Espen Skjønberg
Encyclopedia
Espen Skjønberg is an actor
of stage, screen and television.
He made his first movie appearance as a child in the 1937 Norwegian classic Fant. His stage debut came reciting poetry at the Norwegian theatre Chat Noir in 1945. He joined the Norwegian National Theatre in 1946 and become one of its most prominent figures, appearing in 64 different roles the next 60 years. As late as 2006 he co-starred with Toralv Maurstad
in an adaption of Waiting for Godot
.
Skjønberg's first starring role on the big screen came in the 1951-movie Vi vil skilles. Throughout the years he has shared screen and television with names like Tom Courtenay
, Nigel Hawthorne
, Susannah York
, Edward Woodward
, Gérard Depardieu
and even co-starring with Hollywood-veterans Cliff Robertson
and Robert Mitchum
in the 1995-movie Pakten.
He also found popularity with new generations heading the cast of Familiesagaen De Syv Søstre (1996–2000), one of Norway's first major soap-operaes. In the show Skjønberg co-starred with his real-life wife, actress Mona Hofland
. He was also popular as the old mountain gnome Erke in the widely successful children's series Jul i Blåfjell (1999).
Skjønberg has received several awards throughout his career. Most notably the Norwegian Arts Council
's Honorary Award in 1989, the Norwegian film award Amanda
for best actor in 1994 (for the WW2-drama Secondløitnanten) and its Honorary Award in 2004. In 2008 he also won an Amanda for his supporting role in the movie O' Horten
. He has also received the British Theatre Association's Drama Award and was made a Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav by the King of Norway.
He is the son of actress Henny Skjønberg
. His older brother, Pål Skjønberg
, is also a successful actor and stage-instructor.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
of stage, screen and television.
He made his first movie appearance as a child in the 1937 Norwegian classic Fant. His stage debut came reciting poetry at the Norwegian theatre Chat Noir in 1945. He joined the Norwegian National Theatre in 1946 and become one of its most prominent figures, appearing in 64 different roles the next 60 years. As late as 2006 he co-starred with Toralv Maurstad
Toralv Maurstad
Toralv Maurstad is a prominent actor of Norwegian stage, screen and television. By many regarded as the leading Norwegian actor of his generation, he is the son of the highly regarded actor Alfred Maurstad and actress Tordis Maurstad, and half-brother of actress Mari Maurstad.Maurstad graduated...
in an adaption of Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot is an absurdist play by Samuel Beckett, in which two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, wait endlessly and in vain for someone named Godot to arrive. Godot's absence, as well as numerous other aspects of the play, have led to many different interpretations since the play's...
.
Skjønberg's first starring role on the big screen came in the 1951-movie Vi vil skilles. Throughout the years he has shared screen and television with names like Tom Courtenay
Tom Courtenay
Sir Thomas Daniel "Tom" Courtenay is an English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner , Billy Liar , and Dr. Zhivago . Since the mid-1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre...
, Nigel Hawthorne
Nigel Hawthorne
Sir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne, CBE was an English actor, perhaps best remembered for his role as Sir Humphrey Appleby, the Permanent Secretary in the 1980s sitcom Yes Minister and the Cabinet Secretary in its sequel, Yes, Prime Minister. For this role he won four BAFTA Awards during the 1980s in the...
, Susannah York
Susannah York
Susannah York was a British film, stage and television actress. She was awarded a BAFTA as Best Supporting Actress for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe for the same film. She won best actress for Images at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival...
, Edward Woodward
Edward Woodward
Edward Albert Arthur Woodward, OBE was an English stage and screen actor and singer. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art , Woodward began his career on stage, and throughout his career he appeared in productions in both the West End in London and on Broadway in New York...
, Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu is a French actor and filmmaker. He is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, Chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite and has twice won the César Award for Best Actor...
and even co-starring with Hollywood-veterans Cliff Robertson
Cliff Robertson
Clifford Parker "Cliff" Robertson III was an American actor with a film and television career that spanned half of a century. Robertson portrayed a young John F. Kennedy in the 1963 film PT 109, and won the 1968 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the movie Charly...
and Robert Mitchum
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
in the 1995-movie Pakten.
He also found popularity with new generations heading the cast of Familiesagaen De Syv Søstre (1996–2000), one of Norway's first major soap-operaes. In the show Skjønberg co-starred with his real-life wife, actress Mona Hofland
Mona Hofland
Mona Hofland was a Norwegian actress of theatre and television.She had her stage debut at Studioteatret in 1949 and since built a reputation as a solid versatile actress...
. He was also popular as the old mountain gnome Erke in the widely successful children's series Jul i Blåfjell (1999).
Skjønberg has received several awards throughout his career. Most notably the Norwegian Arts Council
Norsk Kulturråd
The Arts Council Norway is the official arts council for Norway.Based in Oslo, it is a Norwegian state institution created in 1965 as a result of a parliamentary decision in 1964...
's Honorary Award in 1989, the Norwegian film award Amanda
Amanda (award)
The Amanda Award is an award given annually at the Norwegian International Film Festival in Haugesund, Norway, to promote and improve Norwegian film. The award originated in 1985, and has since 2005 been exclusively a film award...
for best actor in 1994 (for the WW2-drama Secondløitnanten) and its Honorary Award in 2004. In 2008 he also won an Amanda for his supporting role in the movie O' Horten
O' Horten
O' Horten is a 2007 Norwegian film directed by Bent Hamer. The film's title character Odd Horten is a habit-bound train driver, who is about to retire. On the day of his retirement he ends up in an unexpected situation, and is forced to reconsider his life. As in other films by Hamer, the themes...
. He has also received the British Theatre Association's Drama Award and was made a Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav by the King of Norway.
He is the son of actress Henny Skjønberg
Henny Skjønberg
Henny Skjønberg was a Norwegian actress and stage director.She was mainly employed at Det Norske Teatret in Oslo where with humour and irony she would specialize herself as a character comedian. She also acted in movies from 1920 to 1967.Skjønberg's most famous role came as the cranky old aunt,...
. His older brother, Pål Skjønberg
Pål Skjønberg
Pål Eugen Bucher Skjønberg is a Norwegian actor.He was born in Stavanger as a son of actress Henny Skjønberg and actor Eugen Skjønberg . He is the older brother of actor Espen Skjønberg. They grew up in Bærum and Oslo. In 1946 he married actress Elisabeth Bang .He made his stage debut for Bærum...
, is also a successful actor and stage-instructor.
Film
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | Fant | Fantebarn #2 | |
| 1939 | De vergeløse | Schoolboy | |
| 1951 | Dei svarte hestane | Ola Nordbø | |
| The Stranger | Bokselgeren | ||
| 1952 | Vi vil skilles | Ola Berg | |
| Andrine og Kjell | |||
| 1953 | Ung frue forsvunnet | Einar Møller, pharmacist | |
| Skøytekongen | Høye, journalist | ||
| 1954 | Kasserer Jensen | Svensen | |
| Portrettet | Nilsen, pharmacist | ||
| 1955 | Arthurs forbrytelse | Arthur Sellman | |
| 1956 | Roser til Monica | Egil Ek, pianist | |
