Grethe Kausland (July 3, 1947 – November 16, 2007) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

singer, performer and actress. As a child star she was one of Norway's most popular singers (her debut single “Teddyen min” from 1955, sold more than 100,000 recordsJan Eggum, Bård Ose, Siren Steen: ''

Norsk pop & rock-leksikon ''Norsk pop & rock-leksikon'' is Norwegian biographical encyclopaedia covering the last 100 years of Norwegian music. The encyclopaedia was issued in 2005 by the publishing house Vega forlag. The initiator was Jan Eggum Jan Eggum (born 8 Dece ...

'' (Vega Forlag AS, 2005) Norsk pop- og rockleksikon (2005)
Grethe Kausland
(Retrieved on November 17, 2007)), and she participated in several films as a child.IMDB
Grethe Kausland Filmography
(Retrieved on November 17, 2007) She represented Norway in the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

, singing "

Småting Norway was represented by Grethe Kausland and Benny Borg, with the song "Småting", at the 1972 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 25 March in Edinburgh. "Småting" was chosen as the Norwegian entry at the Melodi Grand Prix on 19 Februar ...

" with

Benny Borg Benny Borg (born 13 November 1945) is a Swedish singer and composer. He was born in Gothenburg, but moved to Norway in 1968, and was married to Kirsti Sparboe from 1972 to 1978. He is known for his cooperation with the Dizzie Tunes, and with Gr ...

. From 1973 she performed regularly with the entertaining group

Dizzie Tunes Dizzie Tunes was a Norwegian musical show group from the city of Skien. Dizzie Tunes was one of the most successful in Norwegian show business. Biography The group was founded as the dance band ''Rex Band'' in 1959, was named ''Dizzie Tunes'' in ...

. Awarded "Spellemannprisen" 1978 for the album ''A Taste of Grethe Kausland'', and " Leonardstatuetten" 1991 for her achievements on the revue scene. She died from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

on November 16, 2007 in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

Child career

Grethe made her stage debut at age 4 at a local revue, and cut her first record at age 8 in 1955, after winning a radio-transmitted amateur competition; the song, "Teddyen Min"/"Cowboyhelten" became a big radio hit in and sold over 100,000 copies. She made her first film, ''Smugler i smoking'' in 1957; by age 12 she had cut 10 records and acted in five films. Described "crazy about jazz" as a child, she visited jazz clubs while still underage, "swinging" like an adult jazz vocalist despite her youthful voice.

Shows with ''Dizzie Tunes''

Dizzie Tunes og Grethe Kausland (11097025686)

Kausland's cooperation with the show group ''Dizzie Tunes'' started with her ''Chat Noir'' Theatre debut ''På go'fot'' (1973). Later followed the shows ''Showkade med og uten fyll'' (1974), ''Vi spillopper'' (1976, film version 1979), ''Memories Of Music'' (1979/1980, also video), ''The Show Must Go Home'' (1984, also video), ''Festsprell i Dizzie Tider'' (1988). She also participated in many of their TV shows. ''Sing Sala Bim'' (1973) was awarded Bronze Rose at the Montreux festival. Her music albums with ''Dizzie Tunes'': ''Toppop 1'' (1972), ''Mere Ra-ta-ta-ta'' (1972), ''Folk i nord'' (1973), ''Hei-hå-hei-hå'' (1973), ''Norsklåt'' (1973), ''På go'fot med Dizzie Tunes'' (1973), ''Memories of Music'' (1982), ''Go'biter med Dizzie Tunes'' (1992).

A Star is Torn

In a 1993 adaptation of

Robyn Archer Robyn Archer, AO, CdOAL (born 1948) is an Australian singer, writer, stage director, artistic director, and public advocate of the arts, in Australia and internationally. Life Archer was born Robyn Smith in Prospect, South Australia. She beg ...

and Rodney Fischer's show ''A Star is Torn'' Grethe Kausland portrayed nine tragic female fates in popular music:

Bessie Smith Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an American blues singer widely renowned during the Jazz Age. Nicknamed the " Empress of the Blues", she was the most popular female blues singer of the 1930s. Inducted into the Rock and ...

Helen Morgan Helen Morgan may refer to: *Helen Morgan (singer) Helen Morgan (née Riggins; August 2, 1900 – October 9, 1941) was an American singer and actress who worked in films and on the stage. A quintessential torch singer, she made a big splash in ...

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop si ...

Edith Piaf Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and vari ...

Marie Lloyd Matilda Alice Victoria Wood (12 February 1870 – 7 October 1922), professionally known as Marie Lloyd (), was an English music hall singer, comedian and musical theatre actress. She was best known for her performances of songs such as " T ...

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

Dinah Washington Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the 1950s songs". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performe ...

and

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known Rock music, rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage ...

. A full evening one-woman-performance, first at ''

Rogaland Teater Rogaland Teater is a theatre in Stavanger, Norway. Background The theatre building was built in 1883 on a parcel of '' Kannik prestegård''. It was designed by architect Hartvig Sverdrup Eckhoff, and initially held close to 500 seats. The bui ...

'' (Stavanger, 1993, 45 performancesPå norske scener. Sesongen 1992/93. (De norske teatres forening, Oslo 1993) ), and later at ''Victoria Teater'' (Oslo, 1995).

Television series

From the late 1990s Kausland participated in several TV series. In ''

D'ække bare, bare Bernt ''D'ække bare, bare Bernt'' was a Norwegian sitcom that aired on TV3 from 1996 to 1997, starring Jon Skolmen and Grethe Kausland as the married couple Bernt and Vera Brantenberg. Plot The show was about the married couple Bernt and Vera Branten ...

