Lilly Jacobsson

Lilly Jacobsson (1893-1979), aka Lilly Jacobson, was a Swedish actress who starred in Swedish and Danish silent films by Eric Malmberg, Mauritz Stiller and Holger-Madsen. She was the star of the popular Danish film Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (1917).


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3007. Photo: Nordisk Film.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2147. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson as Marya, the Martian leader's daughter, in Himmelskibet / Das Himmelschiff (Holger-Madsen, 1918).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3009. Photo: Nordisk Film.


German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 644/6. Photo: Art-Film / Asta Nielsen-Film. Asta Nielsen as Hamlet and Lilly Jacobsson as Ophelia in Hamlet (Svend Gade, Heinz Schall, 1921).

The Lusitania and the Titanic

Lilly Jacobsson (also written as Jacobson) was born in Göteborg, Sweden, in 1893. She made her film debut at AB Svenska Biografteatern in 1911 and collaborated with various Swedish filmmakers until 1914. First, she played in films by Eric Malmberg, with him often in the male lead. Her first film was Opiumhålan / The Opium Den (Eric Malmberg, 1911). It was shot in various Swedish cities such as her native town Göteborg, but also in Paris, Monte Carlo and aboard the SS Lusitania, going to New York.

Her next film, Bränningar eller Stulen lycka / Burnings or Stolen Luck (Eric Malmberg, 1912) repeated the pick of locations, again including a transatlantic trip with the Lusitania. The third film of Jacobsson and Malberg, Det gröna halsbandet / The Green Necklace (Eric Malmberg, 1912) was completely filmed in Göteborg.

Jacobsson then played the female lead in a film by Georg af Klercker: Musikens makt / The Power of Music (1912), again partly shot in Göteborg. Next came the farce Kolingens galoscher / Kolingen’s Boots (Eric Malmberg, 1912), in which Jacobsson played a millionaire's daughter.

It was then time for another transatlantic trip, resulting in Samhällets dom / The Judgment of Society (1912), aboard the Lusitania to New York. The trip also resulted in a short documentary Med Lusitania till Amerika / Med 2.300 Passagerare ofver Atlanten. Samhällets dom was released in February 1912, two months before the sinking of the SS Titanic.

The documentary was released one week after the naval disaster. Malmberg and Jacobsson then exploited their ocean trip for Tva svenska emigranters äfventyr i Amerika / The Adventures of Two Swedish Emigrants in America (1912), which also included shots made in New York and at Niagara Falls.


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1006. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917). Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1007. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917). Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1008. Photo: Nordisk Films Kompagni, Copenhagen. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen/ Svend Gade, 1917). Collection: Geoffrey Donaldson Institute.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K 2028. Photo: Union-Film / Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobson (Lilly Jacobsson) in Testamentets Hemmelighed / The Secret of the Testament (Holger-Madsen, 1918). The German film title was Das trennende Band.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K 2029. Photo: Union-Film / Nordisk Film. Hugo Bruun (also Hugo Brunn) and Lilly Jacobson (Lilly Jacobsson) in Testamentets Hemmelighed / The Secret of the Testament (Holger-Madsen, 1918).

Tell from the war dogs school

Back in Sweden, Lilly Jacobsson played the female lead as the daughter opposite Anna Norrie as the mother, in Mauritz Stiller’s debut as a film director: Mor och dotter/Mother and Daughter (1912). Next came Stiller’s När larmklockan ljuder/When the Alarm Bell Rings (Mauritz Stiller, 1913). The film was partly shot in and around the Swedish town of Sollefteå. Officers and soldiers of the local regiment, Kungl Västernorrlands, collaborated as extras, while the Airedale terrier Tell from the war dogs school also had a part in the film.

Stiller and Jacobsson worked together for a third time at Gränsfolken/Brother Against Brother (Mauritz Stiller, 1913), based on Emile Zola’s 'Le débacle' (The Debacle). The film had a huge international release. For a long time, Gränsfolken / Brother Against Brother was considered lost until a print was found in Poland in 2009.

Stiller and Jacobsson then did När svärmor regerar / When the Mother-in-Law Reigns (Mauritz Stiller, 1914). It was based on a Finnish play which Stiller had directed on stage. In their next film, För sin kärleks skull / Because of her love (Mauritz Stiller, 1914), Jacobsson had a secondary role – the female lead was for Lilly Bech (or Beck) - while the male lead was for Victor Sjöström.

