Oskar Hasselknippe (18 January 1911 – 4 July 2001) was a Norwegian newspaper editor. He is known for his work in the

Norwegian resistance movement The Norwegian resistance (Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms: *Asserting the legitimacy of the exiled governmen ...

and as editor of ''

Verdens Gang ''Verdens Gang'' ("The course of the world"), generally known under the abbreviation ''VG'', is a Norwegian tabloid newspaper. In 2016, circulation numbers stood at 93,883, having declined from a peak circulation of 390,510 in 2002. ''VG'' is n ...

'' during its swift ascent among Norwegian newspapers.

Early life and World War II

Hasselknippe was born in Biri as a son of car mechanic Lars Hasselknippe (1891–1946) and Paula Elvestad (1889–1979). He

finished Finished may refer to: * ''Finished'' (novel), a 1917 novel by H. Rider Haggard * ''Finished'' (film), a 1923 British silent romance film * "Finished" (short story), a science fiction short story by L. Sprague de Camp See also *Finishing (disa ...

his secondary education in 1931, and worked as a journalist in ''

Velgeren ''Velgeren'' ("The Voter") was a Norwegian newspaper, published in Gjøvik in Oppland county. It started on 2 September 1904 under the name ''Vælgeren'', and was affiliated with the Radical People's Party (Norway), United Norwegian Workers' Associ ...

'' until 1938 (with interruptions while undergoing pilot training with the

Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service The Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service ( no, Marinens flyvevesen) was alongside the Norwegian Army Air Service the forerunner to the modern-day Royal Norwegian Air Force. History The RNNAS was established on 1 June 1912,Official Norwegian Defence ...

and at civilian air schools), and then as subeditor in '' Ringerikes Blad''. When

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

reached Norway on 9 April 1940, with the

German invasion German invasion may refer to: Pre-1900s * German invasion of Hungary (1063) World War I * German invasion of Belgium (1914) * German invasion of Luxembourg (1914) World War II * Invasion of Poland * German invasion of Belgium (1940) * G ...

, Hasselknippe fought for Norway as a lieutenant in the engineer corps. When the battles were over, Hasselknippe joined

Milorg Milorg (abbreviation of militær organisasjon – military organization) was the main Norwegian resistance movement during World War II. Resistance work included intelligence gathering, sabotage, supply-missions, raids, espionage, transport of ...

. He also got married in 1940, to technician Jenny Hansen (1907–1979). Besides Milorg resistance work, he continued in ''Ringerikes Blad''. Hasselknippe's main task was to receive and distribute weapons, ammunition, and supplies dropped in the forest by aircraft. He operated in the Ringerike district, as well as in

Hallingdal Hallingdal ( en, Halling Valley) is a valley as well as a traditional district located in the traditional and electoral district Buskerud in Viken county in Norway. It consists of six municipalities: Flå, Nes, Gol, Hemsedal, Ål and Hol. ...

Krokskogen Krokskogen is a forested area which located outside of Oslo, Norway. It is a part of Oslomarka and is situated between Bærumsmarka, Vestmarka and Nordmarka. The wooded and hilly area of around 300 square kilometres is bordered by Oslo and by ...

, and

Hadeland Hadeland () is a traditional district in the southeastern part of Norway. It is centered on the southern part of the large lake Randsfjorden in Innlandet and Viken counties. The district consists of the municipalities Gran in Innlandet county ...

. Hasselknippe eventually became wanted by the German occupiers of Norway. His editor-in-chief in ''Ringerikes Blad'', Kaare Filseth, covered for him, but was ultimately seized as a hostage and shot by the Germans. Hasselknippe went into hiding and survived, and was district commander for Milorg from 1943 to 1945. He was decorated with the British King's Medal for Courage.

Later career

After the war, some members of the Norwegian Home Front discussed a restart of the newspaper ''

Tidens Tegn ''Tidens Tegn'' (Norwegian: ''Sign of the Times'') is a former Norwegian newspaper, issued in Oslo from 1910 to 1941. Editors The founder and first editor-in-chief of ''Tidens Tegn'' was Ola Thommessen, who edited the newspaper until 1917. Tho ...

'', but this did not go through. Instead a new newspaper with roots in the Home Front was created: ''

''. He was subeditor during the initial economic hardships, and in 1953 he was promoted to co-editor alongside Christian A. R. Christensen. In 1967 Vegard Sletten succeeded Christensen, and between 1969 and 1974 Arne Bonde sat as a third editor. Hasselknippe stepped down in 1978, and was succeeded by Tim Greve with

Andreas Norland Andreas Norland (9 May 1935 – 21 August 2021) was a Norwegian newspaper editor. He was known as editor of three large newspapers ''Adresseavisen'', ''Verdens Gang'' and ''Aftenposten'', and also held other positions in the Schibsted media congl ...

as co-editor. The newspaper grew influential, and has been the largest in Norway since 1981. In 1963 it was first in Norway to adopt the tabloid format, and contrary to Christian A. R. Christensen, Hasselknippe was a proponent of this modernization, and also of the introduction of ''VG'' as the commonly used name for the newspaper. He also chaired the Oslo branch of the Association of Norwegian Editors from 1972 to 1977. Hasselknippe had a sense for technological innovation and sound economic administration. He supported several entrepreneurs, including Vebjørn Tandberg, Olav Selvaag and

Ludvig G. Braathen Ludvig Gustav Braathen (17 March 1891 – 27 December 1976) was a Norwegian entrepreneur that founded the shipping company Ludvig G. Braathens Rederi and the airline Braathens SAFE. He was CEO of both companies until his death. Biography Braath ...

. He died in July 2001 in Oslo.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasselknippe, Oskar 1911 births 2001 deaths Norwegian aviators Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service personnel Norwegian Army personnel of World War II Norwegian resistance members Norwegian newspaper editors Verdens Gang people People from Gjøvik Recipients of the King's Medal for Courage in the Cause of Freedom