Acting
Nov 8, 1897
Copenhagen, Denmark
Arthur Jensen
Acting
Biography
Arthur Jensen was originally trained as a tailor and later educated at the Royal Theatre's student school 1920-23 and had an extensive theatre career. He experienced his heyday on television after passing the age of 70. He never achieved the same heights in film as he did in television, with roles such as caretaker Meyer in Huset på Christianshavn (1970-77) and clerk Schwan from Damernes Magasin in Matador (1978-81). With the exception of when he reprised the character of caretaker Meyer in Erik Balling's film version of the TV series, Ballade på Christianshavn (1971). It was his best film performance. He portrayed the two TV series characters shamelessly on his distinctive type: the comically aunty as caretaker Meyer and the sly and vain as clerk Schwan. What could have ended up as a gay caricature becomes human portraits in the garb of folk comedy, not least thanks to Arthur Jensen's humor, which at once shows solidarity and irony with the characters. It took a long time for Arthur Jensen to discovery who he was as an actor. After four silent film supporting roles at Fy&Bi, he formed a comedic duo with Ib Schønberg in several of Alice O'Fredericks' and Lau Lauritzen's energetic prank farces in the 1930s, but the fun is sporadic, and the inventions are often self-satisfied and infantile. His recurring role as a whiny spanking boy for the healthy guys in these films, including director Lauritzen himself, are particularly unfunny and almost unpleasant.
Feature Films (90)
Clumsy secret agent Jensen (aka Agent 69) must deliver secret formula for new revolutionary fuel source to Western agents. Instead, he mistakenly gives it to a random kid, so now both him and evil rogue agent Scorpio go after the kid.
Agent 69 in the Sign of Scorpio
The final film in the Gyldenkål trilogy. Following a financial downturn, Charles Gyldenkål decides to run for municipal office. After an unconventional election campaign, he is elected to the city council and becomes the deciding vote in the mayoral election.
The Goldcabbage Family Gets the Vote
Bettina Eriksen, manager of her Uncle Teodor's nursing home, is being framed for murder. With the help of 2 older ladies, Bettina sets out to find out the murderer's identity and motive.
Old Maids
Women have joined the military in Denmark but may still not serve in the navy. This makes the lives of the sailors difficult when three women get trapped on board of a navy vessel do to an surprise exercise at sea. Trying to hide the three women leads to comical situations.
Girls at Sea
After his usual stay behind bars, Egon has another cunning plan involving millions. They rob over 4 million from a money transport. The gang keeps a low profile and hide the money. But it's stolen by "Kongen" and "Knægten", who immediately start living it up - in the penthouse suite at the Sheraton. The suitcase with the money changes hands several times, before Kongen's daughter takes of with all the money.
The Olsen Gang's Big Score
Television & Series (3)
The series follows the residents of an apartment building on Copenhagen's Christianshavn, as they go about their daily lives and challenges. There is Olsen, a mover with an old fashion view of the world, Clausen who runs the local pet shop, Egon the career focused assistant, their wives who work hard to keep their spouses lives together, the young couple Tue and Rikke who recently moved in, the hard working caretaker Meyer, who never puts in to much effort, and of course Emma, the innkeeper of Rottehullet, where all the important decisions are made while running up the bar tab. The series was produced by Nordisk Film for Danmarks Radio TV station between the years 1970-77. The series' first director was Ebbe Langberg, then Erik Balling and Tom Hedegaard respectively. The series was conceived by an author team of well-known Danish authors such Leif Panduro, Benny Andersen, and Lise Nørgaard.
The House at Christianshavn
A satire of a typical Danish provincial town ca. 1900 with it's malicious, but merry portraits of the citizens. We meet the misshapen Emanuel Thomsen "Tummelumsen" and the two friends senior examining officer Knagsted and senior teacher Clausen.
Livsens ondskab
Matador is a Danish TV series produced and shown between 1978 and 1982. It is set in the fictional Danish town of Korsbæk between 1929 and 1947. It follows the lives of a range of characters from across the social spectrum, focusing specifically on the rivalry between the families of two businessmen: The banker Hans Christian Varnæs, an established local worthy, and social climber Mads Skjern, who arrives in town as the series opens. The name Matador was taken from the localised edition of the boardgame Monopoly, also the series' tentative English title. In addition, in contemporary Danish a "matador" is often used to describe a business tycoon, in the series referring to the character of Mads Skjern and his craftiness as a self-made entrepreneur. Directed by famed Danish film maker Erik Balling, Matador was the idea of author Lise Nørgaard who wrote the bulk of the episodes alongside Karen Smith, Jens Louis Petersen and Paul Hammerich. The series is one of the most well-known and popular examples of Danish television and represents the peak of longtime development of Danish TV drama by the public service channel Danmarks Radio. The series has become part of the modern self-understanding of Danes, partly because of its successful mix of melodrama and a distinct warm Danish humour in the depiction of characters, which were portrayed by a wide range of the most popular Danish actors at the time; but also not least because of its accurate portrayal of a turbulent Denmark from around the start of the Great Depression and through Nazi Germany's occupation of Denmark in World War II.
