion of the 1960s. He purposef ...
's topless swimsuit made headline news.
After taking acting lessons in Hollywood, she appeared in several UK TV productions, including 39 episodes of the popular series ''
Crane'' (1962–1965), which made her a well known actress. Raki starred as Halima, a
Moroccan dancer and bartender, who is the partner of the title character, the bar owner and smuggler Richard Crane, played by
Patrick Allen
John Keith Patrick Allen (17 March 1927 – 28 July 2006) was a British actor.
Life and career
Allen was born in Nyasaland (now Malawi), where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada ...
.
She appeared in revealing outfits in both film and in photographs, capturing men's attention like no other German showgirl of the 1950s. She modeled for postcards, pin-up photographs, and magazines all over the world. The Broadway columnist
Earl Wilson noted her preference for scanty clothing: "You should have seen Laya Raki. Even if she is dressed, she looks like, as if she only wears the zipper and has forgotten the material". He placed photos of her in the first issue of "Earl Wilson's Album of Showgirls (1956)".
In 1962 she sang and recorded and , which were available as singles and on CD-ROMs. Her latter song was banned by a Nuremberg court who declared her ecstatic moaning was simulating sex.
At the age of 30, Laya Raki married Australian actor
Ron Randell Ron is a shortening of the name Ronald.
Ron or RON may also refer to:
Arts and media
* Big Ron (''EastEnders''), a TV character
* Ron (''King of Fighters''), a video game character
*Ron Douglas, the protagonist in ''Lucky Stiff'' played by Joe A ...
in London. "He is the best and most beautiful man of the world", she said. They remained married until his death in Los Angeles on 11 June 2005.
Laya Raki died peacefully on 21 December 2018 at age 91.
Filmography
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raki, Laya
1927 births
2018 deaths
German film actresses
20th-century German actresses
German female erotic dancers
Actresses from Hamburg