Biographies: Sonja Henie - Actor

Biographies

 [1 Content]

---

A Norwegian figure skater and actress, born in Oslo, Norway. She won the Golden Apple Award in 1944 and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960 for her cinematic activity. Sonja Heni married three times and had no children. Henie's works include The Countess of Monte Cristo (1948), Thin Ice (1937), One in a Million (1936), and Sun Valley Serenade (1941). She was the daughter of a wholesale fur trader in Norway and was born and raised in a very wealthy family. She practiced tennis, swimming, and horse riding, and began ice skating later. In 1927, she was the world champion in figure skating, and she won the Olympic gold medal in figure skating at the Winter Games held in Switzerland in 1928. Fox picked her up and presented her in the movie One in a Million (1936), where she played the role of an ice skater. She continued to present light comedies, with overwhelming success during the late thirties and early forties. Her films achieved great profits, and she became one of the highest-paid stars in Hollywood. In 1941, she decided to become an American citizen, and the USO (United Service Organizations) helped her. During World War II, her popularity declined after the publication of a picture of her with the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. She ended her film career in the mid-forties, continued ice skating, and presented special ice shows for television. In 1956, she married shipping magnate Niels Onstad, returned with him to Norway, and continued skating. Until 1960, she continued her activity as a smart businesswoman and became one of the 10 richest women in the world. She died on her way to Oslo, Norway, on October 12, 1969, of leukemia.

• 27 November 2023
• Toqa Hesham