German actress and operatic singer of Swiss and Italian parentage. Began on stage in Mozart's Magic Flute at the age of seventeen. Entered films in 1926 and played vamps until graduating to leading roles after the advent of sound. First prominent role as a murderess in the crime drama
Der Tiger (1930). Signed by MGM in 1932 as a 'rival to Greta Garbo' but failed to secure a solitary role in Hollywood, thus cancelling her contract in 1934. Gave up film acting and returned to the stage after World War II, eventually settling in Basel, Switzerland, where she lived out the remainder of her life.
