Randi Nilie Nordby Johnson (May 15, 1926 – March 28, 1991) 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 ...

actress. She was engaged with the Oslo New Theater for many years. As an actress, she used her maiden name as her stage name.

Career

Randi Nordby started her career very early, and already as a child she was acting in Inga Bjørnson's children's theater. She made her stage debut at age 12 in 1938 in '' The Women'' (Norwegian title: ''Kvinner'') by

Clare Boothe Luce Clare Boothe Luce ( Ann Clare Boothe; March 10, 1903 – October 9, 1987) was an American writer, politician, U.S. ambassador, and public conservative figure. A versatile author, she is best known for her 1936 hit play '' The Women'', which ha ...

at the

New Theater New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

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 ...

. She made her adult debut in 1945 in

Leonid Leonov Leonid Maximovich Leonov (russian: Леони́д Макси́мович Лео́нов; — 8 August 1994) was a Soviet novelist and playwright of socialist realism. His works have been compared with Dostoyevsky's deep psychological torment. ...

's play ''Invasion'' at the Studio Theater, and she remained there until it had to close in 1950. She was then at the New Theater until 1963. She later performed as a freelance actress. At the New Theater she appeared in plays such as

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

'',

Ralph Benatzky Ralph Benatzky (5 June 1884 – 16 October 1957), born in Mährisch Budwitz ( Moravské Budějovice) as Rudolph Franz rantišekJosef Benatzky, was an Austrian composer of Moravian origin. He composed operas and operettas, such as '' Casanova ...

and

Robert Stolz Robert Elisabeth Stolz (25 August 188027 June 1975) was an Austrian songwriter and conductor as well as a composer of operettas and film music.Stanley Sadie Ed. (2002) ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', Oxford University Press Biogra ...

's ''

The White Horse Inn ''The White Horse Inn'' (or ''White Horse Inn'') (German title: ''Im weißen Rößl'' ) is an operetta or musical comedy by Ralph Benatzky and Robert Stolz in collaboration with a number of other composers and writers, set in the picturesque Salz ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Sommer i Tyrol''), and Eugène Ionesco's ''

The Chairs ''The Chairs'' (french: Les Chaises) is a one-act play by Eugène Ionesco, described as an absurdist "tragic farce". It was first performed in Paris in 1952. Setting A high tower surrounded by water. Characters *Old Man, aged 95 *Old Woman, a ...

''. Later she performed on

NRK NRK, an abbreviation of the Norwegian ''Norsk Rikskringkasting AS'', generally expressed in English as the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, is the Norwegian government-owned radio and television public broadcasting company, and the largest ...

Radio Theater Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine t ...

and Television Theater. Nordby made her film debut in '' Trost i taklampa'' in 1954. On radio, she became known in the role of Effie in the popular radio play '' Dickie Dick Dickens''.

Family

Nordby was the daughter of the operator Otto A. Nordby (1899–1978) and Kirsten Nordby (née Aas, 1901–1968). She was first married to the Danish theater personality and writer Kaare Trolle Bing (1921–2016), and then to the Swedish film producer Eric Johnson (died 1991). She was the mother of the cultural historian Morten Bing.

Theater roles

* 1938: Little Mary in '' The Women'' (Norwegian title: ''Kvinner'') by

at the

* 1940: Scrap in ''

Dear Octopus ''Dear Octopus'' is a comedy by the playwright and novelist Dodie Smith. It opened at the Queen's Theatre, London on 14 September 1938. On the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939 the run was halted after 373 performances; after ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Guldbryllupet'') by

Dodie Smith Dorothy Gladys "Dodie" Smith (3 May 1896 – 24 November 1990) was an English novelist and playwright. She is best known for writing ''I Capture the Castle'' (1948) and the children's novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (1956). Other works ...

at the New Theater * 1944: Åse in ''Det spøker på Klosterodden'' by Nils-Reinhardt Christensen at the New Theater * 1944: The young girl in ''Blink går over alle grenser'' by Lars Levi Laestadius at the New Theater * 1944: Evelyn in ''Jeg kjenner deg ikke'' by

Aldo De Benedetti Aldo De Benedetti (13 August 1892 – 19 January 1970) was an Italian screenwriter. He wrote for more than 110 films between 1920 and 1958. He was born and died in Rome, Italy. Selected filmography * '' Marco Visconti'' (1925) * '' What S ...

at the New Theater * 1945: Nisse in ''Da kongen kom tilbak'' at the Studio Theater * 1945: A Russian patriot in ''Invasjon'' by

at the Studio Theater * 1946: Agnes in ''The Beautiful People '' (Norwegian title: ''Vakre mennesker'') by

William Saroyan William Saroyan (; August 31, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an Armenian-American novelist, playwright, and short story writer. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940, and in 1943 won the Academy Award for Best Story for the film ''T ...

