Born Hjördis Paulina Genberg in Kiruna, Sweden. Just after the second World War, she married Swedish businessman, Carl Tersmeden, but divorced him after only 18 months. She met her second husband, David Niven, on the set of his film, Bonnie Prince Charlie in 1948, and he recorded that he was utterly smitten by her beauty. They were married six weeks after meeting. After an initial happy period, their marriage became tumultuous as she became dissatisfied at her position as 'Mrs Niven' rather than a star in her own right. She had worked as a model in Sweden but was completely unknown outside her home country. The couple adopted two daughters, reportedly in an effort to stabilize their relationship. She, however, reportedly descended into infidelity and alcoholism, until at last she and Niven were leading almost entirely separate lives. She died at the age of 78 from a stroke. She left specific instructions that she wasn't to be buried beside Niven, so was cremated and her ashes scattered in the Mediterranean.
Born Hjördis Paulina Genberg in Kiruna, Sweden. Just after the second World War, she married Swedish businessman, Carl Tersmeden, but divorced him after only 18 months. She met her second husband, David Niven, on the set of his film, Bonnie Prince Charlie in 1948, and he recorded that he was utterly smitten by her beauty. They were married six weeks after meeting. After an initial happy period, their marriage became tumultuous as she became dissatisfied at her position as 'Mrs Niven' rather than a star in her own right. She had worked as a model in Sweden but was completely unknown outside her home country. The couple adopted two daughters, reportedly in an effort to stabilize their relationship. She, however, reportedly descended into infidelity and alcoholism, until at last she and Niven were leading almost entirely separate lives. She died at the age of 78 from a stroke. She left specific instructions that she wasn't to be buried beside Niven, so was cremated and her ashes scattered in the Mediterranean.
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