Carl Alstrup (1877-1942) was a Danish actor, director, screenwriter, theatre director, and singer. During the silent era, he was a popular comic film actor at Nordisk. He appeared in 22 films between 1908 and 1942.
![Carl Alstrup]()
Austrian postcard by Projektograph, Vienna, ca. 1914. Design by Theo Matejko. Based on a photo by Nordisk Films Compagni.
![Carl Alstrup]()
German postcard by Photochemie, no. K. 1784. Photo: Nordisk Film.
Carl Marius Alstrup was born in 1877 in the Copenhagen district of Sundbyvester, then part of Tårnby, Denmark.
Alstrup made his debut in 1896 as a member of a Danish theater company during a guest appearance in Oslo. From 1896 to 1904, he was a traveling theatre actor all over Denmark.
From 1904 to 1911, he was employed at Frederiksberg Teater and from 1911 to 1913 at Centralteatret, at Scala-Teatret from 1913 to 1922 and from 1923 to 1928, and from 1922 to 1923 at Betty Nansen Teatret. From 1928 he was also director of the Sønderbro Teater.
As a singer, Alstrup also received more attention in his time. His famous songs included: 'Jeg kysser Deres hånd, Madame' (I kiss your hand, Madame) and 'Bobby, du må have ondt i håret' (Bobby, you must have hair pain). The song 'Manden på Risten' (The man on the Risten) from 1936 was best known at that time.
Carl Alstrup also became known through his numerous engagements in many silent films and performances in a whole series of revues, with songs and skits, which were highly regarded at the time.
![Carl Alstrup in Alle veje fører til - (1922)]()
Danish promotional mini-postcard for the Scala-Theater, Copenhagen. Danish film and stage comedian Carl Alstrup in the Scala stage revue 'Alle veje fører til -' (All Roads Lead to ... , 1922).
![Carl Alstrup and Robert Schmidt in the play De gaeve Riddere]()
Danish postcard by Stenders Verlag, Eneberettiget, no. 20001. Carl Alstrup, Robert Schmidt, and Krause in the play De gaeve Riddere (The Cool Knight). In 1915 Alstrup would play the lead in the film Den gaeve Riddere by Alfred Cohn, possibly an adaptation of this play.
In 1907 Carl Astrup started to work for the Nordisk company and debuted on the screen in Kameliadame by Viggo Larsen, the first film adaptation of Alexandre Dumas fils' famous play 'La dame aux camélias'. In 1908-1909 he would act in many shorts by Larsen for Nordisk.
In 1909 Alstrup moved to Biorama, where he directed his own films, but already in 1910, he was back at Nordisk. There he acted in countless films by Eduard Schnedler-Sørensen such as the comedy Badets Dronning/The Queen of the Season (Eduard Schnedler-Sørensen, 1912), with Else Frölich, and some by August Blom, Robert Dinesen, and others.
From 1915 it was mainly Lau Lauritzen who directed him in many farces with Alstrup in the lead. In 1916-1917 he made a few films at Dania Biofilm but his mainstay was at Nordisk, with Lauritzen.
In 1922-1925 Alstrup again directed three films himself. Alstrup experimented with color film productions long before they hit the market, but his inventions were not patented at the time. By the mid-1920s his very active film career halted.
Alstrup was later involved in the production of some sound films, such as Den kloge mand/The Wise Man (Arne Weel, 1937), Vagabonden/Vagabonds (Arne Weel, 1940), En forbryder/A criminal (Arne Weel, 1941), and Peter Andersen (Svend Methling, 1941). As a film actor, director and screenwriter, he was also involved in many other Danish film productions. All in all, Alstrup acted in over 100 films.
Morten Piil wrote about Carl Alstrup in his book 'Danske filmskuespillere' (2003) on Danish film actors, that while many Danish stage actors who stepped over to film failed, "Carl Alstrup's toned-down, intimate style, on the other hand, still feels modern - and often he is simply excellent. At the theatre, he was highly loved and respected, both as a revue artist and aspiring character actor.
But extensive silent film work had early on made him familiar with the film medium, and it benefited him when Danish film in the late autumn of his career gave him a small handful of good character roles. With his penchant for quirky and steep personalities, he is the equivalent (in all modesty) of Danish film to an Emil Jannings or a Michel Simon."
Carl Alstrup died in 1942 in Snekkersten, Helsingør Kommune in Denmark. He was 65. Alstrup was married to Ruth Rubin and Sophie Wiegand-Hansen.
![Carl Alstrup,]()
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1785. Photo: Nordisk Films Compagni.