at the Studio Theater * 1946: The daughter in ''

The Skin of Our Teeth ''The Skin of Our Teeth'' is a play by Thornton Wilder that won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It opened on October 15, 1942, at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut, before moving to the Plymouth Theatre on Broadway on November 18, ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Familien Antrobus'') by

Thornton Wilder Thornton Niven Wilder (April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975) was an American playwright and novelist. He won three Pulitzer Prizes — for the novel '' The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' and for the plays ''Our Town'' and '' The Skin of Our Teeth'' — ...

at the Studio Theater * 1947: Luciana in ''

The Comedy of Errors ''The Comedy of Errors'' is one of William Shakespeare's early plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farcical comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addition to puns and word play. ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Tvillingene'') by

at the Studio Theater * 1947: A whore in ''

The Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a " play with music" by Bertolt Brecht, adapted from a translation by Elisabeth Hauptmann of John Gay's 18th-century English ballad opera, '' The Beggar's Opera'', and four ballads by François Villon, with mu ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Tolvskillingsoperaen'') by Bertolt Brecht at the Studio Theater * 1948: Berthe in ''Hets'' by Ingmar Bergman at the Studio Theater * 1948: Juliette in '' Le Voyageur sans bagage'' (Norwegian title: ''Reisende uten bagasje'') by

Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an a ...

at the Studio Theater * 1948: Lise in ''Lise i Eventyrland'', an adaption of ''

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...

'' by

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are '' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequ ...

at the Studio Theater * 1949: Title role as ''Lille rislende kilde'' at the Studio Theater * 1950: Mrs. Tambov in ''Peter den lykkelige'' by

Georges Neveux Georges Neveux (1900–1982) was a French dramatist and poet. Neveux's first notable work was the play ''Juliette ou la clé des songes (Juliet or the key to dreams)'', written in 1927 and produced in 1930. It became the basis of Theodor Schae ...

at the Studio Theater * 1950: Rebecca Gibbs in ''

Our Town ''Our Town'' is a 1938 metatheatrical three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play tells the story of the fictional American small town of Grover's Corners between 1901 and 1913 thro ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Byen vår'') by Thornton Wilder at the Studio Theater * 1951: Pernette in ''Les Jours heureux'' (Norwegian title: ''De lykkelige dagene'') by Claude-André Puget at the New Theater * 1951: Yvette in ''Bobosse'' (Norwegian title: ''Bu bu'') by André Roussin at the New Theater * 1952: Ann Welch in '' The Deep Blue Sea'' (Norwegian title: ''Den dype blå sjøen'') by

Terence Rattigan Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan (10 June 191130 November 1977) was a British dramatist and screenwriter. He was one of England's most popular mid-20th-century dramatists. His plays are typically set in an upper-middle-class background.Geoffrey Wan ...

at the New Theater * 1952: Marian Almond in ''

The Heiress ''The Heiress'' is a 1949 American romantic drama film directed and produced by William Wyler, from a screenplay written by Ruth and Augustus Goetz, adapted from their 1947 stage play of the same title, which was itself adapted from Henry Jame ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Arvingen'') by

Ruth Ruth (or its variants) may refer to: Places France * Château de Ruthie, castle in the commune of Aussurucq in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France Switzerland * Ruth, a hamlet in Cologny United States * Ruth, Alabama * Ruth, Ar ...

and Augustus Goetz at the New Theater * 1953: Linda in '' Pal Joey'' at the New Theater * 1953: Ophelia in ''

'' by William Shakespeare at the New Theater * 1953: Willie in '' This Property Is Condemned'' (Norwegian title: ''Forbudt område'') by

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thr ...

at the New Theater * 1954: Klara in ''

'' (Norwegian title: ''Sommer i Tyrol'') by

and

at the New Theater (also on tour in 1956) * 1954: Netta the maid in ''Siste akt'' by Peter Egge at the New Theater * 1955: Brit in ''På fastende hjerte'' by

Alex Brinchmann Alexander Brinchmann (15 June 1888 – 18 April 1978) was a Norwegian pediatrician. He was also a songwriter, novelist, playwright and crime fiction writer. He chaired the Norwegian Pediatric Society from 1933 to 1934 and the Norwegian Autho ...

at the New Theater * 1955: Gerd in ''Babels tårn'' by Lars Helgesson at the New Theater * 1955: The princess in ''Trollskipet'' at the New Theater * 1956: Lucile in ''Le Fleuve de feu'' (Norwegian title: ''Landet uten vei'') by

François Mauriac François Charles Mauriac (, oc, Francés Carles Mauriac; 11 October 1885 – 1 September 1970) was a French novelist, dramatist, critic, poet, and journalist, a member of the'' Académie française'' (from 1933), and laureate of the Nobel Prize ...

at the New Theater * 1956: A young girl in ''Den spanske flue'' at the New Theater * 1957: The woman in ''

