Arne Birger Heli (born 1948)

Arne Birger Heli. Photo: Jo Hjelle
Arne Birger Heli. Photo: Jo Hjelle
Arne Birger Heli is the son of Arne Heli, who has a key person in the establishing of a Norwegian gay organization in the 1950s.

Arne Birger Heli grew up with his grandparents on his mothers' side, but throughout his childhood had contact with his father, who at the time was working and living in Oslo. In the period 1949-56, Arne Heli was partnered with Øivind Eckhoff, who in 1957 published one of the very first Norwegian books about homosexuality, Vi som føler annerledes ("We who feel differently") under the pseudonym Finn Grodal. 

Towards the end of his life, Arne Heli wrote the book Åpen om det forbudte"Open about the forbidden", in which he described his life from he became aware of his sexual orientation in the 1940s until he came out as gay at the Oslo Student Association in 1965. 

In this excerpt from our interview with Arne Birger Heli, he talks about the letters his father and Øivind Eckhoff received after the publication of Vi som føler annerledes

The complete interview can be accessed at Skeivt arkiv's reading room. Skeivt arkiv met Arne Birger Heli in Oslo, April 2019. 

 

Video: 

- Det kom en bråte brev.