Jiří Brdečka (24 December 1917 – 2 June 1982) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

screenwriter, film director, writer and artist. His most famous literary and cinematic work is ''

Lemonade Joe ''Lemonade Joe, or the Horse Opera'' () is a 1964 Czechoslovak musical comedy film, directed by Oldřich Lipský and written by Jiří Brdečka, based on his novel and stage play. A parody of the American Western, the film centers on a clean-livi ...

'' (1964).

Life

Jiří Josef František Brdečka was born in Hranice on 24 December 1917 to a literary family. His father, Otakar Brdečka (1881–1930), was a writer under the pseudonym Alfa. He graduated from the high school in Hranice, then he studied philosophy and aesthetics at the

Charles University Charles University (CUNI; , UK; ; ), or historically as the University of Prague (), is the largest university in the Czech Republic. It is one of the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest universities in the world in conti ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

until 1939, when the school was closed as a result of the

occupation of Czechoslovakia Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

. He then became an administrative clerk at the

City of Prague Museum The Museum of Prague is a museum serving the capital region of Prague. Its responsibilities include the management and presentation of collections documenting Prague’s past, as well as research into the history of the Czech capital and its pres ...

and found occasional work as a newspaper journalist and

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comics illustrators/artists in that they produce both the litera ...

. He got this job thanks to

Jan Drda Jan Drda (4 April 1915 – 28 November 1970) was a Czech journalist, politician, playwright, screenwriter and author of modern fairytales. He was the Czech State Prize Laureate in 1949 and 1953, and was a nominated again for the same prize in 196 ...

, who was his roommate during his student years. He worked as a press agent for the film studio Lucernafilm from summer 1941 to the end of 1942. In 1942, Brdečka took a job as an animator in the AFIT studio, and from 1949 until 1973 he was working as a screenwriter and film director at

Barrandov Studios Barrandov Studios is a set of film studios in Prague, Czech Republic. It is the largest film studio in the country and one of the largest in Europe. Barrandov has made several major Hollywood productions, including ''Mission: Impossible (film), ...

. At the same time, from 1958, he began directing animated films on his own in the Bratři v triku studio. In addition to his film work, he also worked as a journalist, film critic and novelist. Brdečka's work is marked by its droll intellectual humor, often featuring an extensive use of hyperbole, satire and literary illusions. Brdečka also worked as a painter and was generally considered a "

Renaissance man A polymath or polyhistor is an individual whose knowledge spans many different subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. Polymaths often prefer a specific context in which to explain their knowledge, ...

". Brdečka married in 1969. He had one daughter, the writer and film critic (born 1957). Her husband is the musician, songwriter and writer

Jiří Dědeček Jiří Dědeček (born 13 February 1953 Karlovy Vary) is a Czech musician, songwriter, poet, translator, writer and author of numerous radio and television programs. He performed in tandem with Jan Burian In the years 1973–1985. Dědeček is a ...

. Since 2013, Brdečková and her husband have been running the family publishing house Limonádový Joe, focused on the legacy of Jiří Brdečka and on her own work. Brdečka died on 2 June 1982 in

, aged 64. He is buried at the cemetery in his hometown of Hranice.

Work

Brdečka most often worked as a screenwriter. He had a fondness for the

Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that bega ...

, and thanks to this, his most famous work, the parody ''

'' was created. It was first a series of short stories, then a theatre play, and finally a film. He collaborated with prominent figures in Czech cinema, such as

Jan Werich Jan Werich (; 6 February 1905 – 31 October 1980) was a Czech actor, playwright and writer. Early life Between 1916 and 1924, Werich attended "reálné gymnasium" (equivalent to high school) in Křemencova Street in Prague (where his future b ...

Jiří Trnka Jiří Trnka (; 24 February 1912 – 30 December 1969) was a Czechoslovak puppet-maker, illustrator, motion-picture animator and film director. In addition to his extensive career as an illustrator, especially of children's books, he is be ...

and

Oldřich Lipský Oldřich Lipský (4 July 1924 – 19 October 1986) was a Czech film director and screenwriter. He focused exclusively on filming comedies and his work includes more than twenty films. Among his films with international success are '' Lemonade Joe' ...

. As a film director, he mainly worked in the field of short animated films. His most successful film was ''Špatně namalovaná slepice'', which won the Grand Prix award at

Annecy International Animation Film Festival The Annecy International Animation Film Festival (, officially abbreviated in English as the Annecy Festival, or simply Annecy) was created in 1960 and takes place at the beginning of June in the town of Annecy, France. Initially occurring ever ...

