Thomas Funck
Encyclopedia
Thomas Fredrik Georg Funck (26 October 1919, Linköping
, Östergötland
– 30 December 2010) was a Swedish baron (freiherr
), author of children's literature
, radio personality
and voice artist
, most famous for his stories about Charlie Strap and Froggy Ball
(Kalle Stropp och Grodan Boll).
teacher. He performed in Norwegian
radio for the first time in 1946 with his own written songs to guitar. During this time he started to get stories sold to be read and performed in Swedish radio as well.
Charlie Strap and Froggy Ball had appeared as parts of Swedish radio shows since the mid 40s
, but portrayed by regular actors. In the early 50s
Funck started to do the voice of Charlie Strap. The big breakthrough came in 1954, when all voices for the first time were provided by Funck himself, only with help of a guitar for sound effects. The radio performances were followod by several records with the same concept, a cartoon
drawn by Nils Egerbrandt
and from 1955 a series of books with illustrations by Einar Norelius.
In 1956 there was a musical film
made, Charlie Strap, Froggy Ball and Their Friends (Kalle Stropp, Grodan Boll och deras vänner), with actors in costumes miming
while Funck provided the voices. Some parts were also animated
with dolls.
After the 50s the interest seemed to fade, but in the 70s
the characters saw a revival after appearing on radio again. In the late 1980s and early 90s two animated films where produced, directed by Jan Gissberg
.
Linköping
Linköping is a city in southern middle Sweden, with 104 232 inhabitants in 2010. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality with 146 736 inhabitants and the capital of Östergötland County...
, Östergötland
Östergötland
Östergötland, English exonym: East Gothland, is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden in the south of Sweden. It borders Småland, Västergötland, Närke, Södermanland, and the Baltic Sea. In older English literature, one might also encounter the Latinized version, Ostrogothia...
– 30 December 2010) was a Swedish baron (freiherr
Freiherr
The German titles Freiherr and Freifrau and Freiin are titles of nobility, used preceding a person's given name or, after 1919, before the surname...
), author of children's literature
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
, radio personality
Radio personality
A radio personality is a person with an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality can be someone who introduces and discusses various genres of music, hosts a talk radio show that may take calls from listeners, or someone whose primary responsibility is to give news, weather,...
and voice artist
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
, most famous for his stories about Charlie Strap and Froggy Ball
Frog ball
Frog Ball is a character from Swedish books, radio shows and movies. He first appeared in 1950 in a radio show with Thomas Funck's voice and manuscript but made a come-back 1970 in his second radio show named "Veckans tisdag" which is Swedish for "the Tuesday of the week"....
(Kalle Stropp och Grodan Boll).
Early career
Funck, who started out writing literature aimed for adults, has claimed to never have had a permanent employment. During the 1940s he supported himself primarily as a guitarGuitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
teacher. He performed in Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
radio for the first time in 1946 with his own written songs to guitar. During this time he started to get stories sold to be read and performed in Swedish radio as well.
Charlie Strap and Froggy Ball
1940s
File:1940s decade montage.png|Above title bar: events which happened during World War II : From left to right: Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching "Omaha" Beach on "D-Day"; Adolf Hitler visits Paris, soon after the Battle of France; The Holocaust occurred during the war as Nazi Germany...
, but portrayed by regular actors. In the early 50s
1950s
The 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...
Funck started to do the voice of Charlie Strap. The big breakthrough came in 1954, when all voices for the first time were provided by Funck himself, only with help of a guitar for sound effects. The radio performances were followod by several records with the same concept, a cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
drawn by Nils Egerbrandt
Nils Egerbrandt
Nils Egerbrandt was a Swedish comic creator who created a few children's comics in the 1950s, such as Olli, about an adventurous eskimo boy....
and from 1955 a series of books with illustrations by Einar Norelius.
In 1956 there was a musical film
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
made, Charlie Strap, Froggy Ball and Their Friends (Kalle Stropp, Grodan Boll och deras vänner), with actors in costumes miming
Mime artist
A mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer was referred to as a mummer...
while Funck provided the voices. Some parts were also animated
Stop motion
Stop motion is an animation technique to make a physically manipulated object appear to move on its own. The object is moved in small increments between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames is played as a continuous sequence...
with dolls.
After the 50s the interest seemed to fade, but in the 70s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
the characters saw a revival after appearing on radio again. In the late 1980s and early 90s two animated films where produced, directed by Jan Gissberg
Jan Gissberg
Jan Gissberg is a Swedish cartoonist, animator and film director. After studying at Konstfack in Stockholm he started working as an animator under Stig Lasseby, and later went on to direct by himself...
.
Characters
- Charlie Strap - A grasshopper dressed in a green tailcoatTailcoatA tailcoat is a coat with the front of the skirt cut away, so as to leave only the rear section of the skirt, known as the tails. The historical reason coats were cut this way was to make it easier for the wearer to ride a horse, but over the years tailcoats of varying types have evolved into forms...
who speaks of himself in third person. He is very controlled on the border to neurotic and owns an umbrella with a silver ferrule.
- Froggy Ball - A rough but very kind frog who speaks in a sloppy way with lots of slang and wears a waistcoatWaistcoatA waistcoat or vest is a sleeveless upper-body garment worn over a dress shirt and necktie and below a coat as a part of most men's formal wear, and as the third piece of the three-piece male business suit.-Characteristics and use:...
.
- Plåt-Niklas (Sheet Metal Niklas; roughly "Tin ManTin ManTin Man may refer to:* Tin Woodman, a character in the fictional Land of Oz created by American author L. Frank Baum* Ted McMinn, a footballer nicknamed The Tin Man* Tinman, a British electronic musician-Film and television:...
") - A robot with extraordinary abilities.
- The Hen - A good friend of Charlie Strap who lives in a chicken coop.
- The Fox - A fox who might not always be completely trustworthy. Speaks in a slow way with random pauses for laughs.
- The Parrot - A parrot who grows tired of sitting in her cage all day and prefers adventure together with Charlie Strap and the others.
Filmography
- Charlie Strap, Froggy Ball and Their Friends (Kalle Stropp, Grodan Boll och deras vänner) (1956)
- Charlie Strap and Froggy BallCharlie Strap and Froggy Ball (film)Charlie Strap and Froggy Ball is a 1987 Swedish animated short film directed by Jan Gissberg about the two eponymous characters created by Thomas Funck...
(Kalle Stropp och Grodan Boll räddar Hönan) (1987) - Charlie Strap and Froggy Ball Flying HighCharlie Strap and Froggy Ball Flying HighCharlie Strap and Froggy Ball Flying High is a 1991 Swedish animated feature film directed by Jan Gissberg after an original script by Thomas Funck, using Funck's already well-established characters. It follows a shorter film made by the same team in 1987, Charlie Strap and Froggy Ball...
(Kalle Stropp och Grodan Boll på svindlande äventyr) (1991)
External links
- Kallestropp.se - Official website