| 1957 | Stevnemøte med glemte år Stevnemøte med glemte år Stevnemøte med glemte år is a 1957 Norwegian drama film directed by Jon Lennart Mjøen. It was entered into the 7th Berlin International Film Festival.-Cast:* Mona Hofland* Espen Skjønberg* Henki Kolstad* Inger Marie Andersen* Jon Lennart Mjøen... |
||
| 1961 | Hans Nielsen Hauge | Mikkel Nielsen Hauge | |
| 1970 | One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich | Tiurin | |
| 1971 | Gråt, elskede mann | ||
| 1972 | Motforestilling | ||
| 1973 | Knut Formos siste jakt | Presten | |
| 1976 | Vårnatt | Hjalmar | |
| 1979 | Blood of the Railroad Workers | Spelol | |
| Heritage | Jon Skaug | ||
| 1981 | Forfølgelsen | Kristoffer Klomber | |
| 1982 | Krypskyttere | Tandberg | |
| 1984 | On the Threshold | Kalle | |
| 1989 | A Handful of Time A Handful of Time A Handful of Time is a Norwegian film from 1989, directed by Martin Asphaug. Starring Espen Skjønberg, Camilla Strøm-Henriksen, Nicolay Lange-Nielsen and Bjørn Sundquist, the film also features Susannah York and Nigel Hawthorne.... |
Old Martin | |
| 1990 | Twice Upon a Time | Smykkehandleren | |
| Landstrykere | Knoff | ||
| Svampe | Trym | ||
| 1991 | Kvitebjørn Kong Valemon | Fortelleren | voice |
| 1993 | Secondløitnanten | Thor Espedal | Amanda Amanda (award) The Amanda Award is an award given annually at the Norwegian International Film Festival in Haugesund, Norway, to promote and improve Norwegian film. The award originated in 1985, and has since 2005 been exclusively a film award... for Best Actor |
| 1994 | Dreamplay Dreamplay Dreamplay is a 1994 Norwegian drama film directed by Unni Straume. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Ingvild Holm - Agnes* Bjørn Willberg Andersen - Lawyer* Bjørn Sundquist - Poet... |
Faren | |
| Trollsyn | Fortelleren | voice | |
| 1995 | Waiting for Sunset | Carl Berner | |
| 1996 | Syndig sommer | ||
| 1999 | Sofies verden Sophie's World (film) Sophie's World is a 1999 Norwegian drama–adventure film directed by Erik Gustavson and starring Silje Storstein as Sophie. It is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Jostein Gaarder. Upon its release in 1999 it was the most expensive film to date in Norway.It has since been released on... |
Leonardo da Vinci | |
| Frozen Heart | Nansen | voice | |
| 2001 | Guggen: The Big Cheese | voice | |
| 2002 | I Am Dina I Am Dina I Am Dina is a 2002 Swedish-Norwegian-Danish film directed by Ole Bornedal. It is based on the 1989 book Dinas bok by Herbjørg Wassmo. The movie was one of the most high-profile in Norwegian movie history.-Plot:... |
Merchant 2 | |
| 2004 | My Jealous Barber | Bents father | |
| 2007 | O'Horten | Trygve Sissener | Amanda for Best Supporting Actor |
| 2008 | Fiin aargang | ||
| I et speil i en gåte | Grandfather |
Television
| Year | Programme or series | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Prosessen | Josef K | |
| 1969 | Faderen | Captain | |
| Taxi | TV mini-series | ||
| 1970 | Vildanden | Gregers Werle | |
| 1981 | Medmenneske | Didrik Dale | TV mini-series |
| 1985 | Kong Lear | TV mini-series | |
| 1988 | Codename: Kyril Codename: Kyril Codename: Kyril is a 208-minute British serial, first broadcast in 1988. It is a Cold War espionage drama, starring Ian Charleson, Edward Woodward, Denholm Elliott, Joss Ackland, and Richard E. Grant... |
Michaelov | |
| 1994 | Vestavind | Algot Engan | |
| Seier'n er vå | Bestefar | ||
| 1996 | Familiesagaen de syv søstre | Haakon | (unknown episodes) |
| 1999 | Jul i Blåfjell | Erke | |
| 2000 | Sofies verden | Leonardi Da Vinci | TV mini-series |
| 2004–2005 | Seks som oss | Prest | 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Berlinerpoplene | Tormod Neshov | TV mini-series |
| 2009 | Casper och den förbjudna filmen | Himself |