Thorbjorn Egner

Thorbjørn Egner was a Norwegian playwright, songwriter and illustrator known principally for his books, plays and musicals for children. He grew up in the working-class neighbourhood Kampen in Oslo, Norway. He was trained as an artist at the Norwegian National Academy of Craft and Art Industry under Eivind Nielsen and Per Krohg 1933–34. He started his career in advertising and worked as a designer and decorator for seven years. His breakthrough was on the nationally broadcast children's radio show Barnetimen for de minste in the beginning of the 1950s. He created many memorable characters and stories that are still popular among children and adults in Norway and other countries. Some of his most famous works are Karius og Baktus, a story about two tooth trolls who live in a boy's mouth; Klatremus og de andre dyrene i Hakkebakkeskogen, a story about the animals in the forest who have to deal with the threat of the fox; and Folk og røvere i Kardemomme by, a story about a town where everyone lives in harmony despite their differences. He also illustrated his own books and composed songs for them. He received many awards and honors for his work, such as the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav in 1972, the Cappelen Prize in 1979 and the Spellemann Prize three times. He died of a heart attack on Christmas Eve 1990 and was buried at Ullern Church in Oslo. He is the great-grandfather of ski jumper Halvor Egner Granerud.