| Vesa-Matti Loiri | |
|---|---|
| Born | 4 January 1945 Helsinki, Finland |
| Other names | Vesku |
| Occupation | actor, musician |
| Awards |
Jussi for Best Actor 1986 Best Actor 1987 Best Actor 1999 Special Telvis Venla 1989 Special Venla |
Vesa-Matti "Vesku" Loiri (born 4 January 1945, Helsinki) is a Finnish actor, musician and comedian, best known for his role as Uuno Turhapuro, whom he portrayed in a total of 20 movies between the years 1973 and 2004.
Loiri became an actor in 1962, when he had a role in the movie "Pojat", directed by Mikko Niskanen. Loiri did most of his work with Spede Pasanen. In 2005, he starred in the film Kaksipäisen kotkan varjossa, which was directed by Timo Koivusalo. Six films starring Loiri are in the Top 20 list of the highest grossing domestic films in Finland. Total amount of tickets sold to the screenings of these six films is 3,715,948.
As a musician, Loiri has performed Perttu Hietanen's compositions, Eino Leino's poems, Carl Michael Bellman's drinking songs and Juha "Watt" Vainio's songs. Loiri also plays the flute, a talent he put to use representing Finland at the Eurovision Song Contest 1980 in The Hague/Netherlands with the song "Huilumies", dedicated to his flute. He finished last in a field of 19 participating countries. He has sold nearly a million albums in Finland and received 11 Gold certificates and 9 Platinum certificates.
He was the voice of the Genie in the Finnish dub of Disney's Aladdin, even performing the musical number Friend Like Me.
Loiri has also had a lifelong interest in sports. In billiards he had the office of chairman of the Finnish billiards association for multiple years.
Contents |
| Preceded by Katri Helena with Katson sineen taivaan |
Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1980 |
Succeeded by Riki Sorsa with Reggae OK |
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