Miloš Macourek (2 December 1926 – 30 September 2002) 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 and writer. Early in his career, he also wrote poems and plays. He was valued for his great imagination and sense of humor. He is known primarily for his books and films for children and for film comedies.

Biography

Miloš Macourek was born on 2 December 1926 in

Kroměříž Kroměříž (; ) is a town in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 28,000 inhabitants. It is known for Kroměříž Castle with its castle gardens, which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The historic town centre with the castle ...

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 ...

, when his mother came to visit his grandmother. However, thanks to visits to his grandmother, he spent a large part of his childhood in this town. He was born into a lawyer's family. He studied at the gymnasium in Místek in 1939–1941, but the gymnasium was closed by the Nazis. After the war, he continued his studies, but in 1946 he left for

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 ...

and tried various jobs. Because of his unfinished studies, he was called the black sheep of his family. From 1946, Macourek regularly contributed to magazines. He completed his military service in 1948–1950, then he worked for the Central Council of Trade Unions. From 1954, he worked as a lecturer in the Department of History of Literature and Art at the Central School of Trade Unions. From 1959, he cooperated with the Theatre on the Balustrade. In 1960, he was employed as a dramaturgist at the Barrandov Film Studios, and from 1963 he continued there as a screenwriter. From 1980, he worked as a

freelancer ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...

. Macourek died after a long illness on 30 September 2002 in Prague.

Career

Macourek was valued for his great imagination, sense of humor and exaggeration. The largest part of his work consists of children's books, TV series for children and film comedies. In the early days of his career, he wrote poems. He was compared to the French poet

Jacques Prévert Jacques Prévert (; 4 February 1900 – 11 April 1977) was a French poet and screenwriter. His poems became and remain popular in the French-speaking world, particularly in schools. His best-regarded films formed part of the Poetic realism, poetic ...

, whom he translated into Czech. In 1962, together with

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and dissident. Havel served as the last List of presidents of Czechoslovakia, president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until 1992, prior to the dissol ...

, he wrote the play ''Nejlepší rocky paní Hermanové'' for the Theatre on the Balustrade and definitively moved away from serious art. His works have been translated into several languages and have won many awards. As a screenwriter, he most often collaborated with directors

Václav Vorlíček Václav Vorlíček (3 June 1930 – 5 February 2019) was a Czech film director. His filmography includes several comedies made in collaboration with screenwriter Miloš Macourek. He also specialized in directing children's and fairytale films, mos ...

and Oldřich Lipský, both of them also contributing to the screenplay. With both of them he made many comedies that belong to the golden fund of Czech cinematography, but he made the most successful films with Vorlíček. Their first film '' Who Wants to Kill Jessie?'' (1966) won the main award at the

Trieste Film Festival The Trieste Film Festival is an international film festival founded in 1989. Held annually on the third week of January in Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Region ...

. Macourek also wrote scripts for cartoons and collaborated with the painter

Adolf Born Adolf Born (12 June 1930 – 22 May 2016) was a Czech painter, illustrator, filmmaker and caricaturist, "known for his murkily-tinted pictures of bizarre fauna, and Victorian gentlemen in top hats and top coats". Schmadel, L. D., ''Dictionary of ...

, with whom they made over 40 films. The most notable such work is '' Mach a Šebestová''.

Selected works

Film and TV screenplays

*'' Who Wants to Kill Jessie?'' (1966) *'' Happy End'' (1967) *'' The End of Agent W4C'' (1967) *'' I Killed Einstein, Gentlemen'' (1969) *'' Four Murders Are Enough, Darling'' (1971) *'' You Are a Widow, Sir'' (1971) *''

Straw Hat A straw hat is a wide-brimmed hat woven out of straw or straw-like synthetic materials. Straw hats are a type of sun hat designed to shade the head and face from direct sunlight, but are also used in fashion as a decorative element or a ...

'' (1971) *'' The Girl on the Broomstick'' (1972) *'' Šest medvědů s Cibulkou'' (1972) *'' How to Drown Dr. Mracek, the Lawyer'' (1974) *'' Circus in the Circus'' (1975) *'' Mach a Šebestová'' (TV series, 1976–1982) *'' Arabela'' (TV series, 1980–1981) *'' Létající Čestmír'' (TV series, 1984) *'' Křeček v noční košili'' (TV series, 1987) *'' Arabela Returns'' (TV series, 1993–1994) *'' Wild Flowers'' (2000)

Books

*''Člověk by nevěřil svým očím'' (1958) – poetry *''Živočichopis'' (1962) *'' Hovory s veverkou'' (1963) *''Jakub a dvě stě dědečků'' (1963) *''Žirafa nebo tulipán?'' (1964) *''Mravenečník v početnici'' (1966) *''Pohádky'' (1971) *''Světe, div se'' (1974) *''Mach a Šebestová'' (1982) *''Láska a dělové koule'' (1989) *''Žofka'' (1992) *''Žofka ředitelkou zoo'' (2001)

Comics

*'' Muriel a andělé'' (1969, drawn by Kája Saudek) *'' Muriel a oranžová smrt'' (1969–1970, drawn by Kája Saudek) *''Peruánský deník'' (1984, drawn by Kája Saudek)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macourek, Milos 1926 births 2002 deaths Czech male poets Czech male dramatists and playwrights Czech male screenwriters People from Kroměříž 20th-century Czech poets 20th-century Czech dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Czech male writers 20th-century Czech screenwriters Czech science fiction writers