She was one of the last great divas, celebrated as an actress on Broadway, internationally recognized as a bestselling author and acclaimed as a singer: Hildegard Knef died this morning. The icon herself heard the shocking news on the radio. Was she actually doing quite well after all? Now she is enduring a gloomy limbo, while the ghost, who is always in denial, confronts the artist with unpleasant questions. Even when she played a prostitute in the film Die Sünderin, Germany's favorite rubble girl became persona non grata. What remains of her myth? What remains after death? The desire for a cigarette, of course. And one last dance with the devil . . .

In the field of tension between admiration and rejection, Die Knef comes alive as a contradictory and multi-faceted character with her songs. Hilde would have been 100 years old in 2025 and on this birthday it should rain red roses for Hilde.