Jacobsson then acted in another Af Klercker film: För fäderneslandet / For the Fatherland (Georg af Klercker, 1914), shot in Svenska Bio’s film studio in Stockholm, and in a studio in Copenhagen, while exteriors were filmed in Sollefteå.

Jacobsson returned to Stiller for Stormfågeln / Stormy Petrel (Mauritz Stiller, 1914), with Bech again in the female lead. It was shot both in Stockholm and in and around the train station of Åre. Lilly Jacobsson’s penultimate Swedish film was Strejken / Strike (Mauritz Stiller, 1915), again with Victor Sjöström in the lead, while the last one was directed by Sjöström himself: En av de många / One of the Many (Victor Sjöström, 1915), which starred Gunnar Tolnaes and Lili Bech.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2150. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson as Marya, the Martian leader's daughter, and Gunnar Tolnaes as Avanti Planetaros in Himmelskibet/400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger-Madsen, 1918). The German title was Das Himmelschiff.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2151. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson as Marya, the Martian leader's daughter, and Gunnar Tolnaes as Avanti Planetaros in Himmelskibet/400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger-Madsen, 1918).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2152. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson and Gunnar Tolnaes in Himmelskibet / 400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger Madsen, 1918).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2153. Photo: Nordisk Film. Still from Himmelskibet / 400 Million Miles from Earth (Holger Madsen, 1918).

The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife

In 1916, the Danish company Nordisk was looking for a new star. Lilly Jacobsson was chosen from hundreds of competitors and became the leading actress in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917), in which she performed as Elly, who enters the harem of an Indian maharaja, played by Gunnar Tolnaes.

The film was such a success that Nordisk Film made a sequel: Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II/The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).

In between, Jacobsson played in various Danish films, mostly directed by Holger-Madsen. These films included the Science fiction film Himmelskibet/400 Million Miles From Earth (Holger-Madsen, 1918) starring Gunnar Tolnaes, Folkets ven/Friend of the People (Holger-Madsen, 1918), and Mod Lyset/Towards the Light (Holger-Madsen, 1918) starring Asta Nielsen. Nielsen plays a cold, partying woman who neglects religion, but later on, repents and becomes the wife of a preacher man (Alf Blütecher) who takes care of the poor.

In 1919, Lilly Jacobsson married director Corbett Edwards in Odense (Denmark), which ended her film career. Only her former colleague, Asta Nielsen, could persuade her to play Ophelia in Asta’s famous German production of Hamlet (Svend Gade, Heinz Schall, 1921), in which Nielsen played the title role herself.

Lilly Jacobsson died in 1979 in Odense, Denmark, at the age of 86. She is interred at the Assistenskirkegården in Odense.


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1475. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917)


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1976. Photo: Nordisk Film. Gunnar Tolnaes and Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru / The Maharaja’s Favourite Wife (Robert Dinesen, Svend Gade, 1917).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2992. Photo: Nordisk Film. Gunnar Tolnaes and Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2996. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3008. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).


German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 3010. Photo: Nordisk Film. Lilly Jacobsson in Maharadjahens Yndlingshustru II / The Maharaja's Favourite Wife II (August Blom, 1919).

Sources: Wikipedia (Danish and Swedish), and IMDb.

C. Hayden Coffin

C. Hayden Coffin (1862-1935) was a British actor and singer. His good looks and powerful voice made Coffin none of the most popular stage baritones of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was known for his performances in musical comedies, particularly those produced by George Edwardes, but he also acted in a handful of British silent films.


British postcard in the Rotary Photographic Series, no. 109b.


British postcard by J.B. & Co. (J. Beagles & Co., London B.C.), no. 19 L. Photo: Ellis and Walery. Sent by mail in 1906.


British postcard by J. Beagles & Co. E.C., no. 622F. Photo: Ellis & Walery.

One of the longest-running musical performances in music history

Charles Hayden Coffin was born in 1862 in Manchester, England. He was the son of American dentist Charles Reuel Coffin and his wife, Sarah Powell Coffin, née Munsey. A few years after his birth, he moved with his parents to the United States temporarily, but after two years, the family returned to England and settled in London.

