Norman Korpi
Norman Korpi | |
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Born | filmmaker, painter |
Norman Korpi (born in
Early life and career
Korpi grew up in
Korpi studied photography at
In 1992, Korpi co-developed a clothing and furnishings design firm called Gouda. Their jacket outerwear line, called State to State, became popular enough to be sold at outlets like
The Real World
In May 1992, Korpi was chosen as one of the cast members on MTV's The Real World. The show was filmed in New York City, where Korpi was placed in a loft with six strangers (and his dog Gouda, the namesake of his design firm). His housemates included a female rapper, a fitness model, an alternative music singer and an aspiring dancer from Alabama. Korpi was one of the first openly gay people to appear on television, though the show portrayed him as being bisexual.[3] One of the men Korpi dated was Charles Perez, who would later go on to host a talk show.
After The Real World
Korpi has participated in a variety of Real World-related projects, including two seasons of the Real World/Road Rules Challenge.
He has branched off into commercial design. He began work in advertising and ultimately created Gay Entertainment Television. He has freelanced in production design for numerous television programs, including the Academy Awards.
In 1997, Korpi formed a production company called Fruit Films. Their first project was an independent film called The Wedding Video; it was a mockumentary about Korpi having a gay wedding, and the behind-the-scenes drama that unfolded. It featured many alumni of The Real World. The film was released in 2001.[4]
Korpi revealed on episode four of The Real World Homecoming: New York that during the COVID-19 crisis of 2020 he had fallen into financial ruin, having lost all streams of income. At the time of filming he had lost his home and his possessions were being put on the street.
References
- ^ Norman Korpi's Biography Normankorpi.com. Retrieved July 15, 2011.
- ^ "Reviews | Film Threat".
- ^ "Here in the Real World". Metro Weekly.
- ^ "DVD Verdict". Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2014-07-12.
External links
- Official website
- Norman Korpi at IMDb