Victor Borge: Move To America

Borge’s early career in Denmark began to blossom just as the Nazis were sweeping Europe and persecuting Jews. Borge had married Elsie Chilton, an American, in 1926, and this would help facilitate his asylum.

When the Nazis invaded Denmark, Borge was performing in Sweden. He fled that country to Finland and sailed to America on the U.S.S. American Legion, hitting American soil on August 28, 1940. The perilous journey would make Borge one of many European composers to escape to the United States, along with Igor Stravinsky, Arnold Schoenberg, and Paul Hindemith.

Legend, propagated by Borge, has it that he learned the English language from movies viewed in the days opulent movie palaces. Whatever the case, he put his multilingualism to use in pursuing a brand of musicomedy similar to that which he’d done in Denmark.

It didn’t take long for Borge to see some success in the new world--he quickly began earning money playing piano as a private entertainer in Hollywood. Having arrived with $20 dollars in his pocket, he was on his way to his own version of the American dream.

Sources
Victor Borge. Jewish Virtual Library.