Hans Christian Andersen

Hans Christian Andersen Writer - Born April 2, 1805 in Odense, Denmark

Died August 4, 1875 in Copenhagen, Denmark (liver cancer)

Height 6' 0¾" (1.85 m)

Mini Bio (1) H.C. Andersen was born in 1805. His father (Hans Andersen) was a poor shoemaker and his mother a washerwoman. The family did not have a permanent address until 1807. The family lived for the first time together at Munkemøllestræde. The father worked as an independent shoemaker, with a workshop in the livingroom. In 1816 his father died of illness, and H.C. Andersen got a stepfather who was releated to his mother. In 1828, Andersen passed his examination at Copenhagen University and matriculated there. He took the examination which entitled him to begin his studies (philologicum) and passed his philosophicum examination the following year. After several years of serious illness, HCA died on 4 August 1875 at 'Rolighed', the country seat of the Jewish merchant family Melchior. The Melchiors had taken care of him during the final period of his life.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Casper Warnich Junkm@Warnich.dk

Hans Christian Andersen (/ˈændərsən/; Danish: [hanˀs ˈkʁæsdjan ˈɑnɐsn̩] (About this sound listen)), often referred to in Scandinavia as H. C. Andersen (2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875), was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, Andersen is best remembered for his fairy tales. Andersen's popularity is not limited to children: his stories express themes that transcend age and nationality.

Andersen's fairy tales, of which no fewer than 3381 works have been translated into more than 125 languages, have become culturally embedded in the West's collective consciousness, readily accessible to children, but presenting lessons of virtue and resilience in the face of adversity for mature readers as well. Some of his most famous fairy tales include "The Emperor's New Clothes", "The Little Mermaid", "The Nightingale", "The Snow Queen", "The Ugly Duckling", "Thumbelina", and many others. His stories have inspired ballets, plays, and animated and live-action films. One of Copenhagen's widest and busiest boulevards is labeled "H.C. Andersens Boulevard".