NORDIC SPIRIT Newsletter - Scandinavian American Cultural and

SACHF/Scandinavian Center at CLU
NORDIC SPIRIT
Newsletter
Scandinavian American Cultural and Historical Foundation, Inc.
Autumn 2011 VOL. 21, No.3
Nearly 150 friends, relatives and
members of the Scandinavian American
Cultural & Historical Foundation
gathered Sept. 10 for a special event
honoring LeRoy Anderson of Orange
County as the SACHF Outstanding
Scandinavian American of 2011.
2012 NORDIC SPIRIT SYMPOSIUM:
SPOTLIGHT ON LIFE, RELIGION, ART
OF MEDIEVAL SCANDINAVIA
by HOWARD K. ROCKSTAD
Symposium Founder/Director
LeRoy
Anderson
OUTSTANDING
SCANDINAVIAN
AMERICAN
OF 2011
The large attendance can be attributed to
the many friends who know LeRoy and came
out for the event. Publicity was an important
factor as well, with hundreds of invitations going
out to targeted mailing lists including Swedish
groups, SACHF members, and several Conejo
Valley area residents with some Scandinavian
connection.
The SACHF 2011 Outstanding Scandinavian American award ceremony honoring Anderson featured a program of music from the Vasa
Choir, professional soloist Janelle Yates
(LeRoy's daughter from Tennessee), and the
Västkustens Spelmanslag fiddlers, guitar,
bass and LeRoy himself on the accordion.
(continued on p3)
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
T
he 2012 Nordic Spirit
Symposium will focus on
the Nordic countries in the
post-Viking era up to the eve
of the Reformation, and will
treat aspects of life, religion,
culture, politics and art during
this period of Scandinavian
history.
Tracey will speak on saints and
politics during the Kalmar Union,
which united all the Nordic kingdoms under the rule of a single
monarch from the end of the
14th century into the 1520s. The
former Ventura County resident
now resides in Colorado, and
holds a part-time appointment
One of the speakers will be
with the University of CopenhaTracey Sands, who was a treas- gen.
ured presenter at our 2003 NorShe believes an understanddic Spirit Symposium, The Northing of the cult of saints can shed
ern Front: Scandinavia in WWII.
light on late medieval Swedish
In accepting our invitation,
political thought, noting that
Tracey wrote, ―I‘m so pleased to
―many of us forget that the idea
see your topic for the symposiof a fundamental separation beum. So many interesting things
tween religion and other aspects
happened in the Nordic region
of life would have been utterly
after the Viking Age, and it will
foreign to medieval people.‖
be great to have a full symposium devoted to the Middle Ages.‖
(continued on p3)
Morgan Yates: “Autos, Archives and Art.” Auto Club archivist
on Swedish-American artist Carl Oscar Borg..
2:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 23
Roth Nelson Room
Ib Melchior: Writer, Producer, OSS Agent
2:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011
Roth Nelson Room
Irene Levin Berman: Norway and the Holocaust
7:00 p.m. Tuesday, Nov 15, 2011
Overton Hall
Scandinavian Lecture Series
see p 4-5
and more
The Nordic Spirit Newsletter
FROM SACHF PRESIDENT LARRY JOHNSON
Sunday, August 21, 2011, the National Day of Mourning for the July 22 tragedy.
Following the Oslo Cathedral service, SACHF president Larry Johnson presents
collected condolences to the Rev. Dr. Trond Bakkevig, Dean of Vestre Aker, a
group of eight Oslo city parishes. The SACHF messages will be added to the National Archive of Memorials. Below: A girl blows bubbles outside the Cathedral on
the National Day of Mourning.
photos by Larry Johnson
SACHF
Reaches
Out
to Norway
―Our hearts are with Norway‖ was
true for us all following the terrible
events of July 22. We were with
them in grief, sympathy, and hope
for healing. For four successive
Wednesdays, periods of silence,
candle lighting and the writing of
condolences took place at the Scandinavian Center.
These letters were then put together with condolences from people
at CLU and four local Lutheran
churches. Since my wife and I were
going to be in Oslo on Sunday, August 21, we brought the collection of
messages to the Oslo Cathedral.
