I'm afraid most posters don't even know who Ilse Werner is since the years between 1933 and 1965 of the German cinema are undeservedly terra incognita outside of Germany.
I found at least this small portrait:
http://www.cyranos.ch/smweri-e.htm
She was my favourite German actress from the first half of the century, entered the cinema very young and hit big with the probably most successful German picture ever "Wunschkonzert" (1940) which had 30 millions viewers. Her biggest artistic successes were "Wir machen Musik" by Helmut Käutner a music film which displays her cheerful attitude and musical talent, she was famous for her excellent whistling which became her trademark. The biggest artistic triumph was one of the best German sound films "Große Freiheit Nr.7" and you can also see her in "Münchhausen" which is at the moment the only available film of her in the USA, the three others are on DVD in Germany.
Though her propagandistic effort was minimal she got a short working prohibition and strangely her career never really recovered after WWII even though she was only 24.
Werner was the second to last famous living leading lady of the NS-cinema, now only the lesser known Margot Hielscher (born 1919) is still alive.
If anybody has ever the opportunity to see "Große Freiheit Nr.7", do it. It's a marvelous picture which features one of the biggest stars Hans Albers and is a triumph of acting, camera and story. Due to its pessimistic atmosphere the film was banned immediately by Goebbels. Again I could bang my head at the wall that such an essential picture seems to be unavailable and unknown outside of Germany. Do you listen Criterion?
