Spede Pasanen
Encyclopedia
Pertti Olavi "Spede" Pasanen (10 April 1930, Kuopio
– 7 September 2001, Kirkkonummi
) was a Finnish film director and producer, comedian, humorist, inventor, TV personality and practitioner of gags.
During his career he directed, wrote, produced or acted in about 50 movie
s and participated in numerous TV productions, including the comedy Spede Show and the game-show Speden Spelit. Spede Pasanen named Bob Hope
as one his biggest comedy influences. Much of his more commercial work was in collaboration with Vesa-Matti Loiri
(whose most popular character created by Pasanen was called Uuno Turhapuro
; first in TV sketches and then in a long-lasting series of motion pictures) and Simo Salminen
. Pasanen's films and TV shows, often made fast and inexpensively in a conveyor-belt mode, usually didn't gain much recognition from the critics but were extremely popular among Finnish audiences from the 1960s onwards. Another actor Pasanen used in TV-comedy was Pentti Siimes. Together with Tarja Markus they performed as an excellent nervous and shy love-pair in a coffee-table chat.
Spede Pasanen is considered emblematic of Savonian
humor with a slick ironic patter varying between the fullest extremes of understatement and hyperbole. As he himself explained: "A Savonian never tells a thing exactly like it is." Although Spede vociferously denounced elitism and explicitly sought to write and perform comedy for the largest possible audience, he was frequently the person who evinced greatest amusement at his own gags and bon mots.
Noted for his intelligence, financial success and ability to draw in ladies, he is the idol of many who make an attempt to break into the Finnish comedy scene. Despite his homely appearance, Pasanen was something of a womanizer: he had a long relationship with Miss Europe
1976, Riitta Väisänen, and was almost married in 1990 to a Finnish model and Miss Finland candidate. A classic serial monogamist, he valued loyalty and friendship to the hilt, and even after separation, kept employing and financially supporting previous companions. During and after relationships, he vouchsafed confidentiality and privacy for all involved in his private life. His good relations with the media might have helped with this, as outside his private sphere, he often dramatized his commercial and artistic ventures to the hilt.
Pasanen was also an inventor and jack-of-all-trades; he had over 50 patent
s in his names, and many of his films include Rube Goldberg
-style gadgets. Besides gadgets involved with industrial production, his inventions include:
Spede Pasanen had a film production company named Filmituotanto Spede Pasanen Ky.
In the Uuno Turhapuro series, Pasanen played the role of Härski-Hartikainen, a car repairman with a cunning and ribald character, who often participated in Uuno's farcical adventures. His sidekick was Sörsselssön - earlier known as Lörssön (played by Simo Salminen
).
he later jumped camps to the competing MTV3
network. However, his work on both has been extremely popular. Apart from starring in these series he was also the main producer for many of the popular shows on MTV3, such as the game-show Kymppitonni and the cult-hit show Pulttibois.
Kuopio
Kuopio is a city and a municipality located in the region of Northern Savonia, Finland. A population of makes it the ninth biggest city in the country. The city has a total area of , of which is water and half forest...
– 7 September 2001, Kirkkonummi
Kirkkonummi
Kirkkonummi is a municipality of inhabitants in southern Finland. The literal meaning of the words "Kirkkonummi" and "Kyrkslätt" in English is "church moor"....
) was a Finnish film director and producer, comedian, humorist, inventor, TV personality and practitioner of gags.
During his career he directed, wrote, produced or acted in about 50 movie
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s and participated in numerous TV productions, including the comedy Spede Show and the game-show Speden Spelit. Spede Pasanen named Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
as one his biggest comedy influences. Much of his more commercial work was in collaboration with Vesa-Matti Loiri
Vesa-Matti Loiri
Vesa-Matti "Vesku" Loiri is a Finnish actor, musician and comedian, best known for his role as Uuno Turhapuro, whom he portrayed in a total of 20 movies between the years 1973 and 2004....
(whose most popular character created by Pasanen was called Uuno Turhapuro
Uuno Turhapuro
Uuno Turhapuro is a Finnish comedy character created by Spede Pasanen and played by Vesa-Matti Loiri. Originally appeared in Spede Show during 1971–1973, the character gained popularity through the Uuno Turhapuro films....
; first in TV sketches and then in a long-lasting series of motion pictures) and Simo Salminen
Simo Salminen
Simo Salminen is a Finnish comic-actor best known for his many performances in movies and television shows by Spede Pasanen. He, Vesa-Matti Loiri and Pasanen himself are the three important players in almost all of Spede's productions...
. Pasanen's films and TV shows, often made fast and inexpensively in a conveyor-belt mode, usually didn't gain much recognition from the critics but were extremely popular among Finnish audiences from the 1960s onwards. Another actor Pasanen used in TV-comedy was Pentti Siimes. Together with Tarja Markus they performed as an excellent nervous and shy love-pair in a coffee-table chat.
