Marlene Dietrich’s husband Rudolf Sieber (”Rudi”) had a lifelong mistress named Tamara Matul. She was affectionately known as Tami. Because Tami was a stateless White Russian refugee with a Nansen passport, it wasn’t always easy for the Sieber clan to travel with her, but they never abandoned her.
Unfortunately, living in the shadow of her lover who was in the shadow of his wife took its toll on Tami. Having to undergo abortions to protect Marlene’s image and encouraged to take pills to control her mood, Tami’s mental health declined so much that--by 1963--Rudi had her treated with shock therapy and eventually admitted into the Camarillo State Mental Hospital. By 1965, she was dead. Although Tami faced many indignities and hardships, she didn’t live a life of utter tragedy. Read more about her at https://lastgoddess.blogspot.com/2019/06/who-was-tamara-matul.html