Background
Von Porat was born in the little town of Älmhult, Kronoberg County, Sweden, into an independently wealthy family. The von Porats lived on a huge estate in Sweden. An English tutor gave von Porat and his three brothers their early education, hence von Porat learned to speak English with a decidedly British accent. He also learned to speak Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, German and French fluently.
While very young, he and his family moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, where his father organized a branch of the Berlitz Language School. In early 1914 the family settled in Oslo, Norway, where his father made extensive maritime investments. The von Porat fortune disappeared rapidly when World War I came along, forcing the four von Porat boys to seek work.
Read more about this topic: Otto Von Porat
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