He attended University College London, where he was head boy in his final year. Then he trained as a singer, even though he had already passed the entrance examination for medical school at the Royal College of Surgeons of England. His singing teacher was Edith Abell, a member of the Royal Choral Society.

In 1883, he made his debut as an amateur at St George's Hall in London, playing Tom Gilroy in the play 'Partners for Life' and Vivid in 'Monsieur Jacques'. He started his professional acting career as John Smith in 'Pocahontas' (1885). He rose to fame in 1886 as Harry Sherwood in the play 'Dorothy'. It became one of the longest-running musical performances in music history at the time, in which he sang the popular song 'Queen of My Heart' with his powerful baritone voice. He cemented his fame in such operettas as 'Doris' (1889) and 'Captain Therese' (1890).

While he was engaged for a season in New York City in 1892/1893, Hayden Coffin co-starred in several productions with soprano Lillian Russell. He also starred in several pantomimes. In 1892, he married the German-born singer Adeline Randegger in Cincinnati, Ohio. She was the daughter of the landscape painter Friedrich August de Leuw and the divorced wife of the music director Alberto Randegger. In 1893, he was hired by British theatre impresario George Edwardes. He performed in a series of extraordinarily successful musical comedies at Edwardes' theatres. These included 'A Gaiety Girl' (1893), 'An Artist's Model' (1895), 'The Geisha' (1896), 'San Toy' (1899) and 'A Country Girl' (1903). He also appeared in 'Veronique' (1904), starred as 'Tom Jones' (1907), and played Captain Charteris in 'The Quaker Girl' (1910).

In his later years, Charles Hayden Coffin turned to serious drama, including Shakespearean roles, such as Feste in 'Twelfth Night' at the Savoy Theatre in 1912. He also made occasional appearances in musicals such as 'Young England' (1916) and 'As You Were' (1918). Hayden Coffen also recorded several songs from 'Young England' for the Gramophone Company.


British postcard in the Rotary Photographic Series, no. 109D.


British postcard in the Rotary Photographic Series, no. 109E.


British postcard by Rotary Photo EC, no. 109T. Photo: Ellis & Walery.

A vamp who breaks a major's marriage and sends his daughter to a convent

Thanks to his huge popularity Charles Hayden Coffin also was able to act in films but the stage remained his domain. In 1900, he already acted in front of the camera of the British Mutoscope & Biograph Company in the short San Toy (?, 1900) with Marie Tempest. They performed the 'Umbrella Dance', one of the hits of the popular musical comedy 'San Toy', which had been a stage success at Daly's Theatre in London.

Coffin's real film career started 16 years later. He impersonated the role of Major Sterrington opposite Barbara Hoffe as the vamp in It's Always the Woman (Wilfred Noy, 1916). The story deals with a vamp who breaks a major's marriage, weds him, and sends his daughter to a convent where her 'dead' mother is a nun.

Next, Coffin acted opposite Dorothy Fane in The Bigamist (1916), yet the description of this film on IMDb differs from the description in The Moving Picture World. Coffin then starred as a singer in the lost film Queen of My Heart (Albert Ward, 1917). In his last silent film, The Black Spider (William Humphrey, 1920), Coffin had a supporting part opposite Mary Clare and Ronald Colman.

Afterwards, Coffin played a last supporting part as Sir Harry Bumper in the lost, early sound comedy School for Scandal (1930) by Maurice Elvey, starring Basil Gill, Madeleine Carroll, Ian Fleming (the actor, not the writer), and Henry Hewitt. In 1929, he already played Sir Harry in 'The School for Scandal' on stage at the Kingsway Theatre. It is one of the '75 Most Wanted'films listed by the British Film Institute as 'Missing, believed lost'.

C. Hayden Coffin was first engaged to the songwriter Hope Temple but married actress Adeline de Leuw. De Leuw had been divorced by her first husband, the composer Alberto Randegger, on the grounds of her adultery with Coffin. He remained married to Adeline Hayden Coffin till he died. He had a long affair with the semi-professional actress Maud ‘Mamie’ Ella Cohn Christie, sister of the British entrepreneur and racing team owner Jefferson Davis Cohn. During this time, two children were born: Crystal (born 1914) and Errol Hayden Christie (born 1918). In 1935, Coffin died at the age of 73 in Kensington, London. He was buried next to his mother and his father's ashes in a grave in St. John the Baptist Cemetery in Woking, Surrey.


