The Women of Hammer Films – Part 4

In the fourth installment of The Women Of Hammer Films (Click Here for Part One), we explore the lives and careers of three more ladies who were immortalized in Hammer’s series of films. The woman in question in this latest article are Ursula Andress, Raquel Welch, and Julie Ege.

Ursula Andress

Ursula Andress was born in Bern, Switzerland on March 19, 1936. In 1952, she left school and worked as a model in Paris where she got involved with French actor Daniel Gellin. From there she went to Rome where she worked as a nanny.

While in Rome, Andress attended a party that led to her getting some small roles in a few Italian movies: An American in Rome (1954) and The Sins of Cassanova (1955). A chance meeting with Marlon Brando led to her getting a contract with Paramount.

Andress arrived in Hollywood in December 1955. Due to her poor English and a lack of will to attend classes to improve she appeared in no films for Paramount. Andress bought herself out of the contract and signed with Columbia. The actress didn’t make any movies for Columbia either. In 1957, she married John Derek and temporarily halted her acting career. Her next film would be in 1962 when she appeared in the TV series Thriller. That same year, she appeared in the film that launched her into stardom, Dr. No.

“As a result of starring in Dr. No as the first Bond girl, I was given the freedom to take my pick of future roles and to become financially independent.”

– Ursula Andress

The following year she starred opposite Elvis Presley in Fun in Acapulco (1963). Andress also starred alongside Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin in 4 From Texas, also released in 1963. In 1964 she starred in the film Once Before I Die, where she had an affair with her co-star Ron Ely. This caused the breakup of her marriage to Derek.

In 1965, Andress earned the lead role in the Hammer movie She with studio stalwarts Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. The actress was signed on for the movie’s sequel. However, her contract expired before filming began.

“I was forced to do She. It was a very cheap Hammer film and the only thing I adored was the costumes. I was just lucky to look good in it because they photographed me beautifully.”

– Ursula Andress

In the mid-1960s, Andress appeared in two huge hit comedies. The first, What’s New Pussycat? (1965) co-starred Peter Sellers, as well as an up-and-coming comic, Woody Allen. The other comedy was a spoof on the James Bond series, Casino Royale (1967). This film also featured Sellers and Allen but added David Niven and Orson Welles to its motley crew.

Andress acted steadily throughout the 1970s and 1980s with Clash of the Titans (1981) being her most remembered role during this era. She had her only child, a son, with co-star Harry Hamlin whom she began a relationship during the filming of the film. Since the 1990s Andress has been semi-retired from acting, only making sporadic appearances in public. She currently spends her time living in Rome, as well as her native Switzerland.

Julie Ege

Julie Ege was born in Sandnes, Norway on November 12, 1943. At the age of 15, Ege dropped out of school in order to begin her career as a model. Two years later, she is crowned Miss Norway in 1962. This allowed her to compete in that year’s Miss Universe pageant. Prior to heading to Florida to compete in this contest, she spent some time in London working as a nanny in order to improve her English.

Over the next several years Julie would marry twice. First to a Norwegian farmer, whom she found to be boring. Ege would later marry a middle-aged dentist from Oslo. He would subsidize her London-based modeling and acting career from Oslo for several years (1967-70), after which, they would also divorce.

In 1967, soon after arriving in England, she appeared in a photoshoot for Penthouse magazine. The following year Ege was cast in the James Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969). Ege’s filming schedule lasted several months and she was on location in Switzerland. The end result was a very small amount of screen time for her.

After appearing in the Marty Feldman comedy Every Home Should Have One in 1970, Ege entered and won a contest from Hammer Films called “Sex Symbol of the 70s.” The actress beat out over 1,500 applicants. Subsequently, she was cast in the company’s latest production, Creatures the World Forgot (1971).

After filming Creatures the World Forgot in West Africa, Ege began an affair with Hammer director Jimmy Sangster.  lasted a few months. She then became involved with former Beatle’s roadie Tony Bramwell. This relationship allowed her to record a cover of the John Lennon song Love, which was released as a single in 1971. Ege’s relationship with Bramwell lasted until 1976.

Ege would go on to appear in a few other movies in the early 1970s. Most notably, she appeared in The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires (1974) for Hammer. Not soon after that, she essentially retired from acting.

“I want to be a star and what’s wrong with wanting that?”

– Julie Ege

In 1977, Ege moved back to Norway with her then-boyfriend, playwright Andrew Byes. Eventually, Ege returned to school, earning a history degree. In 1998, she became a registered nurse, a career she held until her death from breast cancer ten years later.

Raquel Welch

Jo Raquel Tejada was born in Chicago, Illinois on September 5, 1940, to a mother of Irish descent and a Bolivian father. When Raquel was two years old, the family moved to San Diego, California. During her teenage years, she began to participate in beauty pageants winning the titles of Miss La Jolla and Miss San Diego at the San Diego County Fair.

Upon graduating high school in 1958, Raquel decided she wanted to pursue a career in acting. She entered San Diego State College on a theater arts scholarship and the following year, Raquel got a job as a weather girl at KFMB in San Diego. That same year she married her high school sweetheart, John Welch.

After two years of marriage, Welch’s marriage was essentially over. She packed up her two young children and headed to Dallas, Texas where she worked as a Neiman Marcus model. Welch also had a part-time gig as a cocktail waitress on the side.

In 1963, after briefly considering a move to New York, Welch headed to Hollywood to try and make it in movies and television. Welch had moderate success upon her arrival with small roles on TV. This included Bewitched, McHale’s Navy, and The Virginian. She also had a small role in the Elvis Presley film Roustabout (1964).

After losing out on the featured role of Mary Ann on Gilligan’s Island, she appeared in A Swinging’ Summer (1965), for which she received top billing. Soon after, Welch was signed to a seven-year contract with 20th Century Fox. The following year Welch was launched into stardom with a lead role in the sci-fi movie Fantastic Voyage (1966).

Meanwhile, over in England, Hammer Films was putting together a sexploitation remake of Hal Roach’s dinosaur picture One Million B.C. (1940). They needed a female lead and had approached Ursula Andress. However, she refused to appear in the film. The folks at Hammer called Richard Zanuck over at their American distributor 20th Century Fox, searching for a girl to star in the film. Welch was who he decided on. When the actress learned she was going to be in a dinosaur movie, she was unhappy but accepted the role as she was contractually obligated.

“(One Million Years B.C.) was a big hit and God knows it put me on the map, so I am very grateful I did that silly dinosaur movie all those years ago.”

– Raquel Welch

Welch appeared in several movies throughout the late sixties and seventies including Bedazzled (1967), The Magic Christian (1969), and Mother, Juggs, and Speed (1976). She also appeared on The Muppet Show, Mork and Mindy, and even had her own CBS special dubbed Raquel! during this period. Her career continued into the eighties and beyond. Most notably she appeared in the TV movie Right to Die (1987) and Legally Blonde (2001).

Welch has also been successful in various business ventures over the years including a line of wigs, jewelry, and skincare products. In 2007, she was selected as the newest face of the MAC Cosmetics Beauty Icon series.

On February 15, 2023, Welch passed away. She was 82 years old.

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