The famous Swedish actor Björn Andresen gained fame at the age of sixteen after filming the scandalous film “Death in Venice”, but the sudden popularity played a cruel joke with the young guy. The difficult role left an indelible mark on his psyche, he was never able to realize his potential as a serious drama artist and remained in his memory only as “the most beautiful boy of the 20th century”.
Young actor
Biography of Björn Andresen is striking in its richness and dramatic events in the fate of a young native of Stockholm. He was born in the capital of Sweden in 1955. At the age of ten, he lost his mother, who committed suicide. This test was not the last for him - three years later he found out that his father was not his family.
Nevertheless, Andresen continued to live, talked with peers, was fond of music. The idols of Björn, like his millions of peers around the world, were Liverpool musicians from the Beatles group, he dreamed of acquiring an electric guitar and organizing his own ensemble.
Bright, non-standard appearance of the teenager helped him to debut on the big screen at an early age. The first of Björn Andresen’s films was the Swedish film Swedish Love Story, where he played the role of Pera's friend.
"Death in Venice"
One of the most controversial works of Thomas Mans is considered the story "Death in Venice." Italian director Lukino Visconti decided to film his novel.
More than a thousand candidates were tried for the role of Tajio, but after the appearance of Bjorn Andresen on the samples, all the doubts of the director were dispelled. For the role of a young man with a spiritual expression and an angelic appearance, he saw only a Swedish teenager.
The role of Ashenbach was given to Dick Borgard, who became Bjorn's senior partner on the set. The Swede himself later gratefully recalls the experience of working with a reputable actor who helped a beginner to master in unfamiliar conditions. In turn, Borgard remembered the Swede as a guy who dreamed of an electric guitar and was an active fan of the Beatles.
The film about the complex feeling of a fifty-year-old man towards a teenager has become one of the main cultural events of the year. "Death in Venice" was showered with awards and was included in various lists of the best films.
Test of glory
The role of Tajio in the film Luchino Visconti was a serious test for the fragile psyche of the Stockholm youth. Björn Andresen recalls with bitterness how, after the premiere of the film, he was taken to a bar, whose visitors were people of non-traditional orientation, which was a great shock for him.
He then has to wash off the stigma of the first role for a long time. He met with women, became the father of several children. Nevertheless, the title of “the most beautiful boy” was entrenched for a long time to Bjorn Andresen. In 2003, he even sued the writer Germain Greer, who posted his photograph in the form of Tajio from Death in Venice.
The scandalous book just considered cases when a teenager acted as an object of sympathy from adult men. However, the rights to this image belonged to the photographer, and Bjorn Andresen was defeated.
Japanese voyage
After a high-profile role in the film, Luchino Visconti in the acting career of the Swedish youth came a long break. He searches for himself for a long time and rushes from one occupation to another. On the advice of his grandmother, Björn Andresen went on a tour of Japan, where his popularity suddenly began to go beyond all reasonable limits.
Here he recorded several songs, participated in television shows, appeared on magazine covers. Grandmother was delighted with his fame, but Bjorn Andresen himself was greatly weighed by such exhausting popularity. He had no rest day or night, he was tormented by numerous and never-ending questions. In the end, Bjorn Andresen got tired of such a crazy life and decided to return to the European continent.
Sweden
Work in the cinema did not particularly attract Bjorn. His real passion was music. After he was not accepted to the music school in Stockholm, he began to study with the best Swedish teachers, achieved some success.
After a long break in 1977, the Swede again appeared in films, appearing in the movie Bluff Stop, where he played the role of Stefan. This role was of particular importance to him, since here he played a pianist and hoped to impress the audience as a musician. The film was a success at home, but most European viewers hardly noticed Andresen appearing on the big screen after a long break.
He began to give music lessons, participated in secondary film projects, but then positive changes were outlined in his life. Bjorn Andresen met a girl named Suzanne and became the father of two children. In 1984, he graduated from a theater school in Stockholm and began working in a small local theater. Here he had to combine the roles of illuminator, cleaner, director, but the actor himself recalls this period as the happiest in his life.
Later, in the life of Bjorn Andresen, many dramatic events occurred - a break with Suzanne, the death of his first child, career problems.
Now his life has improved, he lives in a civil marriage, plays as part of a group of Sven Ericks and still dreams of creating his own musical ensemble.