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Alice and Ellen Kessler, the celebrated Kessler twins who became two of post-war Europe’s best-known entertainers, both died on November 17 at the age of 89.
German authorities said the sisters died at their home in Grünwald, near Munich, through assisted suicide, a decision they had reportedly arranged together.
Police, who were alerted after their deaths, said there was no indication of third-party involvement.
- Alice and Ellen Kessler, iconic post-war entertainers, died together by assisted suicide at age 89 in Grünwald, Germany.
- The twins had planned their assisted suicide, choosing a shared date and no third-party involvement was found.
- Famous for synchronized dancing, they became symbols of post-war European entertainment and appeared on US TV and Italian shows.
Alice and Ellen Kessler ended their lives together on Monday
Image credits: Gisela Schober/Getty Images
The German Society for Humane Dying (DGHS) confirmed that the twins had chosen the date in advance, according to Bavarian Broadcasting.
“The Kessler twins had been involved with assisted suicide for a long time,” a DGHS spokesperson told the outlet.
The twins were born in 1936 in the town of Nerchau and trained at the Leipzig Opera’s ballet school before rising to fame in the years following the World War II.
Their identical appearance, tightly synchronized dancing, and upbeat stage style made them popular in Germany in the 1950s, where they became a symbol of the country’s emerging entertainment industry during the post-war recovery.
Image credits: Arthur Grimm/United Archives via Getty Images
Their success soon spread across Europe and the United States.
The Kesslers appeared on American television shows, including The Red Skelton Hour and The Ed Sullivan Show, and acted in films such as the 1962 epic Sodom and Gomorrah.
Throughout their careers they performed with major figures including Frank Sinatra and Fred Astaire.
In the 1960s and 1970s, they became cultural icons in Italy, appearing regularly on leading variety programs and maintaining a loyal following.
After decades of performing on stage and screen, they returned to Germany and lived in adjoining flats in Grünwald connected by a sliding wall.
In recent years, they said they wanted their ashes to be placed together in the same urn, alongside those of their mother, Elsa, and their dog, Yello.
“That’s what we stipulated in our wills,” Ellen Kessler told Bild in 2024.
The sisters “no longer wanted to live,” according to the outlet, and “they had chosen to end their lives together.”
Tributes were paid to the sisters following their deaths.
The twins shot to fame in post-war Europe
Image credits: Arthur Grimm/United Archives via Getty Images
“Alice and Ellen Kessler left together, just as they lived: inseparable,” Radio Monte Carlo wrote on Instagram.
“Born in 1936, they were an absolute symbol of European spectacle, including music, dance, and television. In Italy, they became celebrities as the ‘legs of the nation,’ icon of elegance and stage presence since the Fifties.”
“A unique artistic couple, capable of leaving an indelible imprint on the collective imagination.”
Fans flocked to the comment section of the post to leave their own tribute to the Kesslers.
“They represented the beauty, the talent, and the finesse of dance… They mark the definitive end of an era that is now gone!” one person wrote.
“Dear Alice and Ellen… ‘The night will always be small for you…’”
Another added, “In silence… without noise… but together. Thank you twins of all of us.”
In Germany, assisted suicide—where a person obtains a lethal drug themselves with help from others—is not criminalized, provided the decision to die is made freely and with full capacity.
In 2020, the Federal Constitutional Court struck down a ban on organized assistance in suicide, ruling that individuals have a right to a “self-determined death,” which means that while assisted suicide is legally permissible, it is unregulated.
However, active euthanasia—where someone else administers a fatal dose to a person—remains illegal.
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