HUMOR IN COURT: Per Inge Torkelsen outside Stavanger District Court in 2017 in connection with Merete Hodne demanding compensation from Løgnaslaget who in a sketch had referred to her as a «Nazi hairdresser». Hodne lost the case.
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The humorist and author Per Inge Torkelsen has died at the age of 68. – Norway has lost its bravest comedian, says colleague and friend Rune Andersen.
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On behalf of the family, we announce the sad message that Per Inge Torkelsen died tonight, Tuesday 22 June, Gunnar Kvassheim and Per A, Thorbjørnsen, inform NTB.
According to Stavanger Aftenblad, Torkelsen died at Radiumhospitalet on Tuesday as a result of persistent serious complications after an operation this autumn.
He died with all his loved ones around him. He leaves behind a wife, four children, two grandchildren and a family in general.
SUCCESS GROUP: Per Inge Torkelsen and Rune Andersen during Løgnaslaget’s premiere at Agder Teater in Kristiansand in 2008. Photo: Nicolai Prebensen
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Rune Andersen was a close friend of Torkelsen, and is clearly marked when he talks to VG. The two were part of the revue group “Løgnaslaget” which Torkelsen helped start in the 80’s.
The two had contact until recently.
– Per Inge is someone who has meant an awful lot to me. We had a fantastic evening at his home in Stavanger this winter. It was he who grabbed me 26 years ago, and we have played six revues together since then. He was a very caring and warm colleague and friend, says Andersen.
– Norway has lost its bravest comedian
Andersen describes his friend as a fearless, controversial and groundbreaking comedian. One that he appreciated the reviews of, and that he wanted feedback from when it came to both humor and other things life could offer.
– Norway has lost its bravest comedian. Nobody is near Per Inge. He has broken taboos, and spoke both power and sports and elderly politics opposite. He was even beaten with an umbrella on the street after he wrote “The big, ugly elderly book”.
But Torkildsen did not write books or make sketches without an underlying meaning, according to the friend. Should Per Inge do something, it should be done so that the audience and readers would be left with an aha experience.
– It is difficult to comprehend that he is gone. My warmest thoughts go to Anne-Mette and the family, Andersen concludes.
Great commitment
In a interview with VG in 2019 told Torkelsen and his wife that after 39 years of marriage they were still just as in love.
Torkelsen was originally trained as a lecturer from the teacher training college in Stavanger, but had a versatile work as, among other things, public debater, lecturer, author and city council member for the Liberal Party in Stavanger for several periods.
He has worked as a postman, scrap dealer and illusionist, and he has been the Norwegian champion in magic.
Most famously, however, he was as a humorist and TV and stage personality. In the 80’s he became popular as a key member of the revue group Løgnaslaget.
The group was a result of student reviews at the Teacher Training College. Together with Steinar Lyse, Dag Schreiner and Bjørn Aslaksen, he and Løgnaslaget became enormously popular throughout the 80s. They have played revues for 40 years and have been one of the great successes in Humor-Norge.
Over the years, he has engaged and provoked with witty statements and books about smoking, sports, retirees and cancer. He published over 20 books, including “The Big Ugly Sports Book” which sarcastically addressed the negative aspects of sports.
Torkelsen was one of the founders of the great Norwegian Humor Festival. He also founded the Norwegian Children’s Museum in 2001, a result of his enormous interest in collections, history, upbringing and local history.
—-MAYOR IN MOURNING: Kari Nessa Nordtun (Labor Party) tells VG that Torkelsen has been a central part of Stavanger’s identity, and that the municipal council has received the message about his passing with great grief. Photo: Gabriel Aas Skålevik
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Mayor of Torkelsen: – The external face of the Stavanger dialect
The mayor of Stavanger, Kari Nessa Nordtun (Labor Party), tells VG that it is with great sadness that they have received the message of death today.
– We have lost a clown and a serious man who was an important part of Stavanger’s identity. For many in the rest of the country, he was also the face of the Stavanger dialect, says Nordtun on behalf of the entire municipal council.
She highlights Torkelsen’s efforts for the city over many years, both as a comedian and as a socially engaged participant in politics. Between 2007 and 2009, Torkelsen sat on the city council in Stavanger.
– I was just lucky enough to sit on the city council with him. He was a person who was not afraid to raise his voice and use humor to create commitment to his cause. As a comedian, he was someone who never kicked down, the mayor continues.
– Our thoughts now go to his wife, Anne Mette, the kids and the rest of the family.
Minister of Culture Abid Raja (V) is also among those who remember Torkelsen.
– It is a great loss for Norway that such a great personality passes away. There are not many of these, says Raja to NTB.
– I have met Per Inge on several occasions, and for a loving man he was. Loving, happy and downright genuine. I think we have all seen his humorous, joy-spreading and exuberant side, but I have also seen his extremely empathetic and present side, the one who sees other people around him, the Minister of Culture continues.
Raja says he also knew Torkelsen as a conversation partner, especially in the Liberal Party.
– Then it was no longer the magician, comedian or color patch, but the socially critical, empathetic person who was there with his wisdom.
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