Daliah Lavi (born Daliah Lewinbuk or Levenbuch, he, דליה לביא ; 12 October 1942 – 3 May 2017) was an Israeli actress, singer, and

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

Biography

Daliah Lewinbuk (or Levenbuch) was born in

Shavei Tzion Shavei Tzion ( he, שָׁבֵי צִיּוֹן, ''lit.'' Returnees to Zion) is a moshav shitufi in northern Israel. Located between Acre and Nahariya and covering 2,000 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Asher Regional Council. In ...

British Mandate of Palestine British Mandate of Palestine or Palestine Mandate most often refers to: * Mandate for Palestine: a League of Nations mandate under which the British controlled an area which included Mandatory Palestine and the Emirate of Transjordan. * Mandatory P ...

(now

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

), the daughter of Ruth and Reuben Lewinbuk (or Levenbuch), who were of

German-Jewish The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (''circa'' 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish ...

and Russian-Jewish descent, respectively. At age 10 she met Kirk Douglas, who was in Israel to film '' The Juggler'', and told him she would like to be a dancer. Douglas helped persuade her parents to send her to Stockholm, Sweden to study

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

. Not suited to the climate, she would give up dancing and return to Israel to model. She performed her national service as a goodwill ambassador and appeared in several more films until on a trip to Rome she was spotted on a beach and offered a role in ''

Two Weeks in Another Town ''Two Weeks in Another Town'' is a 1962 American drama film directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Kirk Douglas and Edward G. Robinson. The supporting players include Cyd Charisse, Claire Trevor, Daliah Lavi, George Hamilton, and Rosanna S ...

'', reuniting her with Douglas.

Career

In 1955 Lavi appeared in her first film, , a Swedish adaptation of

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

's 1887 novel '' The People of Hemsö''. Returning to

, her career took off in 1960 when she started appearing in a large number of European and American productions. Fluent in several languages, she acted in films in German, French,

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

and English. Lavi was reunited with Douglas in her first American film,

Vincente Minnelli Vincente Minnelli (born Lester Anthony Minnelli; February 28, 1903 – July 25, 1986) was an American stage director and film director. He directed the classic movie musicals '' Meet Me in St. Louis'' (1944), '' An American in Paris'' (1951), ' ...

's ''

'' (1962). DaliahLavi Gewandhaus Leipzig March 8th, 2009

She appeared in

Brunello Rondi Brunello Rondi (26 November 1924 – 7 November 1989) was a prolific Italian screen writer and film director best known for his frequent script collaborations with Federico Fellini. His brother, Gian Luigi Rondi, was an Italian film critic. Bi ...

witch hunt A witch-hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. The classical period of witch-hunts in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America took place in the Early Modern perio ...

-themed movie '' Il demonio'' (1963), a film she considered her best performance. She also appeared in

Mario Bava Mario Bava (31 July 1914 – 27 April 1980) was an Italian filmmaker who worked variously as a director, cinematographer, special effects artist and screenwriter, frequently referred to as the "Master of Italian Horror" and the "Master of the M ...

's Gothic classic '' La Frusta e il corpo'' (1963), and the first

Matt Helm Matt Helm is a fictional character created by American author Donald Hamilton (1916-2006). Helm is a U.S. government counter-agent, a man whose primary job is to kill or nullify enemy agents—not a spy or secret agent in the ordinary sense of t ...

film, ''

The Silencers ''The Silencers'' is the title of a 1962 spy novel by Donald Hamilton, the fourth in a series of books featuring assassin Matt Helm. Plot summary When a female agent in Mexico is killed before Helm can complete his mission to extract her, he f ...

'' (1966), opposite Dean Martin. Her portrayal of The Girl, Peter O'Toole's love interest, in 1965's '' Lord Jim'' was to have been her breakout American role. But audiences' tepid reaction to the film prompted Lavi to accept a new career path, frequently playing a scantily clad femme fatale. Lavi played European entertainer Ilona Bergen in the 1965 mystery film '' Ten Little Indians'', a film adaptation of Agatha Christie's thriller about a group of strangers with deadly secrets who are lured to an isolated locale and murdered one by one. She also acted as "The Detainer/007" in '' Casino Royale'' (1967). She was subsequently discovered by record producer Jimmy Bowien and began a successful schlager singing career in Germany, with hits such as "Oh, wann kommst du?", "Willst du mit mir gehn?" and "C'est ça, la vie (So ist das Leben)". In August 1971, her single "Jerusalem" peaked at number 98 in Australia.

