Nils Asther

Nils Asther
Nils Asther by Alexander Binder (before 1929)
Born	Nils Anton Alfhild Asther (1897-01-17)17 January 1897 Copenhagen, Denmark
Died	19 October 1981(1981-10-19) (aged 84) Farsta, Sweden
Nationality	Swedish
Occupation	Actor, painter
Years active	1916–1963
Spouse(s)	Vivian Duncan (1930-1932) (divorced) 1 child
Children	Evelyne Roseta Duncan Aster (b.20/03/1931 - d. 26/11/2011)

Nils Anton Alfhild Asther (17 January 1897 – 19 October 1981) was a Swedish actor active in Hollywood from 1926 to the mid-1950s, known for his beautiful face and often called "the male Greta Garbo". Between 1916 and 1963 he appeared in over 70 feature films, 16 of which were produced in the silent era. He didn't seek publicity, choosing instead to be alone. He is mainly remembered today for two silent films he made with his fellow Swede, Greta Garbo, and the pre-code interracial love affair in The Bitter Tea of General Yen.

Born in Denmark in Sankt Matteus parish, Copenhagen, son of Swedish couple Anton Asther and Hilda Åkerlund. Nils spent his first year as a fosterchild in Limhamn, Sweden, because his biological parents were unmarried. That is also the reason Nils was born in Denmark. At that time unwed mothers went to Copenhagen for a discreet birthing. After their marriage in 1898 Nils moved in with them in Malmö, where he grew up. As a young man he moved to , where he received acting lessons from Actress Augusta Lindberg, and through her he received his first theatrical engagement at Lorensbergsteatern in Gothenburg, and in 1916 Mauritz Stiller cast him in The Wings (Swedish: Vingarne), a gay-themed Swedish silent film from 1916, directed by Mauritz Stiller, based on Herman Bang's 1902 novel Mikaël. In Copenhagen, one of Sweden's best known actors, Aage Hertel of the Royal Danish Theatre, took Nils under his wing. This soon lead to a number of film roles in Sweden, Denmark and Germany between 1918 and 1926.