That day was set as the National
Day of Mourning. Our messages
were added to the National Archive
established in Oslo for all the tributes
and condolences from around the
world.
I have written before in this newsletter about ―Hearty Scandinavians
Not Put Off by Obstacles.‖ We have
now witnessed another example of
that truth. HM King Harald said it
well: ―It is when our nation is put to
the test that the true strength, solidarity and courage of the Norwegian
people comes to the fore.‖ Prime
Minister Jens Stoltenberg put it this
way: ―We are going to answer hatred
with love. We will not be intimidated.
“
If one person can do so
much out of hate, how much
more can we do out of love…”
Norway is an
open, tolerant
and inclusive
society…our response to violence is
more democracy, more openness…‖
One of the youths who survived
the Utoya shootings gave a response to the tragedy that challenges us all: ―If one person can do so
much out of hate, how much more
can we do out of love…‖
The service at Oslo Cathedral
was mournful, somber and stolid in
format yet centered around the
theme that the ―greatest gift of all is
love‖ from which a hearty hope and
peace can again flourish. It was an
unexpected gift to be able to represent SACHF as we brought so many
heartfelt messages there. Thank you
to all who contributed to that effort.
NOTES FROM THE PRESIDENT
The Highest Goals selected by the
Board of Directors at its ―Vision for
the Future‖ retreat this summer:
A. Continue to promote successful
programs: Festival, Symposium,
Brown Bag programs, Lecture Series, Hall of Fame, Outstanding
Scandinavian American, etc.
B. Permanent Scandinavian Center
for the long-range future at CLU.
C. Funding Plan to develop major
donors for the Stave Church and
permanent Center.
D. Expand identity, outreach, communications, advertising, e-mail, social network, website, etc. ♦
The NORDIC SPIRIT NEWSLETTER
THE SCANDINAVIAN AMERICAN CULTURAL & HISTORICAL FOUNDATION, INC.
The Scandinavian Center at California Lutheran University
60 W. Olsen Road – 2600, Thousand Oaks, CA 91360
Richard Londgren, Scandinavian Center Director
President
Vice President
Secretary
CFO
Past President
Larry H.T. Johnson
Lana Lundin
Joy Brooks
Sandra Grunewald
Howard K. Rockstad
BOARD OF DIRECTORS: Lynn M. Anderson, Larry D. Ashim, Joy Brooks, C. Allan
Carlson, Siri Eliason, Sandra Grunewald, Einar Hovind, Larry H.T. Johnson, Anita
Hillesland Londgren, Lana Lundin, Robert Melsness, Niels Mikkelsen, Agneta Nilsson, Rueben Perttula, Howard K. Rockstad, Joann Scott, Patricia Sladek, Leonard S.
Smith, Fred Tonsing, Judith Vinje
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
EDITOR: Judith Gabriel Vinje, jgabriel.vinje@gmail. com
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The Nordic Spirit Newsletter
Outstanding Scandinavian American LeRoy Anderson
(continued from p1)
The Swedish Folk Dance Club
of Los Angeles brought their
skills, humor and joy to the
crowd gathered around. Then
during the third dance, sadness struck as Armond Deny,
long-time leader of the group,
collapsed with severe heart
trouble and was taken to Los
Robles Hospital. He is now
recovering at home
BEHIND THE SCENES
SACHF wishes to thank Siri
Eliason, Howard Rockstad,
Fred Tonsing and the OSA
Committee for planning the
event. Thanks also to Scandinavian Center directors Dick
and Anita Londgren and their
crew who helped put the reception together — including
Torsten Olsson, Jan Wennberg and friends cleaning up
the grounds and adding shading material to the patio roofs,
setting up refreshments, cleanup afterwards. ♦
Janelle Anderson Yates,
LeRoy's daughter, traveled
from Tennessee for the
event, and sang two solos in
the program
SACHF Board
members and
musicians lead the
parade from Holy
Trinity Church to the
Scandinavian
Center.
