Hella W

BACKGROUND

Hella Wuolijoki (1886-1954) was born in Estonia as Ella Murrik and made a spectacular career for herself in Finland. She was a famous playwright, politician and businesswoman. During the war, she was imprisoned for treason, and was not released until after the war ended. She was the director in chief of The Finnish Broadcasting Corporation from 1944-1949.

Wuolijoki's plays are classics: the Niskavuori saga, Juurakon Hulda / The Farmer's Daughter and The Master of Iso-Heikkilä and his man Kalle (Herr Puntila and His Servant Matti), which is co-written with Bertolt Brecht. The film "Juurakon Hulda" is one of the biggest hits of all time with more than a million viewers in Finland. In 1947, Loretta Young won an Oscar for her lead role in the Hollywood adaptation of "The Farmer's Daughter." Wuolijoki's plays, together with Shakespeare's, are the most performed plays in Finland. Back in the day, they saved the finances of many Finnish theatres.

The young and penniless Hella arrived in Finland without language skills but quickly grew into a one-woman corporation, one that was seen and heard in the Finnish business world. In a short time, Hella's quick wit and brave decision-making made her a fortune in her international deals.

Hella quickly noticed that she succeeded in almost everything she took on, and perhaps that led to her ventures into the fields of politics, literature and theatre. The Finnish society and cultural life, often plagued by envy, cannot stand such a superior woman. Her efforts get obstructed, vengefulness exists, too. Hella is often abandoned in difficult situations.

In both the arts and the economy, Hella made her mark on the Finnish psyche - in more than one place.