Arne Arnardo

Arne Arnardo was born in Sarpsborg, the son of a lumberjack and his wife. He was interested in the entertainment industry from an early age, and escaped with Cirkus Empress as a teenager. Here he worked as a contortionist, illusionist and acrobat. In 1927, he took the stage name "Arnardo", under which he was invariably known since. He also performed as an equilibrist, trapeze artist, hypnotist and ventriloquist. In 1939 he became director of Cirkus Berny, before he was finally able to open his own circus in 1949 – under the name Cirkus Arnardo. He became very popular and traveled all around the world finding new ways to enhance his magician skills and get the audience attention. He played in the movie Cirkus Fandango in 1954, and authored the autobiography Sirkusliv (Circus Life) in 1962. In 1973 he received the King's Medal of Merit in gold, and he was made Knight, First Class, of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav 1988. Arnardo was a circus man through and through, and he continued to travel with his circus even after his health had begun to falter in the late eighties. Arnardo worked hard and provided for his family while working different positions besides just performing and being the star of the show. He died in his caravan during a show in Tøyen, Oslo, in 1995. The show was only interrupted by the melody "The Show Must Go On" being played, before it continued, according to Arnardo's own wish. He was buried in Vestre Moland cemetery in Lillesand. His son Arnild, a wirewalker, took over the management of Cirkus Arnardo, with his daughter Helen, an equestrienne, and her son Are, who followed in his grandfather's footsteps and became a magician.