Spede Pasanen is considered emblematic of Savonian
Savonian people
Savonians are Finnish people descending from the inhabitants of historical province of Savonia. Savonians differ from other Finnish tribes by their dialect and cultural tradition. Originally they are descendants of the historical Finnish Karelians and the Tavastians...
humor with a slick ironic patter varying between the fullest extremes of understatement and hyperbole. As he himself explained: "A Savonian never tells a thing exactly like it is." Although Spede vociferously denounced elitism and explicitly sought to write and perform comedy for the largest possible audience, he was frequently the person who evinced greatest amusement at his own gags and bon mots.
Noted for his intelligence, financial success and ability to draw in ladies, he is the idol of many who make an attempt to break into the Finnish comedy scene. Despite his homely appearance, Pasanen was something of a womanizer: he had a long relationship with Miss Europe
Miss Europe
Miss Europe is a popular regional beauty pageant among female contestants from the nations of the European continent established in 1928 and re-established at the end of World War II by Roger Zeiler of the French Committee of Elegance and Claude Berr...
1976, Riitta Väisänen, and was almost married in 1990 to a Finnish model and Miss Finland candidate. A classic serial monogamist, he valued loyalty and friendship to the hilt, and even after separation, kept employing and financially supporting previous companions. During and after relationships, he vouchsafed confidentiality and privacy for all involved in his private life. His good relations with the media might have helped with this, as outside his private sphere, he often dramatized his commercial and artistic ventures to the hilt.
Pasanen was also an inventor and jack-of-all-trades; he had over 50 patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
s in his names, and many of his films include Rube Goldberg
Rube Goldberg
Reuben Garrett Lucius Goldberg was an American cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer and inventor.He is best known for a series of popular cartoons depicting complex gadgets that perform simple tasks in indirect, convoluted ways. These devices, now known as Rube Goldberg machines, are similar to...
-style gadgets. Besides gadgets involved with industrial production, his inventions include:
- The Ski jumping slingSki jumping slingThe ski jumping sling system is a training equipment for ski jumpers. It was invented by Spede Pasanen. There was one prototype in the years 1970-1980 in Puijo, Kuopio, Finland. The sling is used to throw ski jumpers from level ground with an acceleration resembling that of a ski-jumping tower. The...
- A Boat skiBoat skiThe Boat ski is a shock absorbing system invented by Spede Pasanen for the bow of a small motorboat with a powerful outboard motor. Its functioning principle is damping the chopping motion of the boats bow with a ski-like device attached to the bow through a car shock absorber.When a small boat is...
(to alleviate *bumps* in aquaplaning boat) - A self-extinguishing, one-size-fits-all candlestickCandlestickA candlestick, chamberstick, or candelabrum is a holder for one or more candles, used for illumination, rituals, or decorative purposes. The name 'candlestick' derives from the fact that it is usually tall and stick-shaped.Candlesticks are also called candle holders...
.
Spede Pasanen had a film production company named Filmituotanto Spede Pasanen Ky.
Writer, director or producer
- X-ParoniX-ParoniX-Paroni is a 1964 Finnish comedy and the debut of Spede Pasanen as a leading male role and debut as a co-director of a full-length film...
(directed with Jaakko Pakkasvirta, 1964), in English The X-baron - Millipilleri (1966)
- Pähkähullu SuomiPähkähullu SuomiPähkähullu Suomi is a 1967 comedy by Spede Pasanen. It is occasionally cited as one of the best sources for his abstract sense of humour since the film has very little in the sense of plot and is more of a montage of various events...
(1967), in English The nutty Finland - Noin seitsemän veljestäNoin seitsemän veljestäNoin seitsemän veljestä is a 1968 comedy by Spede Pasanen. The film is a loose parody of the Robin Hood story and also stars a take on the inventor Leonardo DaVinci. The film's cast is composed of Pasanen's stock actors...
(1968), in English About seven Brothers - Näköradiomiehen ihmeelliset siekailutNäköradiomiehen ihmeelliset siekailutNäköradiomiehen ihmeelliset siekailut is a 1969 Finnish comedy by Spede Pasanen. It features one of the most famous appearances by Vesa-Matti Loiri outside his Uuno Turhapuro persona also created by Pasanen. The film also features a famous cameo of the Finnish pop-star Danny.The film is often...
(1969) - LeikkikalugangsteriLeikkikalugangsteriLeikkikalugangsteri is a 1969 comedy directed by Ere Kokkonen, written and starring Spede Pasanen. It was released the same year as Spede's Näköradiomiehen ihmeelliset siekailut and Pohjan tähteet...