Death

Lavi died on 3 May 2017, aged 74, from undisclosed causes in Asheville, North Carolina (USA). Her funeral and burial were in

Filmography

* '' The People of Hemsö'' (1955) as Professor's Daughter *'' Burning Sands'' (1960) *'' Candide ou l'optimisme au XXe siècle'' (1960) as Cunégonde *''

Estate Violenta ''Estate violenta'' (U.S. title: ''Violent Summer'') is a 1961 Italian award-winning black-and-white drama film directed by Valerio Zurlini, depicting a love affair between a prominent Fascist's young draft-dodging son, portrayed by Jean-Louis Tr ...

'' (1961) as Marie *' (1961) as Nathalie Conrad *''

Three Faces of Sin ''Three Faces of Sin'' (french: Le Puits aux trois vérités) is a 1961 French language motion picture comedy directed by François Villiers, based on novel by Jean-Jaques Gauthier. The music score is by Maurice Jarre. The film stars Michèle ...

'' (1961) (uncredited) *'' The Return of Doctor Mabuse'' (1961) as Maria Sabrehm *''

The Game of Truth ''The Game of Truth'' (French: ''Le jeu de la vérité'') is a 1961 French mystery film directed by Robert Hossein and starring Hossein, Françoise Prévost and Paul Meurisse.Rège p.509 Cast * Robert Hossein as L'inspecteur de police * F ...

'' (1961) as Gisèle *''

'' (1962) as Veronica *' (1962) as Germaine *'' Il demonio'' (1963) as Purif *'' The Whip and the Body'' (1963) as Nevenka Menliff *' (1963) as Secretary *''

Old Shatterhand Old Shatterhand is a fictional character in Western novels by German writer Karl May (1842–1912). He is the German friend and blood brother of Winnetou, the fictional chief of the Mescalero tribe of the Apache The Apache () are a g ...

'' (1964) as Paloma *'' Cyrano and d'Artagnan'' (1964) as Marion de l'Orme *' (1965) as Lolita, Charlys Stiefschwester *'' Lord Jim'' (1965) as The Girl *'' La Celestina P... R...'' (1965) as Daniela *'' Shots in Threequarter Time'' (1965) as Irina Badoni *'' Ten Little Indians'' (1965) as Ilona Bergen *''

'' (1966) as Tina *''

The Spy with a Cold Nose ''The Spy with a Cold Nose'' is a 1966 British comedy film directed by Daniel Petrie and starring Laurence Harvey, Daliah Lavi, Lionel Jeffries, Denholm Elliott, and Colin Blakely. The film was nominated for Golden Globe Awards in the Best Engli ...

'' (1966) as Princess Natasha Romanova *'' Those Fantastic Flying Fools'' (1967) as Madelaine *'' Casino Royale'' (1967) as The Detainer (007) *''

Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon ''Jules Verne's Rocket to the Moon'' is a 1967 Eastman color British science fiction comedy film directed by Don Sharp and starring Burl Ives, Troy Donahue, Gert Fröbe and Terry-Thomas. It was released in the US as ''Those Fantastic Flying Foo ...

'' (1967) as Madelaine *'' Nobody Runs Forever'' (1968) as Maria Cholon *'' Some Girls Do'' (1969) as Helga *'' Catlow'' (1971) as Rosita *''Mrs. Harris und der Heiratsschwindler'' (1991) as Jill Howard

Discography

*'' Liebeslied Jener Sommernacht '' (1970) ''German / English'' *'' Daliah'' (1970) ''English'' *'' Daliah Lavi / In Liebe'' (1971) ''German'' *''

Sympathy Sympathy is the perception of, understanding of, and reaction to the distress or need of another life form. According to David Hume, this sympathetic concern is driven by a switch in viewpoint from a personal perspective to the perspective of an ...

'' (1971) ''English'' *'' Willst Du Mit Mir Geh'n'' (1971) ''German'' *'' Would You Follow Me'' (1971) ''English'' *'' Ich Bin Dein Freund'' (1972) ''German'' *''

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

'' (1972) ''English'' *'' Meine Art Liebe Zu Zeigen'' (1972) ''German / English'' *'' Let The Love Grow'' (1973) ''English'' *'' I'm Israeli, I'm A Sabra'' (1974) ''Hebrew'' *'' Für Große Und Kleine Kinder'' (1975) ''German'' *'' Cafe Decadence'' (1975) ''German'' *'' Neuer Wind'' (1976) ''German'' *'' Bei Dir Bin Ich Immer Noch Zuhaus'' (1978) ''German'' *'' ... Wenn Schon, Dann Intensiv'' (1983) ''German'' *'' Herzblut'' (1985) ''German''

References

External links

* *
Daliah Lavi infosite

Daliah Lavi profile at Aveleyman.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavi, Daliah 1942 births 2017 deaths 20th-century Israeli actresses Israeli emigrants to the United States 20th-century Israeli women singers Israeli film actresses Israeli Ashkenazi Jews Israeli people of German-Jewish descent Israeli people of Russian-Jewish descent Ashkenazi Jews in Mandatory Palestine People from Northern District (Israel)