Štefan Kvietik (10 May 1934 – 21 March 2025) was a Slovak actor and politician.

Early life

Kvietik was born on 10 May 1934 in the village

Dolné Plachtince Dolné Plachtince () is a village and municipality in the Veľký Krtíš District of the Banská Bystrica Region of southern Slovakia. History In historical records, the village was first mentioned in 1337 (Palahta Inferior). It belonged to nobl ...

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. As a child, he planned to study medicine but eventually decided to follow the example of his parents, who were amateur theatre actors. In 1957, Kvietik graduated in theatre acting from the

Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava The Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava (, abbr. VŠMU) is a university founded on June 9, 1949. The university consists of three faculties: *''Theatre Faculty'' (Acting, Directing, Dramaturgy, Stage and Costume Design, Puppetry, Theatre Th ...

. After graduation he shortly acted in the Army theatre in

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

and in 1959 he joined the

Slovak National Theatre The Slovak National Theater (, abbr. SND) is the oldest professional theatre in Slovakia, consisting of three ensembles: opera, ballet, and drama. Its history begins shortly after the establishment of the first Czechoslovak Republic in 1918. It ...

, where he remained an assembly member for 50 years. Between 1984 and 1990, Kvietik also taught acting at his alma mater, the Academy of Performing Arts.

Film career

Kvietik debuted in the film adaptation of

Ladislav Mňačko Ladislav Mňačko (28 January 1919 in Valašské Klobouky – 24 February 1994 in Bratislava) was a Czechoslovak writer and journalist. He was a member of the Slovak partisans, partisan movement in Slovakia during World War II. After the war, ...

's television series ''

Death Is Called Engelchen ''Death Is Called Engelchen'' () is a 1963 Czechoslovak war film directed by Ján Kadár and Elmar Klos. It was entered into the 3rd Moscow International Film Festival where it won a Golden Prize. Plot At the end of the Second World War, Zlín ...

'' of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

era. Over the course of his career, he appeared in over 40 films, including ''

The Boxer and Death ''The Boxer and Death'' () is a 1962 Slovak film directed by Peter Solan. The film is based on the life of Polish boxer Tadeusz "Teddy" Pietrzykowski, but in the film the boxer's name is Ján Komínek. It stars Štefan Kvietik and Manfred Krug ...

'', '' The Millennial Bee'', and '' Sitting on a Branch, Enjoying Myself''. His final role was in the 1997 television series ''Camp of Fallen Women''.

Political career

Between 1990 and 1994, Kvietik was a member of the

National Council of Slovakia The National Council of the Slovak Republic (, abbreviated to ''NR SR'') is the national parliament of Slovakia. It is unicameral and consists of 150 members, who are elected by universal suffrage under proportional representation with seats dis ...

for the

Slovak National Party The Slovak National Party (, SNS) is an ultranationalist political party in Slovakia. The party characterizes itself as a nationalist party based on both social and European Christian values. Since 1990 SNS has won seats in every Slovak pa ...

. In

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

, the Slovak National Party considered Kvietik as a candidate for

president of Czechoslovakia The president of Czechoslovakia (, ) was the head of state of Czechoslovakia, from the Origins of Czechoslovakia, creation of the First Czechoslovak Republic in 1918 until the Dissolution of Czechoslovakia, dissolution of the Czech and Slovak F ...

, but Kvietik refused to run.

Death

Kvietik died on 21 March 2025, at the age of 90. He is buried at the

National Cemetery in Martin The National Cemetery () in Martin, Slovakia is the final resting place of many important personalities of Slovak history. The list includes writers, poets, national activists, pedagogues, etc. The reason why Martin was selected as the site for t ...

Awards

Kvietik was awarded the

Order of Ľudovít Štúr The Order of Ľudovít Štúr () is the third highest Slovak state decoration (after the Order of the White Double Cross and the Orders, decorations, and medals of Slovakia#Andrej Hlinka Order, Order of Andrej Hlinka) conferred by the President ...

, 2nd class in 2004 by the president of Slovakia

Ivan Gašparovič Ivan Gašparovič (; ; born 27 March 1941) is a Slovakia, Slovak politician and lawyer who was the third president of Slovakia from 2004 to 2014. He was also the first and currently the only Slovak president to be re-elected. Biography Ivan Ga� ...

. In 2009, he was introduced to the OTO Hall of Fame. On the occasion of the 90th anniversary, he was awarded the Slovak Matica Special Award for his lifelong contribution to Slovak film culture. https://matica.sk/matica-slovenska-vyjadruje-sustrast-nad-stratou-hereckeho-velikana/

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kvietik, Stefan 1934 births 2025 deaths Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava alumni Academic staff of the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava Merited Artists of Czechoslovakia Members of the National Council (Slovakia) 1992–1994 Slovak male television actors Slovak male film actors Slovak male stage actors Slovak National Party politicians People from Veľký Krtíš District 21st-century Slovak male actors 20th-century Slovak male actors Burials at National Cemetery in Martin