NORDIC SPIRIT SYMPOSIUM
FEB. 10 - 11, 2012 at CLU
Erik Lindberg. a good fishing
buddy of LeRoy's, gave "a
friend's tribute.” Erik is active
in the Swedish Club of Los
Angeles and is currently chair
of the North Star Lodge of
Vasa Order of America.
about medieval clothing, and about how something like setting in a sleeve and tailoring for a close fit can be associated
with a huge social revolution.‖
The above-described presenters are only a sampling of
those planned for the February 10-11, 2012 program on meWe are also pleased to include Stephen Mitchell,
dieval Scandinavia and, as in the past, the program will
Professor of Scandinavian and Folklore at Harvard Universi- include expert presenters from Europe. ♦
ty. Stephen regularly complements his teaching and
research on site at Harvard by teaching Harvard‘s Viking
studies summer program in Scandinavia. His research centers on popular traditions, mythology and legends in the late
LEADING VIKING AGE EXPERT RICHARD HALL DIES
medieval and early modern periods. Recently his research
resulted in a book-length study of witchcraft and magic
We were saddened to learn of the death of world
throughout medieval Scandinavia.
renown archaeologist and former Nordic Spirit Symposium
speaker, Dr. Richard Hall, one of the world‟s leading exFor variety, the program will include an illustrated presenta- perts on the Viking Age, who died in September at the age
of 62. He was best known for his pivotal role in the internation by a clothing historian, Michelle Nordtorp-Madsen of
tionally significant Coppergate Viking Dig in York, where he
the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. Tracey Sands
was Director of Archaeology and Deputy Director of the
wrote of her, ―Shelly can tell you a lot of amazing things
York Archaeology Trust. ♦
(continued from p1)
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
3
The Nordic Spirit Newsletter
scandinavian lecture series at CLU
Covering the West
Ib Melchior: Writer, Producer, OSS Agent
Morgan Yates on paintings
Swedish American artist created
for Westways Magazine
Sunday, Nov. 13, 2:30 p.m. Roth Nelson Room
Sunday, Oct. 23, 2:30 p.m. Roth Nelson Room
Artists whose works adorned the cover of the
magazine of the Automobile Club of Southern
California for more than 50 years will be the subject of the first event in the 2011-2012 Scandinavian Lecture Series at California Lutheran University.
Morgan Yates, corporate archivist for the
Auto Club, will present ―Autos, Archives and Art‖
at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 23, in the Roth Nelson
Room.
Yates, a regular contributor to Westways, will
talk about Swedish-American artist Carl Oscar
Borg and others who provided cover art for the
Auto Club‘s monthly member magazine. The
cover art program began in 1928 when editor
Phil Townsend Hanna ditched the original plain
covers featuring the Auto Club logo in favor of
original fine art as part of his plan to expand the
magazine‘s focus to include travel, the arts and
regional culture.
Hanna began presenting works from artists
widely recognized for their California painting. To
begin, he commissioned a series of 12 landscapes including ―Grand Canyon‖ by Borg. Born
in Sweden in 1879, Borg spent time living with
Native Americans and is best known for his
paintings of Hopi and Navajo Indians, cowboys
and California and Grand Canyon landscapes.
He taught at the California Art Institute in Los
Angeles and the School of Arts in Santa Barbara.
Borg died in Santa Barbara in 1947.
The Westways cover program was scaled
back in the 1930s and 1940s, revived in the
1950s and ended in 1981, when photography
fully displaced other visual arts on the magazine
covers. Today, the corporate archives house
more than 250 paintings, collages and assemblages representing the diverse and vibrant art
scene of early- and mid-20th century Southern
California.
The Roth Nelson Room is located on
Mountclef Boulevard near Memorial Parkway on
the Thousand Oaks campus. Following the
presentation, a reception will be held at the
Scandinavian Center at 26 Faculty Road, where
a collection of Borg‘s magazine covers is on display. This lecture is sponsored by the CLU Art
Department and the Scandinavian American Cultural and Historical Foundation, SACHF. ♦
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
Decorated World War II hero and prolific author Ib Melchior, a
native of Copenhagen, Denmark, and still an active writer at 94,
will discuss his exciting career as part of the Scandinavian Lecture
Series at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 13, in the Roth Nelson Room at
CLU.
The dangers he encountered as a counterintelligence agent
for the US Office of Strategic Services behind enemy lines provided material for gripping espionage stories that later evolved into
novels and films that moved beyond the war into sagas of outer
space.
