Known for Acting
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.
Some criminal EU ministers plan to turn Denmark into a gigantic fair ground and holiday paradise. Egon gets his hand at some important documents which could both make him rich and take care of Denmark's future.
Three young men discover a scam that three somewhat older gentlemen from Aarhus' upper class have set up to avoid bankruptcy. The gentlemen directors have both accounts and safe deposit boxes at the bank branch where one of the young men works, so it seems only natural to give the swindlers a taste of their own medicine, so to speak. The situation is further complicated when a journalist gets wind of the double heist and wants his share of the pie.
This is the story of Sejr, a tenant farmer, and his conflict with the dictatorial lord who stubbornly refuses to grant him the farm he needs in order to get married. However, the nobility and the peasants find common ground when a common enemy arises: the Robbers, a group of thieves who kill and rape, but also call for rebellion against those in power.
Amalie is walking along the Copenhagen canal when a woman falls into the water. She jumps in and tries to save the woman, but ends up drowning herself. When Amalie wakes up in the hospital, she finds out that the other woman is dead and that the authorities believe she is the one who died. Now begins a long and tough battle against the bureaucracy of the Danish social system. It all ends with Amalie deciding to commit one crazy crime after another, culminating in an attempt to steal the crown jewels...
A folk comedy set in a village on the island of Zealand, where a powerful and dishonest businessman tries to trick the traditional owner out of his farm, Svanegården. The businessman wants to sell it to the Germans, but a group of brave people and couples in love manage to prevent this from happening.
Lieutenants Adam and Ditlev dream of being accepted into the Guard Hussar Regiment, and Captain von Rabenberg puts the two rivals to the test.
An unconventional parish priest runs a highly successful travel agency. The chairman of the parish council plots against him, and his problems are compounded when, during a trip to the Costa del Sol, he meets Gaby, a girl he has been in love with in several previous lives.
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.
