Erik Bye
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Erik Erikssønn Bye (March 1, 1926 – October 13, 2004) was a versatile
Norwegian-American Norwegian Americans () are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the 20th century. There are more than 4.5 milli ...
journalist, artist, author, film actor, folk singer and radio and television personality. He was one of the 20th century's most well-known and popular radio and television figures in
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
. Born in
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, New York, to Rønnaug (née Dahl) and opera singer Erik Ole Bye, his family moved home to Norway when he was six years old. After a few years in Ringerike they settled in the Nordstrand
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...
in Oslo, where they took over a bed and breakfast. In his teens, Bye joined the Norwegian resistance movement during the
occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Following the war, he returned to the United States for his university education, studying English, journalism and drama at
Midland Lutheran College Midland University is a private Lutheran university in Fremont, Nebraska. It has an approximate enrollment of 1,600 students on campus. Known as Midland Lutheran College from 1962 to 2010, the college is affiliated with the Evangelical Luthe ...
,
Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...
and the
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in Madison. During his studies he also traveled extensively throughout the United States, taking odd jobs and gathering impressions. In 1953, Bye took his first job as a reporter with the
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and as a freelancer for the
Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company. The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...
(NRK). In 1955, he moved to London and worked three years at the BBC Overseas Service as an apprentice to Anthony Martin before returning home. Bye enjoyed immense popularity with generations of Norwegians, and his songs and programs on radio and television were magnets to audiences of all ages. He was noted for his gift of being equally comfortable with the King of Norway and a random character met on the street. His roaming reports from around the world ranged from searching America for an old Apache chief to bringing an African chieftain from Ghana who answered a message in a bottle released by NRK to Norway. Bye was well known for his support of Norwegian sailors. He also spent much time helping the Norwegian Society for Sea Rescue and their cause, raising funds for a brand new rescue ship in 1960, ''Skomvær II'', which was named after the
barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel with three or more mast (sailing), masts of which the fore mast, mainmast, and any additional masts are Square rig, rigged square, and only the aftmost mast (mizzen in three-maste ...
'' Skomvær'' in Bye's song "Skomværvalsen." The society also named one of their rescue vessels after the artist. In 1978 the King of Norway made him a Knight, 1st Class in the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav. In 2005 he was voted the third greatest Norwegian of the 20th century by the viewers of NRK, behind
King Olav V Olav V (, ; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was born at Sandringham House in England, the only child of Prince Carl of Denmark and Princess Maud of Wa ...
and Einar Gerhardsen. Bye was married to politician Tove Billington Jørgensen from 1953 until his death from cancer, which took place in Hvalstad,
Asker Asker (), also called Asker proper (''Askerbygda'' or ''gamle Asker'' in Norwegian), is a district and former Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus, Norway, located approximately 20km southwest of Oslo. From 2020 it is part of the ...
, Norway.


Filmography

* 1961: '' I faresonen'' * 1966: '' Reisen til havet'' as Hilmar


Discography

*Vi går ombord (1960) *Erik Bye Synger Skjæraasen (1966) *Jeg Vet en Vind (1972) *Gjensyn (1974) *Gammel Er Min Fjord (1974) *Blow Silver Wind (1976) *En Dobbel Deylighet (1978) with Birgitte Grimstad *Norske Folketoner (1978) *Vandring på Vår Herres Klinkekule (1985) *Langt Nord i Livet (1994) *En sang under skjorta- Et Visevalg Fra Skattkammeret (1995) *I dur og brott (2003) with Royal Norwegian Navy Band


References


External links


Erik Bye 1926–2004
– Summary obituary,
Aftenposten (; ; stylized as in the masthead) is Norway's largest printed newspaper by circulation as well as Norway's newspaper of record. It is based in Oslo. It sold 211,769 daily copies in 2015 (172,029 printed copies according to University of Bergen ...
, October 14, 2004
Erik Bye – sound and audio
– From the archive of the Norwegian Broadcasting System (NRK)
Profile of Bye at NRK
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bye, Erik 1926 births 2004 deaths University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Spellemannprisen winners Male actors from Brooklyn Norwegian expatriates in the United States Norwegian expatriates in England Associated Press reporters NRK people Deaths from cancer in Norway People from Asker Norwegian resistance members Norwegian Army personnel 20th-century Norwegian male singers 20th-century Norwegian singers Journalists from Brooklyn 20th-century Norwegian journalists