Ilmari Unho (22 October 1906 − 3 April 1961) was a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

actor,

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

, and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

. Unho was employed by Suomi-Filmi for most of his filmmaking career. Unho was born in

Uusikaupunki Uusikaupunki (; sv, Nystad, ) is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the Southwest Finland region, northwest of Turku and south of Pori. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is inland wate ...

in 1906. He started his film career as an actor in the 1925 film ''Pohjalaisia'' and also played roles in ''Meren kasvojen edessä'' (1926) and ''Kajastus'' (1930) during his early career. He worked as a theatre manager and journalist until 1938 when he was hired by Suomi-Filmi, a company he would stay with for the remainder of his career. Initially, Unho worked as a screenwriter. He wrote the scripts for ''Jääkärin morsian'' (1938) and ''Aktivistit'' (1939), but quickly transitioned into the director's chair, with the comedies ''Punahousut'' (1939) and ''Kersantilleko Emma nauroi?'' (1940). During his career, Unho directed 26 films. Among the most important of these were the

biopics A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...

of author

Aleksis Kivi Aleksis Kivi (; born Alexis Stenvall; 10 October 1834 – 31 December 1872) was a Finnish author who wrote the first significant novel in the Finnish language, ''Seitsemän veljestä'' ("Seven Brothers") in 1870. He is also known for his 1864 p ...

and opera singer

Abraham Ojanperä Abraham (Aappo, Aapo, Aapi) Ojanperä (16 September 1856 in Liminka – 26 February 1916 in Liminka) was a Finnish singer, vocal pedagogist, and cantor. He usually sang bass and baritone roles in oratorios and Finnish operas at a time when the cou ...

, ''Minä elän'' (1946) and ''Ruusu ja kulkuri'' (1948). The film historian

Peter von Bagh Kari Peter Conrad von Bagh (29 August 1943 – 17 September 2014) was a Finnish film historian and director. Von Bagh worked as the head of the Finnish Film Archive. He was the editor-in-chief of ''Filmihullu'' magazine and co-founder and direct ...

also lists ''Härmästä poikia kymmenen'' (1950), ''Pimeänpirtin hävitys'' (1947), ''Koskenkylän laulu'' (1947), and ''Kanavan laidalla'' (1949) among the director's most notable works. Unho usually wrote the screenplays for his own films and continued to write scripts for other directors throughout his career. Unho was married to the actress

Kaisu Leppänen Katri Sisko "Kaisu" Leppänen (13 October 1904 – 4 March 1993) was a Finnish actress. She worked for over 40 years in the Finnish National Theatre and appeared in 41 films between 1929 and 1987. She was born in Turku, and was married to actor I ...

from 1927 to 1930. Later on, he married another actress,

Salli Karuna Salli Karuna (1902–1987) was a Finnish film actress.Hammer p.117 She was married to the actor Ilmari Unho. Selected filmography * ''Gabriel, Come Back'' (1951) * ''Mother or Woman ''Mother or Woman'' (Finnish: ''Sillankorvan emäntä'') is a ...

. Unho died in

Pori ) , website www.pori.fi Pori (; sv, Björneborg ) is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäki River, west of Tampere, north of Turku and north-w ...

in 1961, aged 54.

Filmography

As a director: * ''Punahousut'' (1939) * ''Kersantilleko Emma nauroi?'' (1940) * ''Poikani pääkonsuli'' (1940) * ''Poretta eli keisarin uudet pisteet'' (1941) * ''Neljä naista'' (1942) * ''Kuollut mies rakastuu'' (1942) * ''Syntynyt terve tyttö'' (1943) * ''Miehen kunnia'' (1943) * ''Kirkastettu sydän'' (1943) * ''Kuollut mies vihastuu'' (1944) * ''Kartanon naiset'' (1944) * ''Kolmastoista koputus'' (1945) * ''Valkoisen neilikan velho'' (1945) * ''Minä elän'' (1946) * ''Pimeänpirtin hävitys'' (1947) * ''Koskenkylän laulu'' (1947) * ''Kilroy sen teki'' (1948) * ''Ruusu ja kulkuri'' (1948) * ''Kanavan laidalla Suomi'' (1949) * ''Kalle-Kustaa Korkin seikkailut'' (1949) * ''Härmästä poikia oli kymmenen'' (1950) * '' Sadan miekan mies'' (1951) * ''Kuisma ja Helinä'' (1951) * ''"Jees, olympialaiset", sanoi Ryhmy'' (1952) * ''Rengasmatka eli Peräkylän pikajuna'' (1952) * ''Sillankorvan emäntä'' (1953)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Unho, Ilmari 1906 births 1961 deaths People from Uusikaupunki People from Turku and Pori Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Finnish film directors Finnish male film actors Finnish male silent film actors 20th-century Finnish male actors