Per Kvist

Per Kvist was the artist name of Vidar Wexelsen (4 April 1890 – 23 May 1947), a Norwegian revue writer, entertainer, stage actor, film actor and children's writer.

Personal life Wexelsen was born in Overhalla Municipality as a son of vicar, politician and eventually bishop Vilhelm Andreas Wexelsen and Anna Beata Nilssen. He was a cousin of Gunnar Jahn and uncle of Karl Evang. He spent long periods of his childhood in Kristiania, when his father was a member of the Storting and of the government. Out of consideration for his well-regarded family he adopted the nom de guerre Per Kvist.

Career Wexelsen assumed a student position with the Fahlstrøms Theater from 1909 to 1910. Then he worked as sailor for two years, and thereafter a period as clerk at a railway office. While working as a salesman, Wexelsen also edited the satirical magazine Tyrihans, and wrote songs for Bokken Lasson's cabaret Chat Noir. From 1916 he was assigned at Chat Noir as actor and text writer, and he eventually started using the artist name Per Kvist. He published the song collection 16 cabaretviser in 1920. He wrote his first revue, Midt i planeten together with Arne Svendsen in 1922. In 1923 he published a second song collection, Tolv viser. In the 1920s he wrote a series of autobiographically based books for children, including Glade gutteår from 1925, Stud. midd. Nils from 1926, Nils dekksgutt from 1927, and Den røde hånds liga from 1929. From 1927 to 1929 he operated his own cabaret, To Små Kroner, Among his later songs is "Optimisten og pessimisten". He also wrote the children's comedy Pers fødselsdag from 1946.