Helga Lina Stern (born 14 July 1932), known as Helga Liné (pronounced[liˈne]), is a German-born Spanish film actress, model, and former vedette. She was a star of the horror genre during the 1960s and 1970s, and gained the reputation of a scream queen.
Early life
Liné was born Helga Lina Stern on 14 July 1932 in Berlin, into a circus family. When she was still very young, her family emigrated to Portugal to escape the Nazi regime. She began her performing arts career at the age of 8 in her family's circus acts, as an acrobat and contortionist.
Career
After winning a beauty contest, Liné made her film debut at the age of 13 in the Spanish-Portuguese co-production La mantilla de Beatriz (1946). As a young adult she worked professionally as a model, showgirl, and vedette, working variously in Portugal, Spain, and Brazil.
Later she would go on to work under Pedro Almodóvar in films such as Labyrinth of Passion in 1982 and Law of Desire in 1986. She also took part in the popular Spanish TV series Verano azul in the early eighties, as a secondary character.
