“Scandinavian Hotshot” by Stan Boreson
Link to Stan Boreson entry in Washington State History site
Born in Everett, Washington, in 1925, the grandson of Norwegian immigrants, Boreson learned to play accordion in his early teens and, while still in high school, began experimenting with comic parodies of pop songs featuring English lyrics performed in an exaggerated “Scandihoovian” dialect. In the late 1940s he began an extended career as a musician and comedian, playing with Seattle area bands, making recordings, and performing on radio and television. Inspired by another Puget Sound Norwegian American performer, Harry Edward Skarbo/aka Yogi Yorgesson, Boreson’s musical act emphasized comic Scandinavian dialect songs. In the late 1950s and early 1960s he made a series of classic LPs on the Golden Crest label with the Swedish American musician Doug Setterberg. Still going strong in the 21st century, Boreson made the transition to YouTube in 2010 wearing nothing but a strategically placed accordion in the music video “I Yust Don’t Look Good Naked Anymore.”