Marlene Schmidt

Biography

Fled East Germany in 1960 to live in Stuttgart and work as an electronics engineer. Soon after, she entered a beauty contest on a whim and ended up winning the title of Miss Germany. That led to being crowned Miss Universe in 1961. She married actor Ty Hardin in 1962, but the marriage only lasted 3 years. In 1969, she married Iraqi-born filmmaker Howard Avedis. Their partnership resulted in numerous drive-in hits and cult classics, including The Stepmother (1972), The Teacher (1974) and Mortuary (1983). Marlene always produced, sometimes wrote and usually appeared in supporting roles in these productions.

Most Known For

Mortuary

as Lois Stevens

Destiny

as Afsaneh

Scorchy

as Claudia Bianco

The Teacher

as Alice Roberts

The Stepmother

as Sonya Hill

The Fifth Floor

as Night Nurse

They're Playing with Fire

as Gas Station Customer

Separate Ways

as Pat Ingram

Texas Detour

as Lady Bartender

Kidnapped

as Secretary

The Specialist

as Elizabeth Bounds

Dr. Minx

as Harriet Thomas

Farewell, Lebanon

The Red Plain

as Betty