'' (Norwegian title: ''Stolene'') by Eugène Ionesco at the New Theater * 1957: Malla in ''

Miss Hook of Holland ''Miss Hook of Holland'' is an England, English musical theatre, musical comedy (styled a "Dutch Musical Incident") in two acts, with music and lyrics by Paul Rubens (composer), Paul Rubens with a book by Austen Hurgon and Rubens. The show was p ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Jomfru Hook'') by Austen Hurgon and Paul Rubens at the New Theater (tour) * 1958: The young girl in ''Dommeren'' by Moberg at the New Theater * 1958: Princess Louisa in ''

The Sleeping Prince (play) ''The Sleeping Prince: An Occasional Fairy Tale'' is a 1953 play by Terence Rattigan, conceived to coincide with the coronation of Elizabeth II in the same year. Set in London in 1911, it tells the story of Mary Morgan, a young actress, who me ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Den sovende prinsen'') by

at the New Theater * 1959: Sister Guduoe in ''

Mam'zelle Nitouche ''Mam'zelle Nitouche'' is a vaudeville-opérette in three acts by Hervé. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Albert Millaud. This story of a respectable musician, transforming himself into a songwriter at night, is partly inspired by the lif ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Nitouche'') by Albert Millaud and

Henri Meilhac Henri Meilhac (23 February 1830 – 6 July 1897) was a French dramatist and opera librettist, best known for his collaborations with Ludovic Halévy on Georges Bizet's ''Carmen'' and on the works of Jacques Offenbach, as well as Jules Massenet' ...

at the New Theater * 1960: Barbara in ''The Wrong Side of the Park'' (Norwegian title: ''På den andre siden'') by John Mortimer at the New Theater * 1960: Cloris in ''

Lock Up Your Daughters (musical) ''Lock Up Your Daughters'' is a musical based on the 1730 comedy '' Rape upon Rape'', by Henry Fielding, and adapted by Bernard Miles. The lyrics were written by Lionel Bart and the music by Laurie Johnson. It was first produced on the London st ...

'' (Norwegian title: ''Pass på døtrene'') by

Bernard Miles Bernard James Miles, Baron Miles, CBE (27 September 190714 June 1991) was an English character actor, writer and director. He opened the Mermaid Theatre in London in 1959, the first new theatre that opened in the City of London since the 17th ce ...

Lionel Bart Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was a British writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's " Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical ''Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his wor ...

, and Laurie Johnson at the New Theater * 1961: Klara in ''Sommer i Tyrol'' by Benatzky at the summer theater in Frogner Park * 1962: Bernadette in ''Oscar'' by Claude Magnier at the New Theater * 1962: Mirka in ''Kattene'' by Walentin Chorell at the New Theater * 1963: Miss Hall in ''Kamraterna'' (Norwegian title: ''Kameratene'') by

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

at the Oslo New Theater

Filmography

* 1955: '' Trost i taklampa'' as Ingebjørg * 1958: '' Bustenskjold'' as Signe, the widow's daughter * 1959: '' Støv på hjernen'' * 1961: '' Sønner av Norge'' as Mrs. Jørgensen * 1963: ''

Freske fraspark ''Freske fraspark'' (Fresh Push-Offs) is a Norwegian comedy film from 1963 directed by Bjørn Breigutu. The script was written by Kjell Aukrust and Breigutu. The story was previously arranged for stage for the Norwegian Theater in Oslo as the pl ...

'' * 1966: '' Hurra for Andersens'' * 1969: '' Psychedelica Blues'' as Mrs. Korsmo * 1975: '' Faneflukt'' as the mother * 1975: '' Skraphandlerne'' as Aunt Mette * 1976: '' Kjære Maren'' as a lady

Television

*1970: ''Selma Brøter'' (Television Theater) as another office lady *1974: ''Fleksnes'' in the episode "Beklager, teknisk feil" as the lady next door *1976: ''Fleksnes'' in the episode "Radioten" as the angry lady next door *1981: ''Fleksnes'' in the episode "Dobbeltgjengeren" as the witness *1981: ''Helmer & Sigurdson'' in the episode "Spøkelsesbussen" as a bus passenger *1981: ''Når eplene modnes'' (Television Theater) as a lady at the boarding house *1988: ''Fleksnes'' in the episode "Radioten '88" as the angry lady next door

References

External links

*
Randi Nordby
at Sceneweb
Randi Nordby
at Filmfront
Randi Nordby
at the

Swedish Film Database The Swedish Film Database ( sv, Svensk filmdatabas) is an Internet database about Swedish films, published by the Swedish Film Institute. It contains information about all Swedish films from 1897 onwards and foreign films that had cinema premiere ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nordby, Randi 1926 births 1991 deaths 20th-century Norwegian actresses Actresses from Oslo