British postcard by Rotary Photo EC, no. 109H. Photo: Hana.


British postcard in the Valentines Series. Photo: Hana.


British postcard in the Rotary Photographic Series, no. 3082, 1904.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, no. 7428 D. Photo: Foulsham & Banfield. Publicity still for the stage play 'Butterflies' with Iris Hoey, Stella St. Audrie, C. Hayden Coffin, John Bardsley, Ada Reeve, and Louis Bradfield. 'Butterflies' was a musical play in three acts by William J. Locke, lyrics by T.H. Read and music by J.A. Robertson. Produced at the Apollo Theatre, London, in 1908.

Sources: John Kenrick (Who's Who in Musicals), Kurt Gänzl (Kurt of Gerolstein), Wikipedia and IMDb.

Betty Boop

Betty Boop is one of the most enduring and recognisable animated characters in film history, a true icon of the Jazz Age. Created by Grim Natwick at the request of Max Fleischer, she appeared in 90 animated films between 1930 and 1939. 'La Boop' quickly became known as 'The Queen of the Animated Screen.' She is the first fully human, all-female animated character, rising from a supporting role to star in her own popular series, produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures.


American postcard by Classico San Francisco, no. 661-003. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc. / Fleischer Studios Inc. Caption: Rockin' Boop.


Spanish card, no. 8, in the "Dibujos animados" series. Betty Boop, Koko and Bimbo. Collection: Marlene Pilaete.


Spanish postcard by Ediciones ARFA, Barcelona, no. 51/8. Betty Boop and Mickey Rooney. Caption: "A trip to Niagara". Collection: Marlene Pilaete.


Spanish postcard in the Series Estrellas del cinema, no. 67. Photo: Paramount Film.

Helen Kane (1904-1966) was an American singer and actress, whose signature song 'I Wanna Be Loved by You' (1928) was featured in the 1928 stage musical Good Boy. Kane's voice and appearance were thought to be a source for Fleischer Studios animators when creating Betty Boop. In early 1929, she signed an $8,000-a-week contract with Paramount for seven musical films, made between 1929 and 1931.

From an incidental human-dog crossbreed to a fully human female character

Betty Boop made her screen debut on 9 August 1930, in the Talkartoon short Dizzy Dishes (Grim Natwick, Ted Sears, 1930).

She was originally conceived as an anthropomorphic French poodle and a girlfriend for the studio's star, Bimbo.

The character was modelled on the popular flapper style of the 1920s, with singer Helen Kane often cited as the primary inspiration—particularly for the signature 'Boop Oop a Doop' line.

Over the course of her early appearances, Betty was also sometimes called 'Nancy Lee' or 'Nan McGrew.'

Her transformation from an incidental human-dog crossbreed to a fully human female character was complete by the release of Any Rags? (Willard Bowsky, Thomas Bonfiglio, 1932), where her floppy poodle ears had become hoop earrings and her black canine nose a button-like human nose.




Spanish cardboard figurines to assemble. You had three different parts to insert one into another: the head, the body, and the legs. You could combine them, as there were several variations of each part, so you could have different versions of Betty Boop. To give you an example, we show you the same figurine adorning two versions of the head. To make the figurine stand upright, you had to fold the two flaps down below. Collection: Marlene Pilaete.


American postcard by Classico San Francisco, no. 661-041. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc. / Fleischer Studios Inc. Caption: Cracker Smacks Boop.


American postcard by Classico San Francisco, no. 661-001. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc. / Fleischer Studios Inc. Caption: Hooray for Hollywood.

A flirtatious sex symbol known for her large eyes, pin curls, and trademark garter

By 1932, Betty Boop’s popularity had surpassed that of Bimbo, and she was crowned the star of her own animated series, beginning with Stopping the Show (Dave Fleischer, Roland Crandall, 1932).

This peak era produced some of her most famous and surreal shorts, cementing her image as a flirtatious sex symbol known for her large eyes, pin curls, and trademark garter.

