Sylvia Kristel was born on September 28, 1952 in Utrecht, Netherlands. She first came to international attention in the early 1970s with "Emmanuelle" for director Just Jaeckin. Then two more sequels followed in which she also starred. Included in her credits are a long list of European films including the 1974 film, "Julia" in which she played the lead. In 1979, she came to Hollywood, appearing in "Airport '79 -- The Concorde" for producer Jennings Lang, who also featured her in the comedy, "The Nude Bomb." However, this was all a prelude to the most successful film in Kristel's career -- "Private Lessons" -- in which she played the housekeeper who initiates 15-year-old Eric Brown to the wonders of sex. The film grossed over $50,000,000 worldwide. The Dutch actress, who speaks four languages (Dutch, English, Italian and French), now makes her home in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Emmanuelle: The Joys of a Woman (1975): $100,000
Emmanuelle (1974): $6,000
Mother of actor Arthur Kristel. Began modeling at 17. Entered the Miss TV Europe contest and won, which led to her movie career. Dated Belgian writer Hugo Claus. [1973-1978] Has a reported IQ of 164 and skipped four grades in school. Had a strict religious upbringing. Originally planned on being a teacher. Worked in a bar, as a secretary and even pumped gas while struggling to succeed as a dancer prior to becoming a model and an actress. Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2005 which spread to her lung, necessitating surgery. At 16, her father brought home a woman he introduced to the family as his next wife and told his wife and kids to leave. They moved into a small flat. Grandmother's name was Marie. Her mother was called Pete. She was born in Utrecht where her parents owned and ran The Commerce Hotel. Sylvia and her sister, Marianne, were brought up in Room 21, unless the hotel was full, in which case they were shifted, often in the middle of the night, to Room 22 which, according to the actress, is like a cupboard.