Son of the noted opera singer Lauritz Melchior, he has carved
his own legend. In 1995, he was honored by the American Scandinavian Foundation in Thousand Oaks with its Outstanding Scandinavian American Award.
In 1965, he was dubbed Knight Commander of the Militant
Order of Saint Brigitte of Sweden. In 1976, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films awarded Ib Melchior its
Golden Scroll Award of Merit for Outstanding Achievement.
Born Ib Jørgen Melchior on Sept. 17, 1917, he has been a novelist, short story writer, film producer, film director, and screenwriter of low-budget American science fiction movies, most of them
released by American International Pictures.
His novels include Code Name: Grand Guignol, Eva, The
Haigerloch Project, The Marcus Device, Order of Battle: Hitler's
Werewolves, Sleeper Agent, The Tombstone Cipher and The
Watchdogs of Abaddon.
His non-fiction includes the books Quest: Searching for Germany's Nazi Past (with co-author Frank Brandenburg) and Lauritz
Melchior: The Golden Years of Bayreuth, the latter a biography of
his father, the opera singer and movie star Lauritz Melchior. With
his wife, L.A. architect Cleo Baldon, Ib Melchior wrote the nonfiction books Reflections on the Pool: California Designs for Swimming and Steps & Stairways.
Melchior also wrote Hour of Vengeance, a play based on the
Viking story of Amled that also had inspired William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. In 1982, it was awarded the Hamlet Award
for best playwriting by the Shakespeare Society of America. As a
filmmaker, Melchior wrote and directed The Angry Red Planet
(1959) and The Time Travelers (1964). He was co-screenwriter of
Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964). English language script for
Planet of the Vampires (1965). For television, he wrote "The
Premonition" episode for the second season of the original The
Outer Limits series.
Melchior's short story The Racer was adapted as Paul Bartel's
cult film favorite, Death Race 2000 (1975), starring David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone. ♦
Admission is free. Sponsored by the Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation and the CLU History Department. For
more information, contact Anita Londgren at (805) 241-1051 or
call the Scandinavian Center at (805) 241-0391.
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The Nordic Spirit Newsletter
PAUL SELLIN’S ADVENTURES
WITH SIR WALTER RALEIGH
P
ut aside everything you
thought you knew about Sir
Walter Raleigh! There was
a mysterious ―Swedish connection,‖
and former SACHF board member
Paul Sellin writes about it in his newly
released book, Treason and the Tower: the Murder of Sir Walter Raleigh,
published by Ashgate.
Based on years of adventure and
research, the book is receiving acclaim among scholars and history adventure buffs as well. Sellin will speak
about the adventures that went into
researching and chasing the trail of
history when he is the featured speaker Wednesday, Nov. 2 at the Scandinavian Center Brown-Bag program.
How Sellin came to write the
book is in itself a thriller! He had come
upon some previously neglected
Dutch correspondence found in a
Swedish archive and followed a complex trail... a paper trail through Jacobean history to trekking through modern day Venezuela.
As a result, Sellin located Raleigh‘s gold mine on Cerro Redondo.
The UCLA professor emeritus sheds
light on how the Duke of Buckingham
maneuvered to send Raleigh to the
block in 1618 on trumped up charges,
leaving the Duke free to grab the very
mine he claimed Raleigh had invented. Sellin‘s book is being heralded for
unmasking the whole plot, with scholarly depth and personal adventure. ♦
For more information, contact Anita
Londgren at 805-241-1051
or call the Scandinavian Center
at 805-241-0391. ♦
scandinavian lecture series
gan rounding-up all Oslo Jewish
women and children for mandatory
passage on a ship to Auschwitz.
