Casper Christensen(I)
- Writer
- Actor
- Producer
Casper was born in Birkerød, Denmark in 1968. In 1987, he bought a tape
Of American stand up comedian Steve Martin. Casper admired the Oscar-host
to-be greatly. As did his co-workers on _Casper & Mandrilaftalen (1999)_, Frank Hvam, Lasse Rimmer and
Lars Hjortshøj, Casper started out in stand-up comedy. His work in this
business led to a deal with Danish TV-network DR, and Casper started
doing a children's show called Hvaffor en hånd (1991). After doing a couple of shows
for the young Danish people, Casper hit the big time with quiz show
_"Husk lige tandbørsten" (1994)_, which he hosted, with help from Annette Toftgårdm whom he
later married. _"Husk lige tandbørsten" (1994)_ had made Casper the darling of Danish
television. A status which was jeopardized with Casper's follow-up:
Safari (1996), which he made with his friend Lars Hjortshøj. All though the show was
not a hit with the average Danish family, Casper wasn't any less
enthusiastic about his career. He hosted the Danish grammys, but again
the average Dane was outraged at Casper, as the public deemed certain
jokes from the show too rough.
Three years after breaking through with _"Husk lige tandbørsten" (1994)_, Casper teamed up with a few friends, and made Tæskeholdet (1997). Casper's sense of humor hadn't changed, but the Danish public was getting used to it, and the show, which aired both in the radio in the morning and on TV on late evenings was a major hit, and Casper was back on top. The show aired on DR, but the concept was bought by competing TV-station TV2. What came of this was Darios Joint (1998), which went down the same road as Safari (1996). At this point, Casper decided something that would mark a radical change in his career and a new start with a new attitude towards his status.
Casper thought everything over, and he decided that he would no longer care about how many viewers he had on his shows. He would base his work around what he personally wanted to do, and what he personally thought was funny. He opted for a new start, and the TV-network was DR2. A small station, which agreed to give Casper the freedom to do exactly what he wanted to do. Casper gathered a team of fellow stand-up comedians, some of which Casper had worked with before. The team that was eventually put together consisted of: Lars Hjortshøj, Casper's co-star from Safari (1996), Frank Hvam, who had written for different TV-shows, and had caught Casper's attention and Lasse Rimmer, a rather new name on Danish TV. The project ended up as Casper & Mandrilaftalen (1999). It received cult status, and was to be re-run several times, each time with a growing number of viewers tuning in. Then in 2001, Casper and Frank Hvam wrote and starred in the first real Danish sitcom, Langt fra Las Vegas (2001).
Three years after breaking through with _"Husk lige tandbørsten" (1994)_, Casper teamed up with a few friends, and made Tæskeholdet (1997). Casper's sense of humor hadn't changed, but the Danish public was getting used to it, and the show, which aired both in the radio in the morning and on TV on late evenings was a major hit, and Casper was back on top. The show aired on DR, but the concept was bought by competing TV-station TV2. What came of this was Darios Joint (1998), which went down the same road as Safari (1996). At this point, Casper decided something that would mark a radical change in his career and a new start with a new attitude towards his status.
Casper thought everything over, and he decided that he would no longer care about how many viewers he had on his shows. He would base his work around what he personally wanted to do, and what he personally thought was funny. He opted for a new start, and the TV-network was DR2. A small station, which agreed to give Casper the freedom to do exactly what he wanted to do. Casper gathered a team of fellow stand-up comedians, some of which Casper had worked with before. The team that was eventually put together consisted of: Lars Hjortshøj, Casper's co-star from Safari (1996), Frank Hvam, who had written for different TV-shows, and had caught Casper's attention and Lasse Rimmer, a rather new name on Danish TV. The project ended up as Casper & Mandrilaftalen (1999). It received cult status, and was to be re-run several times, each time with a growing number of viewers tuning in. Then in 2001, Casper and Frank Hvam wrote and starred in the first real Danish sitcom, Langt fra Las Vegas (2001).
