Karl Gerhard

Karl Emil Georg Gerhard, until 1938 Karl Emil Georg Johnson (14 April 1891 – 22 April 1964) was a Swedish theater director, revue writer and actor. In 1938 he changed his surname to Gerhard and used the pseudonym Karl-Gerhard. [1][2]

Karl Gerhard
Karl Gerhard in 1930.
Born
Karl Emil Georg Johnson

(1891-04-14)14 April 1891
Stockholm, Sweden
Died24 April 1964(1964-04-24) (aged 73)
Saltsjöbaden, Sweden
NationalitySwedish
OccupationTheater director, revue writer and actor
Spouse(s)Mary Johnson
​
​
(m. 1913⁠–⁠1920)​

Valborg Geyron
​
​
(m. 1922⁠–⁠1930)​

Brita Werner
​
​
(m. 1930⁠–⁠1936)​
ChildrenMaj-Catrine (1914–1964)
Per Gerhard (1924–2011)
Fatima Svendsen (1944–)

Biography

Karl Emil Georg Johnson was born in Hedvig Eleonora parish in Stockholm, Sweden. He was the son of Frans Emil Jonsson (1861–1917) and Jenny Augusta Jonsdotter (1863–1906). In 1916, he appeared as an actor under the direction of Hjalmar Selander at the Nya Teatern in Gothenburg. In 1919, he debuted as a couplet singer at the cabaret Fenixpalatset in Stockholm as successor to Ernst Rolf (1891–1932). For many years, he was an actor in various traveling theater companies.

Through most of his career, he wrote songs and couplets as well as a large number of sketches, dialogues and monologues for performance on the stages of Stockholm and Gothenburg. Many of Karl Gerhard’s plays and songs were politically to the left, and during the 1930s and World War II, they contained clear anti-fascist statements. He composed and sang a number of couplet text that sharply criticized the Swedish government's apathy towards Nazi Germany. [3] [4]

He was married three times: to actresses Mary Johnson (1913 to 1920), Valborg Geyron (1922 to 1930) and Brita Werner (1930 to 1936). He was the father of actor Per Gerhard (1924–2011).[5][6]

Bust of Karl Gerhard, Lorensberg Theatre, Gothenberg

Selected filmography

References
  1. "Karl E G Gerhard". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  2. "Om Karl Gerhard". jazzgossen.com. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  3. Anna Micro Vikstrand. "Fenixpalatset − från nöjespalats till pingstkyrka" (PDF). bebyggelsehistoria.org. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  4. "Karl Gerhard". Swedish Music Hall of Fame. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  5. "Mary Johnson". queersilents.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2007. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  6. "Per Gerhard". NE Nationalencyklopedin AB. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
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