Who Are Those Singers & Musicians ~ Sonia Zieman

 

Sonja Alice Selma Toni Ziemann was born in Eichwalde, near Berlin, in Germany in 1926. Her father was a tax consultant. At age 10, Sonja began to train in ballet and from 1939 on she studied at the ballet school of Tatjana Gsovsky in Berlin. She made her stage debut in 1941 at the Plaza variety Theater and appeared in several revues.

Her film career started a year later and during the war period, she played supporting parts in films like “Ein Windstoß” (A Blast) in 1942 starring Paul Kemp, “Eine kleine Sommermelodie” (A Little Summer Melody) in 1944) and the horror-comedy “Spuk im Schloss” (Ghost in the Castle) in 1945 starring Margot Hielscher. After the war, she appeared in cabarets and worked together with Hildegard Knef, who became a lifelong friend. At the Metropol-Theater in Berlin, she had her first successes as a soubrette in such operettas as 'Die Zirkusprinzessin' (The Circus Princess), 'Nächte in Schanghai' (Nights in Shanghai), 'Chanel Nr. 5' (Chanel No. 5) and 'Die Kinoköniginn' (The Cinema Queen).

The lead role in the “Heimatfilm Schwarzwaldmädel” (The Black Forest Girl) in 1950 starring Paul Hörbiger was her breakthrough in the cinema. The public loved her mix of naivety, simplicity and good humor.

The following year she had another huge hit with the film operetta “Grün ist die Heide” (The Heath is Green) in 1951 with Rudolph Prack. She won the Bambi award that year, for the most popular German star. For a while, she and her film partner Rudolph Prack were one of the great 'Traumpaare' (Dream Couples) of the German cinema, and they were lovingly nicknamed 'Zieprack'.

Sonia Zieman died in Munich, German on February 17, 2020, ten days after turning 94.

ZIEMAN, Sonia (Alice Toni Selma Ziemann) [2/8/1926, Eichwalde, Berlin, Germany – 2/17/202, Munich, Bavaria, Germany] – theater, film actress, singer, married to  Rudolf Hambach (1952-1956) mother of Pierre Hambach [1953-1970], married to Marek Hlasko [1934–1969] (1962-1969), married to director, writer, actor Charles Regnier (Karl Friedrich Anton Hermann Regnier) (1914–2001] (1972-2001).

Texas Serenade - 1958 [sings: “Quandm j’ai trop de peine” (co)]