Thorbjørn Egner’s cinema-current universe from 1955 is to be based on specific places and people from the author’s upbringing and travels. But the story of the people and the robbers in this small town has several logical flaws. We brought together “Kardemomme by” director Rasmus Sivertsen and Thorbjørn Egner biographer Anders Heger for a very unofficial fact check. Untrained Meteorologist – A man with a long beard with no stated meteorology training claims to be able to report the weather in a very local area using only binoculars. This can’t possibly be based on reality? – Well, partly. There is actually a travel letter from Fez in Morocco in which Egner describes an exclamation from a minaret, i.e. the tower-shaped structure on Islamic mosques. It was probably this exclamation that inspired Tobias and the way he reports the weather from his tower, says Heger. The parrot from America does not help Tobias with reporting the weather. He does get some moral support from a boy called Remo who did not allow himself to be pictured here. Photo: Qvisten Animation/Nordisk Film Distribution – In Morocco, the weather is quite stable, so it can be thought that Tobias’s weather predictions are relatively stable, he laughs. Slow tram – It takes noticeably longer to take the tram than to walk between the tram stops in Kardemomme by, because the tram runs very slowly around the whole city – and the tram driver is mostly busy singing and serving cookies to the passengers. Did Oslo Sporveier have equally inefficient transport in Egner’s time? – There was a tram at Kampen in Oslo until 1960 – when Egner grew up there. That’s probably the main inspiration. – That tram also moved forward slowly and it is very similar to the tram in Kardemomme by, adds Heger. For 60 years, trams went up to Kampen. Here is a 1906 edition of the local means of transport. Photo: Panhoff – But the tram was probably not free and he most likely did not serve cakes, says Sivertsen about the real-life tram driver Syvertsen. According to Google Maps, it takes around one minute to walk from tram stop to tram stop in Kardemomme by. Photo: Google Maps Not suitable as a pet – The three robbers have chosen to keep a lion as a pet despite the fact that it has eaten the toe of one of them. Was animal protection just as absent during Egner’s upbringing? – Huh. I do not know. But the lion is probably inspired by Egner’s cat called “Hassan” – which he had later in life. The cat was also, like the lion, very fond of light milk chocolate, smiles Heger. Liberal dictatorship – “You must not bother others, you must be decent and kind, and otherwise you can do whatever you want” is the only rule in Cardamom town. Was Egner’s childhood so liberal and lawless? – Yes, his childhood was probably quite liberal. He almost grew up as an only child, since his siblings are so much older. However, I believe that the Cardamom Act is not so liberal. One of Norway’s most famous laws. Photo: Qvisten Animation/Nordisk Film Distribution – The fact that a law should decide that we should be decent and kind is almost dictatorial, Heger believes. From villain to circus director – The three robbers are exposed to a radical form of correctional care, as Kasper can serve his sentence as a fireman, Jonatan as a baker and Jesper as a circus director. What does Egner mean by this? – Egner is here ahead of his time. This view that criminals should not be punished, but taught to adapt to society, became common criminal policy in Norway a few years after Kardemomme by, says Heger and adds: – It is a kind of beautiful belief that we are all useful citizens – deep down. Spoiler alert! Kasper falls in love with Aunt Sofie. Photo: Qvisten Animation/Nordisk Film Distribusjo Emergency dinner – According to the Cardamom song, the whole town eats dinner at two o’clock in the day. Did people eat so early and so simultaneously in the old days? – It was probably more common to have dinner early in Egner’s time. The fact that it was two o’clock and not four o’clock is probably a result of something having to rhyme with “shoes” in the song: “The baker’n bakes cakes and the shoemaker’n makes shoes. And everyone eats dinner at two.” (Think how late they would have had dinner if the “shoemaker skied”? journ.anm.) Sofie is first and foremost strict, secondly aunt. Photo: Qvisten Animation/Nordisk Film Distribution Lazy man, naughty lady – On paper, the town is ruled by a rather lazy and easy-going police chief, but in practice it is ruled by a naughty aunt with a very strict appearance. Is this strange principle of power distribution taken from Egner’s reality? – Police chief Bastian is probably a kind of self-portrait of Egner himself – who was also somewhat shy of conflict, but who still wanted to have it his way, says Heger. They are so smart on their toes. Photo: Qvisten Animation/ Nordisk Film Distribution – Wasn’t it also a policeman who walked the streets of Kampen that most likely inspired the Bastian figure?, asks Sivertsen. – That is right. He was loved by the children, but put thugs in jail, replies Heger, who says that Tante Sofie has no concrete root in reality. Small town, big resources – Just at the very end: What do you think about the town of Kardemomme having its own fire station with a need for a new fire chief, despite the fact that the town has only experienced one notable fire situation (in Tobias’s tower)? – Well, that such a small and well-regulated city can afford this is special. After all, they also have their own circus for so few residents, concludes Heger. NOTE: In this Aftenposten article, it is written that Kampen church can also be a source of inspiration for Tobias’s tower.
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This is “true” and “false” in Kardemomme by – news Culture and entertainment
