Anita Ekberg

 Kerstin Anita Marianne Ekberg (Swedish pronunciation: ( listen); 29 September 1931 11 January 2015) was an Swedish actress who appeared in American as well as European films. Her performance in the role of Sylvia in Federico Fellini's movie La Dolce Vita is her most well-known. Ekberg was a frequent visitor to Italy and was appointed an indefinite resident in 1964. She is the sixth child of Gustav Fredrik Ekberg and Alva Maria Larsson's eight children. As a teenager, Anita worked as a model in fashion. Ekberg participated in the Miss Malmo competition in 1950 on the advice of her mother. She was crowned the Miss Sweden contest. Then she traveled to the United States to compete for the 1951 Miss Universe title (an unofficial pageant at that time, the pageant officially became official in 1952) and was able to compete despite speaking little English.Although Ekberg did not win the Miss Universe pageant, as one of the six finalists, she did earn an actress' contract with Universal Studios, as was the practice in the era.