Notable films from this creative period, listed among the series' best, include the groundbreaking short Snow White (Dave Fleischer, Roland Crandall, 1933), which featured a surreal visual style.

Another highlight is Minnie the Moocher (Dave Fleischer, Willard Bowsky, 1932), which featured a famous appearance by musician Cab Calloway.

In 1934, Betty made her only cinematic appearance in colour in Poor Cinderella (Seymour Kneitel, Roland Crandall, William Henning, 1934), where she was, unusually, depicted with red hair.


French postcard by Editions Dalix, no. 25. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc. / Fleischer Studios Inc. Caption: Frankly, My Dear, I Don't Give A Boop!


French postcard by Editions Dalix, no. 25. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc. / Fleischer Studios Inc. Caption: Don't Play with my Heart.


French postcard by Editions Dalix, no. 25. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc. / Fleischer Studios Inc. Caption: Trade your alarm clock for a cuddly wake-up call.


French postcard by Editions Dalix, no. 28. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc. / Fleischer Studios Inc. Caption: You can see that I'm waiting for you.

The attention of censors

Betty Boop's provocative style and suggestive storylines eventually drew the attention of censors.

With the Hays Code (Production Code) coming into full effect for animation around 1935, Betty's character underwent significant changes.

Her plots evolved from exciting and outlandish adventures to more domestic and demure scenarios. Visually, she was drawn taller and older, and her dresses were lengthened to hide her trademark garter.

Her sidekicks also changed to accommodate the new tone, with Bimbo being swapped out for a cuddly puppy named Pudgy, and Koko the Clown replaced by the eccentric inventor Grampy.

Her later filmography included more innocuous films such as A Little Soap and Water (Dave Fleischer, Myron Waldman, 1935) and Service With a Smile (Dave Fleischer, Dave Tendlar, 1937). Her popularity declined, and the original Betty Boop series was discontinued in 1939.


Swedish card by Allers Familj-Journal, no. 55, in the "Stjärnparaden" series. The magazine started in 1879 and became "Allers Familj-Journal" in 1894. At the end of the 1930s, the name was shortened to 'Allers". The magazine published movie star cards in the 1930s. We don't know why Betty Boop has blonde hair on this card. Collection: Marlene Pilaete.


American postcard by Classico San Francisco, Inc, no. 661-035. Image: King Features Syndicate Inc / Fleischer Studios, Inc. Caption: Hulla Boop Betty Boop.


Dutch postcard by Loeb, uitgevers bv. Image: Leslie Cabarga / King Features Syndicate Inc, 1985. Caption: Happy Birthday. Leslie Cabarga is an American author, illustrator, cartoonist, animator, font designer, and publication designer. A participant in the underground comix movement in the early 1970s, he has since gone on to write and/or edit over 40 books. His art style evokes images from the 1920s and 1930s, and over the years, Cabarga has created many products associated with Betty Boop.


French postcard by Dix et Demi Quinze. Image: Fleischer Studios. French poster by Films sans frontières. Betty Boop in Betty Boop Confidential (1998). A collection of 13 Betty Boop shorts. The French title was Le journal intime de Betty Boop. Caption: Boop Boop I Doo!

Sources: The Origins of Betty Boop (YouTube), Wikipedia (English, French and Dutch) and IMDb.

Skandia Film

The success of the pioneering Swedish film studio Svenska Biografteatern AB during and after the First World War inspired others. Skandia Film in Stockholm was the most successful competitor. Like Svenska Bio, Skandia relied on the Nordic landscape and literature for its silent films. Skandia's main director was John Wilhelm Brunius, who was also an actor and scriptwriter. Other staff directors were Einar Rudd (or Ruud) and Rune Carlsten. Nils Bouveng, the manager of Skandia, had previously been the manager of Hasselblad studios, where Rune Carlsten had also been under the producer's supervision. Among the stars of Skandia Film were Gösta Ekman, Anders De Wahl and actress-director Pauline Brunius, the wife of John W. Brunius. Brunius also gave the salesgirl Greta Gustafsson her first acting chance: the future Greta Garbo appeared as an extra in his film En Lyckoriddare / Soldiers of Fortune (1921). This film and many Skandia productions are presumed lost now. But some postcards of the Skandia films have survived, although they are rare. Ivo Blom shared his collection for this post.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 1194. Photo: Skandia Film. Gösta Ekman and Carlo Keil-Möller in the romantic film Mästerkatten i stövlar / Puss in boots (John W. Brunius, 1918). It was John W. Brunius's directorial debut and an international success.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 105. Photo Skandiafilm, 1918. Karin Molander in Surrogatet (Einar Brunn, 1918-1919).


