Fun Facts Friday: Mika Waltari

1. Mika Toimi Waltari was bom in Helsinki to Toimi Waltari, a Lutheran Pastor, and Olga Johansson who used to be one of his religion students. The relationship caused, of course, a scandal which forced the couple to move to Tampere the capitol of the Finnish region Pirkanmaa.

2. Five years later, Toimi died of illness and 25-year-old Olga was left to raise her three sons. She survived thanks to Toimi’s brother Toivo.

3. After graduating high-school, Mika Waltari entered the University of Helsinki to study theology. He chose that field because his uncle wished him to, but soon abandoned the study in favor of literature and philosophy.

4. During his studies, Mr. Waltari published prose and poetry in magazines and in 1925 published his first book, Jumalaa paossa. Even though the book was only 75 pages long, it sold 3000 copies, a huge success.

5. By 1927 the young, now published, author found himself in Paris, where he wrote his first full length novel, The Grand Illusion (Suuri illusioni) which was compared to the works of The Lost Generation (Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and more)

6. During World War II, called the Winter War (1939-1940) and the Continuation War (1941-1944), Mika Wattari put his expertise at the services of the Finnish government working to produce propaganda. He later used this theme in his novels.

7. When the war ended, 1945, Mika Waltari published The Egyptian, his first historical novel and his most successful. The themes of the degradation of values in a material world were relevant and topical in a world trying to recover from the biggest war it’s seen. In 1954 The Egyptian was made into a major American motion picture.

8. Besides novels, he also write plays, essays, travelogues, scripts, and even text for comic strips in rhyme.

9. The State Literature award was earned to Mika Waltari no less than five times. He won the Pro Finlandia Medal, The Order of the Lion, in 1954.

10. For his 100th birthday, the €10 Mika Wattari commemorative coin was minted, and two asteroids have been named after him.