Matador (Danish TV series)

Television series
German title	The people of Korsbaek
Original title	Matador
Country of production	Denmark
original language	Danish
Year (s)	1978 - 1981
length	Single episodes from 41 to 126 minutes
Episodes	24, in Germany 26
genre	drama
idea	Lise Nørgaard , Erik Balling
music	Bent Fabricius-Bjerre
First broadcast	November 11, 1978 on Danmarks Radio
German-language first broadcast	December 1981 ( Germany ) on ARD
occupation

Matador is a 24-section Danish TV seriesproducedby Danmarks Radio from 1978 to 1981.

The series was directed by Erik Balling , based on an idea by Lise Nørgaard . Balling wrote the script in collaboration with Paul Hammerich , Karen Smith and Jens Louis Petersen. The illustrator Arne Ungermann designed the drawings that lead in and out of each of the 24 episodes. The soundtrack was composed by Bent Fabricius-Bjerre .

The series shows life in the fictional Danish town of Korsbæk between 1929 and 1947. Mads Andersen-Skjern, the main character, comes to the town in 1929 as a sales representative and opens a fashion boutique. This turns him into an opponent of the traditional conservative elite in the area. In the course of the following two decades he rose to become a major entrepreneur.

The series portrays Denmark under occupation and during the Great Depression of the 1930s . The viewer follows the life of the family and also gets a relatively precise description of the time. The inspiration from the English series Das Haus am Eaton Place is clear, but Matador is very Danish in its expression. The series became a success due to the good acting performance of a number of Denmark's best actors. Many of the contributors are still identified today, many years later, with the role they played in Matador.

In Germany, the series was shown from 1981 to 1984 in the early evening program of ARD and from 1986 to 1987 in Südwest 3 and Hessen 3 under the title The People of Korsbæk in 26 episodes.

occupation

Ole Andreasen , narrator Jens Arentzen , Ulrik Varnæs (adult) Nis Bank-Mikkelsen , Oscar Andersen, nephew of Frederik Andersen Birthe Backhausen , Skjold Hansen Karen Berg , Mrs. Fernando Møhge Bjørn Watt Boolsen , Colonel Hachel Lily Broberg , Kathrine Larsen Birgitte Bruun , Ester Søren Bruun , Ulrik Varnæs (child) Lene Brøndum , Agnete, Arnold Vinter's lover Jørgen Buckhøj , Mads Skjern Niels Martin Carlsen , Daniel Skjern (adult) Benedikt Dahl , Ellen Skjern (adult) Jacob Dalgård , Daniel Skjern, (child) Birgitte Federspiel , Baroness Arendse von Rydtger Sigurd Fitzek , Sigmund Holtz, Emil's friend Vera Gebuhr , Inger Jørgensen Morten Grunwald , Ernst Nyborg, painter Esper Hagen , Arnold Vinter John Hahn-Petersen , Mr. stone Camilla Hammerich , Regitze Varnæs (adult) Benny Hansen , painter Frede "Fede" Hansen Else-Marie Juul Hansen , Consulinde Holm Holger Juul Hansen , Hans Christian Varnæs Kirsten Hansen-Møller , Marie Hansen, married to "Fede" Ulla Henningsen , Iben Skjold Hansen (later married to Skjern) Paul Hüttel , Herbert Schmidt Arthur Jensen , Mr. Schwann Anne Jensen , Gudrun Jesper Langberg , Kristen Skjern Buster Larsen , Oluf Larsen Ellen Winther Lembourn , Minna Varnæs