'' (1996) she starred as "Vera", with

Jon Skolmen Jon Skolmen (1 November 1940 – 28 March 2019) was a Norwegian actor and comedian who appeared in several Norwegian and Swedish films. He gained special recognition for his role as Ole Bramserud in ''Sällskapsresan'' (1980) opposite Lasse Åbe ...

as her husband "Bernt". In the

situation comedy A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

'' Karl & Co'' (63 episodes, running 1998–2001) she appeared regularly as "Ruth Frantzen". She played the role "Mamsen" in the children's series ''Jul i Blåfjell'' in 1999. This series became quite popular, it received the

Gullruten Gullruten ("Golden Screen") is an annual award for the Norwegian TV industry, founded in 1998 by ''Norske Film- og TV-produsenters forening''. The awarding committee has representatives from the major national TV companies, NRK, TV 2, TV3 and TV ...

award in 2000 for ''Best TV drama'', a music album from the series received

Spellemannprisen Spellemannprisen, often referred to as the Norwegian Grammy Awards in English, is a Norwegian music award presented to Norwegian musicians. The award was established by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), an organizati ...

in 1999 for ''Best children's album'', and the follow-up series ''Jul på månetoppen'' appeared in 2002.

Discography

Singles on the Columbia label (as child star)

*1955: "Teddyen min"/"Cowboyhelten" *1956: "Den lille kjøkkenskriver"/"Jeg vil gifte meg med pappa" (with Frank Robert) *1956: "Maria Fly-fly"/"Eventyrswing" *1956: "Grethemor"/"Dukkestuen" *1956: "Til Nisseland"/"Ding-dong" *1957: "Min lille mandolin"/"Kjære lille vov-vov" *1957: "Hipp Hurra!"/"Lolly Poll" *1958: "Lillesøster"/"Musefest i kjelleren" *1959: "På tivoli"/"Pappas lille pike" *1960: "Souvenirs"/"Conny" *1960: "Det finns millioner"/"Europa Non Stop" *1963: "Gullregnen"/"Ønskedrømmen" *1964: "Hjerte"/"Hvis jeg var gutt"

Albums

*''Grethe gjennom 10 år'' (Columbia, 1964) *''A Taste of Grethe Kausland'' (Troll, 1978) *''Grethe synger Lille Grethe'' (Troll, 1979) *''Stay With Me'' (Troll, 1984) *''Jazzway to Norway'' (1991) (with several artists) *''Jazz my way'' (Curling Legs, 2008)

Filmography

*''Smuglere i smoking'' (1957) *''

Selv om de er små ''Selv om de er små'' (Even If They Are Little) is a Norwegian family film starring Lille Grethe. The film premiered on December 26, 1957. Plot Brit's mother and father are divorced. Brit lives with her mother in Oslo, but she feels strongly at ...

'' (1957) *'' Far til fire og onkel Sofus'' (1957) *''

Far til fire og ulveungerne ''Father of Four and the Wolf Cubs'' ( da, Far til fire og ulveungerne) is a 1958 Danish family film directed by Alice O'Fredericks and Robert Saaskin. The film received controversy due to a song titled "A Black Little Negro From Africa". Cast ...

'' (1958) *''

Ugler i mosen ''Ugler i mosen'' is a 1959 Norwegian mystery and adventure family film directed by Ivo Caprino. The title, which literally means 'Owls in the Moss', is based on the idiom ''det er ugler i mosen'' 'I smell a rat; there is mischief afoot'. The film ...

'' (1959) (directed by

Ivo Caprino Ivo Caprino (17 February 1920 – 8 February 2001) was a Norwegian film director and writer, best known for his puppet films. His most noted film, '' Flåklypa Grand Prix'' ("Pinchcliffe Grand Prix"), was made in 1975. Early life Caprino ...

) *''

Millionær for en aften ''Millionær for en aften'' (Millionaire for an Evening) is a Norwegian comedy film from 1960 directed by Øyvind Vennerød. It stars Henki Kolstad, Unni Bernhoft, and Willie Hoel. Jørn Ording and Vennerød arranged the screenplay, which was writ ...

'' (1960) *''To på topp'' (1965) *''Tut og kjør'' (1975) *''Vi spillopper'' (1979) *''Over stork og stein'' (Stork Staring Mad, 1994) *''Solan, Ludvig og Gurin med reverompa'' (Gurin with the Foxtail, 1998) (voice)

TV series

*''

'' (1996) *'' Karl & Co'' (1997–2000) *''Jul i Blåfjell'' (1999) (Awarded

2000 for ''Best TV drama'', and

1999 for ''Best children's album'') *''Jul på månetoppen'' (2002) *''Brødrene Dal og mysteriet med Karl XIIs gamasjer'' (2005) (mini TV Series) *''

Hos Martin ''Hos Martin'' (At Martin's) is a Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics ...

'' (2005 episode)

Personal life

From 1966 to 1979 she was married to jazz guitarist

Halvard Kausland Halvard Magne Kausland (25 April 1945 – 21 December 2017) was a Norwegian jazz guitarist and civil servant. Biography He hails from Sund. He has his education from the ''Norges kommunal- og sosialhøgskole'', Agder Regional College and ...

. She did not revert to her

maiden name When a person (traditionally the wife in many cultures) assumes the family name of their spouse, in some countries that name replaces the person's previous surname, which in the case of the wife is called the maiden name ("birth name" is also used ...

Nilsen after the end of the marriage, but kept the name Kausland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kausland, Grethe 1947 births 2007 deaths Norwegian film actresses Norwegian child actresses Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Norway Norwegian child singers Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1972 Melodi Grand Prix contestants People from Horten Melodi Grand Prix winners Spellemannprisen winners Leonard Statuette winners Deaths from lung cancer Norwegian television actresses 20th-century Norwegian women singers