(1969), in English The Toy Gangster - Pohjan tähteet (1969)
- Jussi Pussi (1970)
- Speedy Gonzales - noin 7 veljeksen poikaSpeedy Gonzales - noin 7 veljeksen poikaSpeedy Gonzales - noin 7 veljeksen poika is a Finnish western comedy directed by Ere Kokkonen, and written by Kokkonen with Spede Pasanen and Vesa-Matti Loiri...
(1970) - Saatanan radikaalit (1971)
- Kahdeksas veljes (1971), in English The Eighth Brother
- HirttämättömätHirttämättömätThe Unhanged is a 1971 Finnish western comedy film directed by Spede Pasanen and Vesa-Matti Loiri. It is the sequel to the 1970 film Speedy Gonzales - noin 7 veljeksen poika...
(1971) - Uuno TurhapuroUuno Turhapuro (film)Uuno Turhapuro is the first, black and white Uuno Turhapuro film from year 1973. Before it Uuno was performed only in scethes of Spede Show by Spede Pasanen. The movie has not been yet any great success, but the character began build up his popularity gradually with the movie serie increase...
(1973) - Viu-hah hah-tajaViu-hah hah-tajaViu-hah hah-taja is a 1974 comedy written by Spede Pasanen and directed by Ere Kokkonen.The film is about two aliens who land on earth to learn of human custom and manners...
(1974) - Professori Uuno D.G. TurhapuroProfessori Uuno D.G. TurhapuroProfessori Uuno D.G. Turhapuro is a Finnish 1975 comedy film written by Spede Pasanen and directed by Ere Kokkonen. It is the second film in the Uuno Turhapuro series.-Plot:Uuno is unemployed and his friends try to arrange a job for him...
(1975), in English Professor Uuno D.G. Turhapuro - Lottovoittaja UKK TurhapuroLottovoittaja UKK TurhapuroLottovoittaja UKK Turhapuro is a Finnish 1976 comedy film written by Spede Pasanen and directed by Ere Kokkonen. It is the third film in the Uuno Turhapuro series...
(1976) - Häpy Endkö? Eli kuinka Uuno Turhapuro sai niin kauniin ja rikkaan vaimonHäpy Endkö? Eli kuinka Uuno Turhapuro sai niin kauniin ja rikkaan vaimonHäpy Endkö? Eli kuinka Uuno Turhapuro sai niin kauniin ja rikkaan vaimon is a Finnish 1977 comedy film written by Spede Pasanen and directed by Ere Kokkonen. It is the fourth film in the Uuno Turhapuro series...
(1977) - Rautakauppias Uuno Turhapuro, presidentin vävy (1978)
- Koeputkiaikuinen ja Simon enkelitKoeputkiaikuinen ja Simon enkelitKoeputkiaikuinen ja Simon enkelit is a 1979 comedy directed, written and starring Spede Pasanen, along with the typical comic-cast of Simo Salminen, Vesa-Matti Loiri, Tapio Hämäläinen and Olavi Ahonen....
(1979) - Tup-akka-lakko (1980)
- Uuno Turhapuron aviokriisi (1981)
- Pölhölä (1981)
- Uuno Turhapuro menettää muistinsa (1982), in English Uuno Turhapuro loses his memory
- Uuno Turhapuron muisti palailee pätkittäin (1983)
- Lentävät luupäät (1984), in English The Flying Boneheads
- Uuno Turhapuro armeijan leivissäUuno Turhapuro armeijan leivissäUuno Turhapuro armeijan leivissä is a 1984 Finnish comedy and the ninth film in the Uuno Turhapuro film series starring Vesa-Matti Loiri as the title character, Spede Pasanen as the potty-mouthed mechanic Härski Hartikainen, and Simo Salminen as their constant companion Sörsselssön...
(1984) - Uuno EpsanjassaUuno EpsanjassaUuno Epsanjassa is a Finnish 1985 comedy film directed by Ere Kokkonen. It is the tenth film in the Uuno Turhapuro series. It was seen by more than 600,000 people in the theatres.-Plot:...
(1985), in English Uuno in Psain - Kliffaa hei! (1985)
- Uuno Turhapuro muuttaa maalleUuno Turhapuro muuttaa maalleUuno Turhapuro muuttaa maalle is a 1986 Finnish film, the 11th film in the Uuno Turhapuro film series....
(1986) - Liian iso keikka (1986), in English A Gig Too Big
- Pikkupojat (1986)
- Uuno Turhapuro - kaksoisagentti (1987)
- Fakta homma! (1987)
- Tupla-Uuno (1988), in English Double Uuno
- Onks' Viljoo näkyny? (1988), in English Have Ya Seen Viljo?
