The Kessler twins were neighbours their whole lives. This week, they made one final decision together.

For years, Alice and Ellen Kessler delighted the world with their post-war entertainment. Both on and off the stage, the identical twins were inseparable.

Now, at age 89, the sisters have ended their lives by joint assisted suicide at their home in Grünwald, near Munich, Germany.

According to German newspaper BILD, the Kessler sisters "no longer wanted to live" and "had chosen to end their lives together."

The twins told the same publication in April 2024 that they wanted to be buried in the same urn, with the ashes of their mother and their dog.

Assisted dying is legal in Germany, provided the person is of legal age and capacity, and is acting responsibly and of their own free will.

Watch: Belinda Teh on assisted dying. Post continues after video.

Alice and Ellen were assisted by an advocacy organisation called the German Society for Humane Dying [DGHS], according to CNN. The twins contacted the DGHS over a year ago.

"The decisive factor is likely to have been the desire to die together on a specific date," a DGHS spokesperson told the publication, adding that she wasn't aware of the specific reasons given by the sisters.

"Their desire to die was well-considered, longstanding and free from any psychiatric crisis."

The organisation also released a separate statement, confirming that the Kessler sisters "had been considering this option for some time."

"They had been members of the organisation for over a year. A lawyer and a doctor conducted preliminary discussions with them," they said, via NBC.

"People who choose this option in Germany must be absolutely clear-headed, meaning free and responsible. The decision must be thoughtful and consistent, meaning made over a long period of time and not impulsive."

Last year, Alice and Ellen told Italian publication Corriere della Sera that if one twin decided to undergo euthanasia, the other would join them.

"Our desire is to go away together, on the same day. The idea of ​​one of us going first is very hard to bear," they said.

Alice and Ellen were born on 20 August 1936 in the town of Nerchau, Germany. At six years old, the sisters started ballet classes, and joined the Leipzig Opera's child ballet program by age 11. From the age of 15, they were earning their own living.

When they were 16-years-old, in 1952, Alice and Ellen fled from East Germany with their family amid political turmoil. Seven years later, the sisters represented West Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest, finishing in eighth place.

They also performed at The Lido in Paris in the late 1950s, where they met 'King of Rock and Roll' Elvis Presley, and a choreographer Don Lurio who brought them to Italy in 1961.

Here, Alice and Ellen made their debut on popular musical variety shows Giardino d'inverno and Studio Uno, and made history for being the first female stars to show their legs on-screen.

The sisters even became known as "the legs of the nation" by male-dominated press.

Image: Getty

In their 2024 interview with Corriere della Sera, the performers said, "We were scantily clad on TV, but we think we were always elegant, never vulgar. There were criticisms, but that was a plus for us."

Alice and Ellen went on to appear on other variety shows like The Ed Sullivan Show and The Dean Martin Show, and shared the stage with music icons such as Frank Sinatra, Fred Astaire, and Elvis Presley.

Both women had romances, Ellen with an Italian actor Umberto Orsini for 20 years, and Alice with a French actor Marcel Amont and an Italian actor Enrico Maria Salerno. But they made a pact to never get married, a decision that was influenced by their mother's experience with domestic violence.

They lived together in two mirrored, connecting apartments.

"We both had a very clear idea from the very beginning, ever since we were girls: we had to be independent. We didn't want to depend on a man in any way," they told Corriere della Sera.

They described themselves as "feminists without thinking about it."

"We've always been independent. Perhaps, in the end, we became a little dependent on each other."

In a tribute to Alice and Ellen, The Ed Sullivan Show released a statement on Instagram which read: "Honouring the extraordinary lives of the Kessler Twins. Alice & Ellen were dazzling stars, true legends, and sisters whose grace, charm, and magic will shine forever."

Feature Image: Getty