Hollywood film star Taina Elg has died at the age of 95, with her family sharing that the Les Girls actress spent her final years in a care facility in Helsinki
Les Girls star and Golden Globe winner Taina Elg has died at the age of 95. The star’s family confirmed that she died on 15 May in a care facility in Helsinki, where she spent her final years.
The actress was best known for starring alongside Gene Kelly in Les Girl – for which she won the Golden Globe for best actress in a musical or comedy. She went onto appear in The 39 Steps, Hercules in New York and The Mirror Has Two Faces. Taina also took the theatre world by storm, working alongside Raul Julia in the 1974 revival of Rank Loesser’s Where’s Charley?.
She received a Tony nomination for her performance in the role and later did so for her performance in a production of Nine. She later toured with Gigi in 1984 until 1985 and then with a production of Titanic in 1999.
The Finnish star was also best known for her roles in 1955’s The Prodigal as well as her performance in 1956’s Gaby, for which she received her first Golden Globe nomination.
In the ’80s, Taina took on the role of Olympia Buchanan – the wife of Texas tycoon Asa Buchanan – in American soap One Life to Live. Her time on the show came to an end when her character fell to her death from balcony during a costume party.
Taina was married twice in her life: first to economist and importer Carl ‘Poku’ Bjorkenheim from 1953 until their divorce in 1958. She wed a second time to educator Rocco Caporale in 1982, with the pair staying together until his death in 2008.
After living in New York for over three decades, she chose to return to Finland after the death of her second husband. She is survived by her son Raoul Bjorkenheim – a Finish-American jazz guitarist.
Fans have taken to social media to pay tribute to the Hollywood star, with one writing: “Celebrating the life of Taina Elg, Finland’s Hollywood star who shone on screen and stage, winning hearts and Golden Globes. A true legend!”
Another wrote: “Very sad news to bring you, the beautiful Taina Elg, best known for her performance in Les Girls, died earlier this month at the age of 95. RIP Taina.”
* Join The Mirror’s WhatsApp Community or follow us on Google News , Flipboard , Apple News, TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads – or visit The Mirror homepage.