 Wirtanen was fired twice (1941 and 1947) from the publication "Arbetarbladet" and once (1953) from the magazine "Ny Tid".During the Continuation War, he was among the signatories of the "Petition of the Thirty-Three", which members of the peace opposition presented to President Risto Ryti.Wirtanen was a close friend of Tove Jansson and a model for the Snufkin character, whose green hat is borrowed from Wirtanen.