Lis Løwert , Violet Vinter Hanne Løye , Ms. Mikkelsen Preben Mahrt , Albert Arnesen Bent Mejding , Jørgen Varnæs Jens Christian Milbart , Erik Skjern Karen-Lise Mynster , Ulla Jacobsen Karin Nellemose , Misse Møhge, married. Andersen Finn Nielsen , bicycle dealer Helle Nielsen , Ellen Skjern (child) Ditte Maria Norup , Helle Varnæs Tove Maës , Lilly Lund Ghita Nørby , Ingeborg Larsen, married. Skjern Kirsten Olesen , Agnes Jensen, b. Rud Sonja Oppenhagen , Victoria 'Vicki' Hachel Per Pallesen , Severin Boldt Hardy Rafn , Godtfred Lund Kurt Ravn , Lauritz "Røde" Jensen Poul Reichhardt , master mason Jessen Elin Reimer , Laura Larsine Sørensen Christiane Rohde , Miss Hollenberg Kirsten Rolffes , Anna Andersen Skjern Bendt Rothe , Baron Carl von Rydtger Malene Schwartz , Maude Varnæs Helge Kjærulff-Schmidt , Frederik Andersen, teachers Ove Sprogøe , Doctor Louis Hansen Karl Stegger , Consul Emanuel Holm Christian Steffensen , Poul Kristensen Finn Storgaard , Gustav Friis Axel Strøbye , Viggo Skjold Hansen Bodil Udsen , Mrs. Sofie Jessen, b. Antonsen Helle Virkner , Elisabeth Friis, married. Skjern Susse Wold , Birgitte 'Gitte' Graa

Sections

Danish original title - indication of the time frame of the story (year of production)

1. "Den rejsende" - 1929 (1978)
2. "Genboen" - 1929 (1978)
3. "Skiftedag" - 1930 (1978)
4. "Skyggetanten" - 1931 (1978)
5. "Den enes død" - 1932 (1978)
6. "Opmarch" - 1932 (1978)
7. "Fødselsdagen" - 1933 (1979)
8. "Come stranger" - 1934 (1979)
9. "Hen til kommoden" - 1935 (1979)
10. "I disse tider" - 1935 (1979)
11. "I clamp" - 1936 (1979)
12. "I lyst og nød" - 1936-37 (1979)
13. "Et nyt liv" - 1937-38 (1980)
14. "Brikkerne" - 1938–39 (1980)
15. "At tænke og tro" - 1939 (1980)
16. "Lauras store dag" - 1940 (1980)
17. "De voksnes rækker" - 1941–42 (1980)
18. "Mr. Stein" - 1943 (1980)
19. "Handel og vandel" - 1944 (1981)
20. "The 11th time" - 1945 (1981)
21. "Vi vil fred her til lands" - 1945 (1981)
22. "Det går jo godt" - 1945–46 (1981)
23. "Mellem brødre" - 1946 (1981)
24. "New Look" - 1947 (1981)

On German television with an indication of the time frame for the individual episodes

1. The Stranger - 1929
2. The neighbor - 1929
3. Business is good - 1930
4. The shadow aunt - 1931
5. The new apartment - 1932
6. Scandals - 1932
7. The new bank - 1933
8. The birthday - 1933
9. The painter - 1934
10. Astray - 1934
11. Difficulties - 1935
12. Headlines - 1935
13. The refugee - 1936
14. The traveling stage - 1936
15. The waves are smoothing out - 1936
16. A new beginning - 1937
17. A happy event - 1937/38
18. Power struggles - 1938/39
19. Confirmation - 1939
20. A great day - 1939/40
21. Difficult times - 1940/41
22. Secrets - 1941–1943
23. Late Insights - 1943
24. The pursuit - 1943
25. On your own way - 1944
26. Life goes on - 1945

action

Main storyline: The Skjern and Varnæs families

Lise Nørgaard : screenwriter on the television series Matador

In the series, the story of the fictional town is Korsbæk and its inhabitants under changing political constellations of the Great Depression until after the Second World War told. The focus of the series is on the career of the traveling businessman Mads Andersen-Skjern, who rose to become a well-off businessman, and the fortunes of the family of bank director Hans Christian Varnæs, who had been in charge of the town until then.

The protagonist Mads Andersen-Skjern from Jutland visits Korsbæk in 1929 with his five-year-old son Daniel . Bank director Varnæs, out of loyalty to another business owner, refuses to give him a loan that is very important for his planned start-up . He gets unexpected help from the friendly pig dealer Oluf Larsen and his wife Katrine. Mads Andersen-Skjern can therefore open his women's fashion store in Korsbæk, where he hires Larsen's daughter Ingeborg as a saleswoman, who becomes his wife in 1930. She brings her daughter Ellen into the marriage.

Varnæs and his over-the-top wife Maude are at the center of Korsbæk's social life. In the frequent societies high officials, wealthy businessmen and officers meet each other. They all support the Conservative Party , for which Varnæ's younger brother Jørgen is running unsuccessfully for a seat in the Folketing . The only exception is the art-loving small town doctor Dr. Louis Hansen, who stands out as a colorful bird in the leading circles because of his sympathy for the radical Venstre . Over the years, Maude's single sister Elisabeth Friis also distanced herself more and more from the views of those around her.

