Lars Widding

Lars Widding (born October 31, 1924 in Umeå , † March 3, 1994 in Stockholm ) was a Swedish writer , journalist and screenwriter . He was one of the most widely read and productive Swedish writers of the 20th century and worked in many fields in film, radio, television, journalism and literature. The dramaturgical processing of historical events was Widding's specialty.

Life

Widding grew up in a middle-class family in the center of Umeå. His father ran a law office there. He passed his Abitur in 1943 and then studied at Stockholm University from 1946–1950. Widding worked as a reporter for the tabloid Expressen for 36 years . He was married several times:

• 1947–1970 with Ulla Widding (nee Fredriksson)
• 1975–1987 with Anita Jacobson-Widding
• 1987–1994 with Fillie Lyckow-Widding.

job

Widdings experiences in school and youth are reflected in his first three books, including Inga stormar än (1950). His ability to draw inspiration from historical documents and develop beautiful literature from them is first shown in Årstafruns dagbok ( Årsta woman's diary ), a three-part series of novels from 1964–1966, followed by Sorundasviten ( Sorunda series ) and Karolinersviten ( Karoliner series ) with four parts each. Lars Widding returned to his hometown Umeå with a small town chronicle in four parts, beginning with Pigan och härligheten ( Maid and Glory ) from 1978. Life in Umeå in the years 1932–1945 is described: The main character is Robert Sulliwan, living in a villa surrounded by a large portrait gallery. Among historical models you can meet well-known Umeås residents such as Thorsten Hellström and Sigrid Holmström, in the form of a master and maid. Umeå's cityscape can be recognized in many of Lars Widding's books. He reports on his personal life in Min historia ( My Story ) from 1983.

Works

• 1950: Inga stormar än
• 1952: Oroa icke kärleken
• 1953: Visst gör det ont
• 1954: Gyllene vingar
• 1960: Äventyret Vasa
• 1961: Ombord på Vasa
• 1962: Jesus, vem var han?
• 1965: Stolta stad
• 1966: Skuggan av en herrgårdsfröken
• 1968: På ryttmästarns tid
• 1969: Galgfågeln
• 1969: Majors avsked
• 1969: På Årstafruns tid
• 1970: 1812
• 1970: Lockfågeln
• 1971: Svanesång
• 1971: Sångfågeln
• 1972: Rovfågeln!
• 1972: På jakt efter Pistolekors tid
• 1973: Roaster från Årsta 1973
• 1973: I nöd och lust?
• 1974: En tid för hjältar
• 1975: Spefågeln
• 1975: Entid för vreden
• 1976: De fyra ryttarnas tid
• 1977: Den siste karolinen
• 1978: Pigan och härligheten
• 1979: Svenska aventyr
• 1979: Herrskapet och evigheten
• 1980: Längesen förbi
• 1980: När häxbålen brann
• 1981: Pojken med hakkorset
• 1981: Då tystnar sången
• 1982: Två berättelser
• 1982: Lycksökarna
• 1983: Eva Brauns förlorade liv
• 1983: Guldfeberns folk
• 1983: Sorundasviten
• 1983: Min historia
• 1984: Elden och askan
• 1985: Brott och flykt
• 1985: En afrikansk affair
• 1986: Leoparderna
• 1986: Lodjuren och silverskatten
• 1991: Rödaste smultron
• 1994: Karolinersviten

Filmography (selection)

• 1954: Gula divisionen (together with Stig Olin based on the novel Gyllene vingar )
• 1955: Så tuktas kärleken
• 1956: Karl för sin hatt (short film)
• 1958: Mannequin in red (Mannekäng i rött)
• 1958: When the Mists Fall (Damen i svart)
• 1959: The Countess with the Whip (Ryttare i blått)
• 1959: Får jag låna din fru?
• 1963: Adam and Eve
• 1964: The Swedish Wedding Night (Bröllopsbesvär)
• 1966: Princess (Prinsessan)
• 1968: Heaven turns a blind eye (Vindingevals)
• 1971: Lockfågeln
• 1972: Company party (company parties)

Prizes and awards

• 1968: BMF badge (BMF = Swedish Association of Book Trade Assistants ) for På ryttmästarens tid

Web links

• Short biography on bok.nu ( Memento from October 16, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) (sv.)
• Swedish Film Institute about Lars Widding (sv.)
• Lars widding in the Internet Movie Database (English)