Jirí Trnka

Trnka, Jiří

 

Born Feb. 24,1912, in Plzeň; died Dec. 30,1969, in Prague. Czechoslovak animated film director. People’s Artist of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1963).

Trnka began his career in 1928 in J. Skupa’s puppet theater. During World War II (1941–45) he worked as an artist in the National Theater in Prague. After the war, Trnka was one of the founders of puppet cinema. He directed the animated films Špaliček (1947), Prince Bajaja (after the work by Němcová, 1950), Old Czech Tales (after Jirásek, 1953), The Good Soldier švejk (after the novel by Hašek, 1955), and The Gurvinek Circus (1955). He was also famous as an illustrator of children’s books.

Trnka was awarded the State Prize of the Czechoslovak Social ist Republic (1954) and the Peace Prize of the Czechoslovak So cialist Republic (1958).