Birgitta Anna Katharina Tolksdorf (born December 9, 1947 in
Osnabrück, Lower Saxony), who changed her name to Gittanna Tolksdorf,
is a German-American actress, best known in the United States for her
role on the television series Love of Life, playing Arlene Lovett from
1974 to 1980.Tolksdorf was born in Osnabrück, Germany, to Dr Heinz
Tolksdorf, a veterinarian, and his wife. In 1952, as a young child,
she immigrated with her parents and five siblings to the United
States, where they lived in Washington, Missouri. After attending high
school in Washington, Tolksdorf studied music and drama at Fontbonne
College, St. Louis, and took part in the college choir and theatre
productions. She became a US citizen in 1963.In 1974, Tolksdorf
appeared in William Douglas Home's play The Secretary Bird at the
Fisher Theatre, Detroit, in the role of the secretary. Later the same
year, she was cast as Arlene Lovett in the soap opera Love of Life, a
role she continued to play until the series ended in early 1980. She
reportedly declined an offer to join The Young and the Restless in
order to try out for theatre roles in New York.She was married to
Daniel Bannister, an attorney in Hermann, MO; he was born in 1958.
They divorced in 2001
Osnabrück, Lower Saxony), who changed her name to Gittanna Tolksdorf,
is a German-American actress, best known in the United States for her
role on the television series Love of Life, playing Arlene Lovett from
1974 to 1980.Tolksdorf was born in Osnabrück, Germany, to Dr Heinz
Tolksdorf, a veterinarian, and his wife. In 1952, as a young child,
she immigrated with her parents and five siblings to the United
States, where they lived in Washington, Missouri. After attending high
school in Washington, Tolksdorf studied music and drama at Fontbonne
College, St. Louis, and took part in the college choir and theatre
productions. She became a US citizen in 1963.In 1974, Tolksdorf
appeared in William Douglas Home's play The Secretary Bird at the
Fisher Theatre, Detroit, in the role of the secretary. Later the same
year, she was cast as Arlene Lovett in the soap opera Love of Life, a
role she continued to play until the series ended in early 1980. She
reportedly declined an offer to join The Young and the Restless in
order to try out for theatre roles in New York.She was married to
Daniel Bannister, an attorney in Hermann, MO; he was born in 1958.
They divorced in 2001
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