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 127. Photo: Skandiafilm. Still for Synnöve Solbakken / The Girl from Solbakken (John W. Brunius, 1919) with Lars Hanson and Karin Molander. Sent by mail in Norway in 1920. Synnöve Solbakken was based on the novel written by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson in 1857. The assistant director of the film was Einar Brunn, and it was filmed in Sweden and Norway by photographers Hugo Edlund and Arthur Thorell.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, no. 133. Photo: Skandia Film. Palle Brunius and Solveig Hedengran in Synnöve Solbakken / The Girl from Solbakken (John W. Brunius, 1919).

In Synnöve Solbakken (John W. Brunius, 1919), Palle Brunius and Solveig Hedengran play the same characters as the stars, Karin Molander and Lars Hanson, but then in their childhood. Palle Brunius (1909-1976) was the son of the director, John W. Brunius. He would only pay a handful of child roles in films by his father, and another handful in those of his mother. Solveig Hedengran (1910-1956) instead acted in some 28 films, mostly Swedish sound films and often in supporting parts. Synnöve Solbakken was her first film.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstforlag, Stockholm, no 141. Photo: Skandia Film, Stockholm. Lars Hanson and Gull Cronvall in Ett farligt frieri / A Dangerous Proposal (Rune Carlsten, 1919).

The story of Ett farligt frieri / A Dangerous Proposal (Rune Carlsten 1919) deals with Tore, a smallholder's son (Lars Hanson), in love with Aslaug, a farmer's daughter (Gull Cronvall) whose father Knut (Theodor Blich) has ambitious plans to marry her to the son of the wealthiest farmer around. Even after Knut and Aslaug's brothers have beaten Tore black and blue, he persists in visiting Aslaug, even climbing a giant wall of rock...


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 154. Photo: Skandia Film. Ernst Rolf, Mary Gräber, and Erik Lindholm in Åh i morron kväll / Oh Tomorrow Night (John W. Brunius, 1919).

In the silent comedy Åh i morron kväll / Oh Tomorrow Night (John W. Brunius, 1919), Ernst Rolf is married to Josefina, a once sweet woman who has become a shrew and nag. He fantasizes about other women and if given the opportunity, will he act upon the temptation to cheat on his wife? The film premiered on 8 December 1919, in Gothenburg and Stockholm. Cinema musicians were given suggestions to play famous songs from Rolf's repertory.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 159. Photo: Skandia Film. Gösta Ekman as an agricultural student in the Swedish silent comedy Bomben / The Bomb (Rune Carlsten, 1920).


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 166. Photo: Skandia Film. Still for Bomben / The Bomb (Rune Carlsten, 1920), starring Karin Molander. Caption: Elsa Vendel's first morning amidst her own possessions.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 185. Photo: Skandia Film. Gösta Ekman and Mary Johnson in the comedy Familjens traditioner (Rune Carlsten, 1920).


Swedish postcard by Verlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1095/7. Photo: Skandia Film. Pauline Brunius and Jessie Wessel in Thora van Deken (John W. Brunius, 1920). The film was an adaptation of a novel written by Henrik K. Pontoppidan.


Swedish postcard by Verlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1095/9. Photo: Skandia Film. Pauline Brunius, Gösta Ekman, Jessie Wessel and Oscar Johansson in Thora van Deken (John W. Brunius, 1920).


Swedish postcard by Forlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1096/1. Photo: Skandia Film. Gösta Ekman in Gyurkovicsarna / Lieutenant Tophat (John W. Brunius, 1920).


Swedish postcard by Forlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1096/2. Photo: Skandia Film. Gösta Ekman and Pauline Brunius in Gyurkovicsarna / Lieutenant Tophat (John W. Brunius, 1920).


Swedish postcard by Förlag Nordisk Konst, Stockholm, no. 1115/1. Photo: Skandia Film. Gösta Ekman in En lyckoriddare / A Fortune Hunter (John W. Brunius, 1921).