- Rampe & Naukkis (1990)
- Uunon huikeat poikamiesvuodet maaseudulla (1990)
- Uuno Turhapuro, herra Helsingin herra (1991)
- Uuno Turhapuro, Suomen tasavallan herra presidentti (1992)
- Uuno Turhapuron poika (1993), in English The Son of Uuno Turhapuro
- Romanovin kivet (1993)
- Pekko ja Poika (1994)
- Uuno Turhapuron veli (1994)
- Johtaja Uuno Turhapuro - pisnismies (1998)
- Naisen logiikka (1999), in English The Logic of the Women
Actor
- Laivan kannella (1954)
- Sankarialokas (1955)
- Säkkijärven polkkaSäkkijärven polkkaSäkkijärven polkka is a well-known folk tune from Finland, popular with Finnish accordionists to the extent that it can be called their national anthem. It was especially popularized by Viljo "Vili" Vesterinen...
(1955) - Villi Pohjola (1955)
- Tyttö tuli taloon (1956)
- Tyttö lähtee kasarmiin (1956)
- Rintamalotta (1956)
- Anu ja Mikko (1956)
- Pekka ja Pätkä ketjukolarissa (1957)
- Vääpelin kauhu (1957)
- Pekka ja Pätkä sammakkomiehinä (1957)
- Asessorin naishuolet (1957)
- Pekka ja Pätkä Suezilla (1958)
- Ei ruumiita makuuhuoneeseen (1959)
- Mullin mallin (1961)
- Taape tähtenä (1962)
- Hopeaa rajan takaa (1963)
- Pohjan tähteet (1969)
- Tup-akka-lakko (1980)
- Koeputkiaikuinen ja Simon enkelit (1981)
- (Hei kliffaa hei! (1985)
- Pikkupojat (1986)
- Naisen logiikka (1999)
In the Uuno Turhapuro series, Pasanen played the role of Härski-Hartikainen, a car repairman with a cunning and ribald character, who often participated in Uuno's farcical adventures. His sidekick was Sörsselssön - earlier known as Lörssön (played by Simo Salminen
Simo Salminen
Simo Salminen is a Finnish comic-actor best known for his many performances in movies and television shows by Spede Pasanen. He, Vesa-Matti Loiri and Pasanen himself are the three important players in almost all of Spede's productions...
).
Television series
Spede is considered the father of modern Finnish television sketch-humour. Starting his career on YleisradioYleisradio
The Finnish Broadcasting Company , abbreviated to YLE , is Finland's national broadcasting company, founded in 1926. YLE is a public-broadcasting organization which shares many of its characteristics with its British counterpart, the BBC, on which it was largely modelled...
he later jumped camps to the competing MTV3
MTV3
MTV3 is a Finnish commercial television station owned by Bonnier. It had the biggest audience share of all Finnish TV channels until Finnish Broadcasting Company’s YLE1 took the lead. The letters MTV stand for Mainos-TV , due to the channel getting its revenue from running commercials...
network. However, his work on both has been extremely popular. Apart from starring in these series he was also the main producer for many of the popular shows on MTV3, such as the game-show Kymppitonni and the cult-hit show Pulttibois.
YLE
- Spede Show (1964, 1971–1976, 1982 ja 1984-1987)
- Speden saluuna (1965)
- Spedevisio (1965–1967)
- 50 pientä minuuttia (1967–1971)
- Robin Hood ja hänen iloiset vekkulinsa Sherwoodin pusikoissa (1974)
MTV3
- Kymppitonni (1985–2005)
- Uuno Turhapuro armeijan leivissä (1986) (the film as a TV series)
- Vesku Show (1988–1991)
- Spede Special (1988–1990)
- PulttiboisPulttiboisPulttibois was a popular Finnish sketch comedy television show that premiered on MTV3 in 1989 and which starred a two-man cast of comedic actors - Pirkka-Pekka Petelius and Aake Kalliala...
(1989–1991) - Spedestroikka (1990)
- Junnutonni (1991)
- Speden sallitut leikit (1990–1992)
- Speden tee-se-itse TV (1991–1992)
- Hynttyyt yhteen (1991–1995)
- Speden spelitSpeden SpelitSpeden Spelit was a television game show presented by Spede Pasanen. It aired first on Finnish channel Kolmoskanava in 1988 and since 1993 on MTV3.-History:The name of the show changed three times during its existence...
(1992–2002) - Tsa Tsa Tsaa (1993–1994)
- Blondi tuli taloon (1994–1995)
- Uuno Turhapuro (TV series) (1996)
- Ihmeidentekijät (1996–1998)
- Parhaat vuodet (2000–2002)
- Kuumia aaltoja (2003)
Named after Spede Pasanen
- SPEDE (Spacecraft Potential, Electron and Dust Experiment), an instrument attached to the SMART-1SMART-1SMART-1 was a Swedish-designed European Space Agency satellite that orbited around the Moon. It was launched on September 27, 2003 at 23:14 UTC from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana. "SMART" stands for Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology...
lunar probe.