The book was originally published in Norway in 2008 to very
good reviews. The English version
of the book was launched at the
Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies at the University of HartIrene Levin Berman:
ford on April 1, 2010. Berman noted
that ―In personally translating the
Norwegian text into English, I
adapted the content somewhat for
English readers. In the process I
found myself adding some additional
Tue, Nov 15 at 7:00 p.m.
information which I have acquired
since the Norwegian publication.‖
Overton Hall
Recently, the book received an
„...Going to Pick Potatoes‟ endorsement from Nobel Laureate,
activist and probably the most renowned Holocaust survivor in the
Because of its small Jewish
world, Elie Wiesel, who stated the
population, Norway has been largely following: ―This untold story about
overlooked in histories of the Holowhat happened to Norwegian Jews
caust. However, stories such as Ire- during the Holocaust deserves to be
ne Levin Berman's have surfaced in told – and now it is.‖
recent years.
In further notes of praise, Nik
Sten of the Norwegian Club of San
She and her family escaped to
neutral Sweden where they lived for Francisco, in an Internet posting,
three years. Encouraged by Arnfinn noted ―What a tremendous blessing
to read this extraordinary book. ConMoland, director of Norway's Retemplating such a stomach-turning
sistance Museum, Berman researched and wrote her 2010 book, subject matter alongside the endearWe are Going to Pick Potatoes: Nor- ing intimate family details is not
easy, but the opportunity to learn a
way and the Holocaust, the Untold
little about this remarkable family is
Story, which illuminates a hidden
a blessing to cherish. It is unimagichapter in Norway's history.
nable to me the incredible courage,
Norwegian-born author Irene
Berman recalls her first memory as commitment, wisdom, and fortitude
a four-year old of being swept out of Ms. Berman had to muster to start
and complete this work, and to renOslo to travel overnight to Sweden
der its content so thoughtfully and
to escape the Holocaust. She
effectively.‖ ♦
arrived in Sweden only several
hours before Norwegian police be-
Norway and the
Holocaust
ALSO AT CLU — DIRECT FROM NORWAY
Nils Marius Kjøsnes, clarinet and Knut Erik Jensen, piano Tue, Nov 8, 2011 at 7:30 p.m. Overton Hall
Nils Marius Kjøsnes has been involved in concert bands since he picked up the clarinet at the age of 8. In 2009, he played the
Premiere Rhapsody by Debussy with the Student Society Orchestra of Trondheim and has been a member of the Norwegian Royal
Air Force Band. Since 2010, he has founded iQuintet, a woodwind quintet that plays a broad repertoire of chamber music, and has
performed at MIT in Boston and the Symphony Space in New York City. He is working on his master‘s degree in American and European clarinet music from the 20th century. This tour is the first of three major graduate projects.
Knut Erik Jensen has performed more than 80 solo concerts in 18 states featuring Norwegian and international music since
2007. He was guest soloist in Edvard Grieg‘s A-minor Concerto for the 2007-2008 season opening of the Minot Symphony Orchestra
in North Dakota and performed the same concerto with the National Philharmonic Orchestra of the Republic of Moldova in May 2009.
He has recorded two CDs of Norwegian piano music. Donations accepted. ♦
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
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The Nordic Spirit Newsletter
ANITA’S CORNER
Happenings Around the Scandinavian Center
by ANITA LONDGREN, Program Director
After July 22‘s tragic killings in Norway, Larry Johnson led a
weekly ―Moment of Silence and Candle Ceremony‖ for the four
weeks remaining until he and his wife went to Oslo. Pages of condolence comments from the Scandinavian Center and churches in
this area were delivered to the Oslo Cathedral on the one-month
anniversary during an official day of mourning. Of special note is
the young woman from Oslo, Norway, a CLU grad, who called
seeking a ―community‖ where she could share her sorrow and be
comforted. Dr. Johanna Halls came from Santa Clarita on Aug. 3,
joined by her husband, to participate in the Memorial Time that
day. Noomi Wennberg prepared and brought Norwegian waffles
and raspberry jam for Johanna – and the rest of us that day
INTERNET SITE FOR SCANDINAVIANS
An Internet news-and-announcements option for Scandinavians in
Southern California was launched in September by Kristin Londgren, our daughter, to help promote Scandinavian American activities and to inform about people, books, movies, whatever, that
both young people and not-so-young Scandinavian Americans
might like to know about. It will be a good resource for the Scandinavian Center (as well as SACHF) to get information out quickly
and/or to promote our various activities
SCANDINAVIAN CENTER ADDITION
Jan Wennberg and Torsten Olsson
installing plastic panels over part of the
Scandinavian Center patio.
