Music & Arts
Celebrating 70 Years Of Pippi Longstocking On Screen
Way back in 1949, just five years after Astrid Lindgren wrote the story about a bold young girl with red hair and freckles, the first film adaption of the Pippi Longstocking story was created. The film was directed by Per Gunvall and starred Viveca Serlachius as Pippi.
The film is lesser known in the Pippi history books – maybe because Serlachius was 26 years old, playing the role of the iconic 9-year-old. But 20 years later, Lindgren helped give Pippi the proper screen treatment with the casting of Inger Nilsson in the TV adaptation of the series, which premiered in February of 1969, and a movie later that year.
Pippi Longstocking has been a mainstay in Swedish literature since the first book was published in 1945. Pippi has been an iconic figure for youngsters, and she continues to hold a special place in adult hearts, too.
We’re so enamored with her, we continue to write about her frequently (because, it turns out, our readers like reading about all things Pippi, too). Like that time we imagined who would play Pippi today. Or when we had the chance to interview Nilsson, who played Pippi on screen for the first (what we’ll call real) time.
2019 may have been the anniversary year, but we can’t wait to see what will unfold for Pippi in 2020. It turns out, there’s a movie in the works thanks to Lindgren’s grandchildren, who are helping the Pippi spirit stay alive.
We’re peddling into the new year with the same excitement as this chick.
b
