Tove Maës

Tove Maës
Maës in the 1946 film Ditte Menneskebarn
Born	(1921-04-30)30 April 1921 Copenhagen, Denmark
Died	31 December 2010(2010-12-31) (aged 89)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1942–1994
Spouse(s)	Carl Ottesen Jesper Gottschalch
Awards	Bodil Award 1954 Himlen er Blå Bodil Award 1971 Det er Nat med Fru. Knudsen Bodil Award 1983 Felix

Tove Maës (30 April 1921 – 31 December 2010) was a Danish actress of stage, television and film best known for her starring roles in the series of "Morten Korch" films, in particular The Red Horses. Maës was a three-time recipient of the Bodil Award for Best Actress, winning in 1954, 1971, and 1983.

Maës was born in Copenhagen, Denmark on 30 April 1921. She studied with the Danish actor Albert Luther and, in 1942, was "discovered" by Theater Director Helge Rungwald who employed Maës at the Odense Theater. Shortly thereafter, Maës played the lead in Selma Lagerlof's Dunungen. Maës sought an apprenticeship at the Royal Danish Theatre after appearing there in Carl Erik Soya's Natteherberget, but was turned down. Instead, she worked at the Riddersalen theater, performing in a series of roles.

In 1946, Maës made a critically acclaimed screen debut as Ditte Godpige in the filmatization of Martin Andersen Nexø's novel, Ditte Menneskebarn (Ditte, Child of Man). Her performance in the film about the hardships of a young impoverished girl received international recognition. Especially noticed was her thoroughly wholesome and pure sensualism even while bathing nude. However, film reviewers in the United States (where the movie was seen in an edited version which removed any nudity) dismissed the movie as being too melodramatic. Maës replied in a later interview that the American audience had never been confronted with poverty in such a realistic portrayal on screen. During the 1950s, Maës performed in many of light-hearted films in the role of the sweet young ingenue. She played starring roles in several family films adapted from the popular Morten Korch novels, the first of which, The Red Horses, became the biggest box-office success in Danish cinema. Maës also was able to bring a more serious side to her acting, and in 1954, she was awarded the Bodil Award for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of an insane girl in Sven Aage Lorentz's experimental film, Himlen er Blå.