![Carl Alstrup]()
German postcard by Photochemie, no. K. 1786. Photo: Nordisk Film.
![Carl Alstrup]()
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin, no. 7476.
Sources: DFI, Wikipedia (English, German, Danish and Italian), and IMDb.
Austrian postcard by Projektograph, Vienna, ca. 1914. Design by Theo Matejko. Based on a photo by Nordisk Films Compagni.
German postcard by Photochemie, no. K. 1784. Photo: Nordisk Film.
A traveling theatre actor all over Denmark
Carl Marius Alstrup was born in 1877 in the Copenhagen district of Sundbyvester, then part of Tårnby, Denmark.
Alstrup made his debut in 1896 as a member of a Danish theater company during a guest appearance in Oslo. From 1896 to 1904, he was a traveling theatre actor all over Denmark.
From 1904 to 1911, he was employed at Frederiksberg Teater and from 1911 to 1913 at Centralteatret, at Scala-Teatret from 1913 to 1922 and from 1923 to 1928, and from 1922 to 1923 at Betty Nansen Teatret. From 1928 he was also director of the Sønderbro Teater.
As a singer, Alstrup also received more attention in his time. His famous songs included: 'Jeg kysser Deres hånd, Madame' (I kiss your hand, Madame) and 'Bobby, du må have ondt i håret' (Bobby, you must have hair pain). The song 'Manden på Risten' (The man on the Risten) from 1936 was best known at that time.
Carl Alstrup also became known through his numerous engagements in many silent films and performances in a whole series of revues, with songs and skits, which were highly regarded at the time.
Danish promotional mini-postcard for the Scala-Theater, Copenhagen. Danish film and stage comedian Carl Alstrup in the Scala stage revue 'Alle veje fører til -' (All Roads Lead to ... , 1922).
Danish postcard by Stenders Verlag, Eneberettiget, no. 20001. Carl Alstrup, Robert Schmidt, and Krause in the play De gaeve Riddere (The Cool Knight). In 1915 Alstrup would play the lead in the film Den gaeve Riddere by Alfred Cohn, possibly an adaptation of this play.
A toned-down, intimate style
In 1907 Carl Astrup started to work for the Nordisk company and debuted on the screen in Kameliadame by Viggo Larsen, the first film adaptation of Alexandre Dumas fils' famous play 'La dame aux camélias'. In 1908-1909 he would act in many shorts by Larsen for Nordisk.
In 1909 Alstrup moved to Biorama, where he directed his own films, but already in 1910, he was back at Nordisk. There he acted in countless films by Eduard Schnedler-Sørensen such as the comedy Badets Dronning/The Queen of the Season (Eduard Schnedler-Sørensen, 1912), with Else Frölich, and some by August Blom, Robert Dinesen, and others.
From 1915 it was mainly Lau Lauritzen who directed him in many farces with Alstrup in the lead. In 1916-1917 he made a few films at Dania Biofilm but his mainstay was at Nordisk, with Lauritzen.
In 1922-1925 Alstrup again directed three films himself. Alstrup experimented with color film productions long before they hit the market, but his inventions were not patented at the time. By the mid-1920s his very active film career halted.
Alstrup was later involved in the production of some sound films, such as Den kloge mand/The Wise Man (Arne Weel, 1937), Vagabonden/Vagabonds (Arne Weel, 1940), En forbryder/A criminal (Arne Weel, 1941), and Peter Andersen (Svend Methling, 1941). As a film actor, director and screenwriter, he was also involved in many other Danish film productions. All in all, Alstrup acted in over 100 films.
Morten Piil wrote about Carl Alstrup in his book 'Danske filmskuespillere' (2003) on Danish film actors, that while many Danish stage actors who stepped over to film failed, "Carl Alstrup's toned-down, intimate style, on the other hand, still feels modern - and often he is simply excellent. At the theatre, he was highly loved and respected, both as a revue artist and aspiring character actor.
But extensive silent film work had early on made him familiar with the film medium, and it benefited him when Danish film in the late autumn of his career gave him a small handful of good character roles. With his penchant for quirky and steep personalities, he is the equivalent (in all modesty) of Danish film to an Emil Jannings or a Michel Simon."
Carl Alstrup died in 1942 in Snekkersten, Helsingør Kommune in Denmark. He was 65. Alstrup was married to Ruth Rubin and Sophie Wiegand-Hansen.
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1785. Photo: Nordisk Films Compagni.
German postcard by Photochemie, no. K. 1786. Photo: Nordisk Film.
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin, no. 7476.
Sources: DFI, Wikipedia (English, German, Danish and Italian), and IMDb.