In En lyckoriddare / A Fortune Hunter (John W. Brunius, 1921), Gösta Ekman plays a lackey who pretends to be an elegant Swedish count, thus fooling the pompous, boorish father (Axel Ringvall) of the beautiful Gertrud (Mary Johnson). He marries Gertrud, signing the documents as the count, but then the real count (Carlo Keil-Möller) shows up...


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 193. Photo: Skandia Film. Anders de Wahl in Kvarnen / The Windmill (John W. Brunius, 1921).

Kvarnen / The Windmill (John W. Brunius, 1921) was shot at the Skandia studio at Lidingö and with exteriors shot at Sjöbo and Skåne by Hugo Edlund. The basis for the film was the novel 'Møllen' (The Mill, 1896) by Karl Gjellerup. During filming in Sjöbo, a real old mill burned down right in front of the camera. The Swedish Film Institute's film archive holds a restored print of the film. Tommy Gustafsson, in his article 'Travellers as a Threat in Swedish Cinema of the 1920s', in the volume Swedish Film: An Introduction and Reader (2010), indicates that Kvarnen was the first Swedish film on miscegenation. Though he has promised his wife on her deathbed not to remarry against the will of his son Hans, miller Jacob (Anders de Wahl) is attracted by the lustful, devious and gypsy-like farm's maid Lise (Klara Kjellblad). Instead, Hans hates Lise and prefers the pure sister of the forester, Anna. Indeed, the flimsy and dirty Lise is only after Jacob's money and his mill, while keeping an affair with the farmhand on the side. Jacob and the farmhand are in the palm of Lise's hand, but when Jacob finally catches the couple, he avenges himself by having the mill's millstone crush the lovers.


Swedish postcard by Ed. Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 295. Photo: Skandia Film, Stockholm / Svensk Filmindustri. Still for De landsflyktiga / The Emigrants / The Exiles (Mauritz Stiller, 1921), starring Jenny Hasselqvist.

De landsflyktiga / The Emigrants / The Exiles (Mauritz Stiller, 1921) is a lost film, except for a few very short fragments. Already in 1919, Skandia had merged with Svenska Biograph, although Skandia Film continued as a distributor of Swedish films like De landsflyktiga, which was produced by Svensk Filmindustri.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 304. Photo: Skandia Film. Gösta Ekman and Jenny Hasselqvist in the Swedish silent drama Vem dömer / Love's Crucible (Victor Sjöström, 1922).


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 305. Photo: Skandia Film. Jenny Hasselqvist, Ivan Hedqvist, Tore Svennberg and Gösta Ekman in Vem dömer / Love's Crucible (Victor Sjöström, 1922). Nils Asther had a small part in this film. He is the man just left of Jenny Hasselqvist.

Vem dömer / Love's Crucible (Victor Sjöström, 1922) is a Renaissance drama about a young woman named Ursula (Jenny Hasselqvist), who is in love with Bertram (Gösta Ekman), the son of the mayor (Tore Svennberg). She is accused of having poisoned her older husband, the sculptor Master Anton (Ivan Hedqvist). She has to prove her virginity through a fire test. The film's title reads: Who judges?


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 323. Photo: Skandia-Film. Pauline Brunius and Gösta Ekman in the silent romantic drama Kärlekens ögon / Med kärlekens ögon / Scarlet Angel (John W. Brunius, 1922).


Swedish postcard by Ed. Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 327. Photo: Skandia Film / Svensk Filminspelning. Postcard for Det omringade huset / The Surrounded House (Victor Sjöström, 1922), starring Meggie Albanesi and Victor Sjöström.


Swedish postcard by Axel Eliassons Konstförlag, Stockholm, no. 329. Photo: Skandiafilm / Svensk Filminspelning. Meggie Albanesi in Det omringade huset / The Surrounded House (Victor Sjöström, 1922).

Sources: Scott Lord (Silent Film: Greta Garbo - Victor Seastöm), Mette Hjort and Ursula Lindqvist (A Companion to Nordic Cinema), David Bret (Greta Garbo: A Divine Star), Mariah Larsson and Anders Marklund (Swedish Film: An Introduction and Reader), Wikipedia and IMDb.