All I know is that he was/is German and was a glassblower at Odense when it was part of the Kastrup/Odense/Hellerup conglomerate, who produced Gulvase until 1965.
I've heard, but can't substantiate, that he was a shopworker who landed lucky when his Gulvase frigger caught the attention of those running the glassworks. I don't know how likely it is to be true, so I would take the tale with a large pinch of salt.