. Although he became known abroad thanks to his cartoons, today most of these films are forgotten and Brdečka is remembered primarily as the author of screenplays for successful film comedies.

Selected works

Film director

*''

Wedding in the Coral Sea ''Wedding in the Coral Sea'' (; ) is a 1944 Czech animated short film. It was written, animated and directed by a group of Czech cartoonists including Jiří Brdečka, Břetislav Pojar, Stanislav Látal and Jaroslav Doubrava in German-occupied P ...

'' (1944) *''

Springman and the SS ''Springman and the SS'' () is a 1946 Czechoslovak superhero animated short film directed by Jiří Trnka featuring Pérák, the Spring Man of Prague. The film is also known as ''The Chimney Sweep'' in the United States. The film competed at ...

'' (1946) *''Špatně namalovaná slepice'' (1963)

Screenwriter

*''

'' (1946) *''

The Emperor's Nightingale ''The Emperor's Nightingale'' () is a 1949 Czechoslovak stop-motion animated film directed by Jiří Trnka and Miloš Makovec. The film is based on the 1843 fairy tale " The Nightingale" by Hans Christian Andersen. Boris Karloff provides the vo ...

'' (1948) *''

The Emperor and the Golem ''The Emperor and the Golem'' (, literally "The Emperor′s Baker and Baker′s Emperor") is a two-part Czechoslovak historical fantasy comedy film produced in 1951. The film was shot in color (not common for Czechoslovak films in that period) b ...

'' (1951) *''

Old Czech Legends ''Old Czech Legends'' () is a 1953 Czechoslovak stop motion puppet animation film directed by Jiří Trnka. It is based on the 1894 book '' Ancient Bohemian Legends'' by Alois Jirásek. Production After the completion of '' Prince Bayaya'' in 1 ...

'' (1951) *'' Lost Children'' (1956) *''

The Fabulous World of Jules Verne ''Invention for Destruction'' () is a 1958 Czechoslovak black-and-white science fiction film, science fiction adventure film, directed by Karel Zeman, produced by Zdeněk Novák, and starring Lubor Tokoš, Arnošt Navrátil, and Miloslav Holub. ...

'' (1958) *''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a Comedy (drama), comedy play written by William Shakespeare in about 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One s ...

'' (1959) *''

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen ''The Fabulous Baron Munchausen'' () is a 1962 Czechoslovak romance film, romantic adventure film directed by Karel Zeman, based on the tales about Baron Munchausen. The film combines live-action with various forms of animation and is highly sty ...

'' (1961) *''

The Cassandra Cat ''The Cassandra Cat'' (; also released under the titles ''When the Cat Comes''; ''The Cat Who Wore Sunglasses''; ''One Day, a Cat''; and ''That Cat'') is a 1963 Czechoslovak comedy-drama film co-written and directed by Vojtěch Jasný. It is asso ...

'' (1963) *''

'' (1964) *''

Dinner for Adele ''Dinner for Adele'' () is a 1977 Czech parody comedy film directed by Oldřich Lipský. Alternative titles were ''Adele Hasn't Had Her Dinner Yet'', ''Nick Carter in Prague'' and ''Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet''. The film is set at the fin de s ...

'' (1977) *''

The Prince and the Evening Star The Prince and the Evening Star (, ) is a 1979 Czechoslovak coming-of-age fantasy film produced by the Barrandov Studios. Background Film based on short story ''O Slunečníku, Měsíčníku a Větrníku'' (Of Sunlight, Moonlight and Windmill) in ...

'' (1979) *''

The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians ''The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians'' () is a 1981 Czech comedy film directed by Oldřich Lipský. It is based on Jules Verne's novel '' The Carpathian Castle''. Production The film marks Lipský's third and final collaboration with scree ...

'' (1981)

Books

*''Limonádový Joe'' (1946) – Wild West parody *''Kolty bez pozlátka'' (1956) – popular educational text about real Wild West figures *''Faunovo značně pokročilé odpoledne'' (1966) – collection of humorous stories

References

External links

*
Essay on Jiří Brdečka
by

Gene Deitch Eugene Merril Deitch (August 8, 1924 – April 16, 2020) was an American illustrator, animator, comics artist, and film director who was based in Prague from the 1960s until his death in 2020. Deitch was known for creating animated cartoons ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brdecka, Jiri 1917 births 1982 deaths People from Hranice (Přerov District) People from the Margraviate of Moravia Czech animated film directors Czech journalists Czech cartoonists Czech humorists Czech satirists Czech male screenwriters 20th-century Czech journalists 20th-century Czech screenwriters 20th-century Czech male writers Czechoslovak writers