SACHF ANNUAL MEETING
SATURDAY JANUARY 7, 2012
POTLUCK LUNCH 1 p.m.
Check it out at:
http://www.facebook.com/ScandinavianCentral. The e-mail
address is ScandCent@gmail.com and you can use that to send
information and announcements to her.
followed by business meeting
at THE SCANCINAVIAN CENTER
PASSING OF ELAINE OLMON
With a sad heart, we report the news of the death of Elaine
Olmon. She, along with her husband Luther, had been a member
and good friend of the Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical
Foundation. We regret the loss to our community, and we want to
express our sympathy to Luther and others in the Olmon family.
Elaine had participated regularly in our Brown-Bag Lunches and
she had helped with preparations for the annual Scandinavian
Festival. She had also been closely associated with California Lutheran University, where Luther was a member of the first Board of
Regents and a leader of the Habitat for Humanity program at CLU.
A memorial service for Elaine was held at New Hope Lutheran
Church (formerly Westlake Lutheran), Oct. 8. ♦
SCANDINAVIAN YULE AT
STAGECOACH INN MUSEUM
The Scandinavian Center will
have a festive
presence in a
Christmas project at the Stagecoach
Inn Museum in Newbury Park, with
the SCANDINAVIAN CENTER
is located at 26 Faculty Road
Lana Lundin acting as chief nissar collector to present all the magic and color of traditional Scandinavian Yule.
The SACHF exhibit will be set in a
room with a fireplace. Lana, who is
SACHF vice-president, will populate
the space with tomtar, nissar, gnomes,
elves…‖whatever you want to call
those cute little ‗guys‘ all Scandinavians bring out at Christmas.‖
She‘d like to have at least one
Christmas character from each of the
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
6
For information call 805-241-1051
Visit us online
at www.ScandinavianCenter.org
or e-mail us at
ScanCenter@callutheran.edu
Nordic countries. And she‘s putting out
the call. ―If you have one of those magical creatures you could spare for this
Christmas season, it would be great!‖
And she promises they will all be returned. Lana herself will be there when
the exhibit opens Dec. 4. The museum,
which is a project of the Conejo Valley
Historical Society, is located at 51 S.
Ventu Park Rd., Newbury Park, just
off the 101. ♦
The Nordic Spirit Newsletter
stave church portal fund
pledge match dollar for dollar
NOW’S THE
TIME TO GIVE!
The Stave Church Portal
nears completion. According
to Larry Johnson, SACHF
president, ―This grand addition to the Scandinavian Center exemplifies the hope of
finally constructing a full replica of a stave church on the
CLU campus.‖
Donations
made now
to the
Portal Fund
will be
matched
dollar for dollar
by pledges
already
received.
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
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The Nordic Spirit Newsletter
Ja, sure, these are hard times !
Your immigrant forebears knew hard times
well before they left their beloved homeland,
and again in the decades of struggle to establish a new life in the New World. They gave it
their all; they passed it forward . . .
This is no time to let their story fade away,
perhaps never to be reclaimed, never to be
shared by the generations to come. Our folk
made do with very little, yet they made significant, lasting contributions to this country.
Through a lot of hard times . . .
THAT’S WHAT SACHF IS ALL ABOUT:
PRESERVING, CELEBRATING, DISCOVERING, SHARING
JOIN UP OR RENEW
SACHF MEMBERSHIP
NAME(s)_________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
ADDRESS _______________________________________________________________________________________
CITY____________________________________________________________________________________________
E-MAIL ___________________________________________________PHONE ________________________________
CIRCLE HERITAGE
Household (family)
D
$50
I
F
N
S
Other
Individual member
Nordic Golden Circle Life $1,000
Patron
$35
Fulltime student $20
$500
Sponsor/organization
Corporate Member $250
$75
Other
Please make checks payable to SACHF or the Scandinavian American Cultural and Historical Society. Mail to
The Scandinavian Center at California Lutheran University, 60 W. Olsen Road — 2600, Thousand Oaks, CA 91360
Scandinavian American Cultural & Historical Foundation
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The Nordic Spirit Newsletter