Overview
- RTL is airing the complete Romy Schneider 'Sissi' trilogy in prime time on December 24 with additional showings on December 25, replacing the franchise’s usual placement on public TV.
- The broadcasts coincide with 70 years since the first film’s Vienna premiere on December 21, 1955, underscoring the trilogy’s status as a holiday TV tradition.
- Current coverage contrasts the films with historical accounts that note Elisabeth signed her nickname as “Sisi,” maintained an intense beauty regimen and diet, and pursued vigorous travel and fitness routines.
- Some details reported about Elisabeth remain disputed, including a blue anchor tattoo at about age 51, smoking, and occasional cocaine use for pain relief, with a syringe attributed to her displayed at Vienna’s Sisi Museum.
- Retrospectives highlight substitute filming sites such as Schloss Fuschl and Bad Ischl and revisit Romy Schneider’s later complaint that the role clung to her, even as the films continue to draw annual audiences.