The leaders of Korsbæk initially avoid Mads Skjern; after all, his shop represents stiff competition for the long-established women's boutique. However, since the shop offers good goods at low prices, it is popular and successful with the common people. It turns him into a wealthy man, while the arrogant, long-established clothing dealer Arnesen goes bankrupt. In addition to selling textiles, Skjern is now also offering cheap loans. Finally, he brings his brother Kristen to Korsbæk to run the bank that is supposed to compete with the Varnæs-run financial institution. He falls in love with Elisabeth Friis, but the discord between the old elite and the newcomers stands in the way of a relationship. In 1937 the Skjern family moved into a villa on the outskirts. They have the previous shop converted into a three-story department store.

During the German occupation of Denmark in World War II, Kristen Skjern and Elisabeth Friis join the resistance group led by Dr. Hansen, while Varnæ's wife Maude helps the Jewish accountant Mr. Stein to flee to Sweden . Mads' business continues to do well and the new beginning after the Second World War succeeds. His participation in the celebration of the Silver Wedding of the Varnæs couple symbolizes his acceptance by the old elite of the city. Kristen Skjern and Elisabeth Friis get married, but leave Korsbæk for Copenhagen .

Subplots

Matador, the Danish version of the game Monopoly , namesake of the series

In addition to this main plot, various subplots take place in which the socio-cultural change in Denmark is expressed.

One is the relationship between Agnes, the Varnæs maid , and communist railroad worker Lauritz "Røde" Jensen. Because of his commitment to the party, he neglects his duties as a family man. When the persecution of the communists began after Germany's attack on the Soviet Union , he had to flee Denmark. In order to get the two sons through, Agnes founds a stocking repair company, which she is expanding into an increasingly successful business. On his return, contrary to what he expected, Lauritz was not elected to parliament and became a small business owner himself as a typesetter.

Naming and inspiration

The original title of the series "Matador" refers to the Danish version of the board game Monopoly because of the main storyline . The screenwriter of Matador , Lise Nørgaard , comes from the Danish town of Roskilde , where there is a Roskilde Bank are that pulled her as the model for the fictional "Korsbæk Bank" in the series. The fictitious place name "Korsbæk" is based on the contraction of the names of the two cities Korsør and Holbæk on the island of Zealand . The Zeeland town of Præstø also served as an inspiration for Matador.

meaning

The series is one of Danmarks Radio's greatest successes and is considered a classic in Denmark. Many of the actors involved are still identified with their roles in Matador today . At the time of its first broadcast as well as when it was repeated later, the series was able to achieve extremely high ratings. The highest number of viewers ever recorded in Denmark of 3.6 million (more than half of the population) was measured when it was repeated in 1986 for a single episode. When it was re-broadcast in 2012/2013, the first episode was still seen by almost a million viewers. The DVD, released in 2001, is the best-selling DVD in Denmark with over three million copies sold.

In 2006, Matador was included in the Danish cultural canon by the Danish Ministry of Culture as one of 15 works in the film category , on the grounds that the work, which nobody can ignore, was the largest Danish film narrative ever created.

Web links

• Matador in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• The people of Korsbaek, DK 1978–1982 (Matador) at Fernsehserien.de
• Matador Online (Danish)
• Matador filming locations
• Matador on danskefilm.dk in the Dansk Film Database (Danish)
• Matador on dfi.dk at Det Danske Filminstitut (Danish)

literature

• Søren Pind. Lise Nørgaard. Et portræt . 2005.
• Anne Larsen. "Krøniken slår ikke all recorders". timecodes.dk. 2003. [1]

Individual evidence

1. ↑ På hunts efter Korsbæk - Korsbæksagaen. (No longer available online.) In: sandrewmetronome.dk. September 30, 2011, archived from the original on September 9, 2011 ; Retrieved October 15, 2011 (Danish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
2. ↑ Rikke Danielsen & Jens Aagaard : 30 ting, du ikke vidste om Matador. (No longer available online.) In: Søndagsavisen . August 31, 2008, archived from the original on September 24, 2011 ; Retrieved September 15, 2011 (Danish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
3. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original dated November 16, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
4. ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original from October 23, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.