Eva Dahlbeck was born in Saltsjö-Duvnäs near
Stockholm. She attended the prestigious
Royal Dramatic Training Academy from 1941 to 1944, and acted on the Theatre's stage from 1944 to 1964. She made her film debut in the role of Botilla in
Ride Tonight! (
Rid i natt!, 1942). in the film
Dreams (1955) Among her roles in Swedish films were the shrewd celebrity reporter Vivi in
Love Goes Up and Down (
Kärlek och störtlopp, 1946), the working-class mother Rya-Rya in the drama
Only a Mother (
Bara en mor, 1949); Mrs. Larsson, the warmhearted mother of seven in the popular children's film
Kastrullresan (1950), and the young primary school teacher in
Gustaf Molander's
Trots (1952), a film with a screenplay by
Vilgot Sjöman. In the mid-1950s Dahlbeck was one of Sweden's most popular and successful actresses. She became internationally known for her strong female leads in a number of
Ingmar Bergman's films, in particular his comedies
Secrets of Women (1952),
A Lesson in Love (1954) and
Smiles of a Summer Night (1955). In 1965 she won the award for
Best Actress at the
2nd Guldbagge Awards for her role in the film
The Cats (
Kattorna, 1965). She also had a role in
Agnès Varda's
Les Créatures in 1966. In the 1960s, Dahlbeck moved away from acting as she started to write. She retired from the stage in 1964 and made her final appearance on screen in the Danish film
Tintomara (1970). She published several novels and poems in her native Sweden, and wrote the screenplay for
Arne Mattsson's dark film
Yngsjömordet (The Yngsjö murder) in 1966. Dahlbeck married
Sven Lampell, an air force officer, in 1944. The couple had two children. She lived out the last years of her life in
Hässelby Villastad, Stockholm, where she died at age 87. ==Awards==