Johan Alfred Tanner (1884-1927) was a Finnish vaudeville performer and pioneer of musical entertainment. He performed numerous translations and adaptations of folk songs and foreign popular music. Many of these have become ageless evergreens. In the early years of the 20th century, cinemas needed live performers in the intermissions while the film rolls were changed. Vaudeville singers and other artists were hired to keep the audience entertained, and their performances soon became the chief attraction. Tanner moved on from the cinema to theatre and restaurant stages, as his popularity grew.

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