Vladimír Menšík (9 October 1929 – 29 May 1988) was a Czech actor and entertainer. He is considered one of the greatest Czech comedians, storytellers and improvisers.

Life

Vladimír Menšík was born on 9 October 1929 in Ivančice, Czechoslovakia as Vladislav Menšík. The year 1924 was listed during his lifetime, after Menšík falsified his documents for fun. He also once stated that he did it so he could "retire early". The fraud was discovered in 1988, shortly before his death.

Despite suffering from asthma, he was a keen athlete and played handball competitively. In 1949, he graduated from the secondary mechanical engineering school in Brno. In 1953, he graduated from the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts in Brno. He learned to sing and to play the clarinet, piano and mandolin. He then moved to Prague and started working in theatres there. In 1954–1958, he played in E. F. Burian Theatre and was a guest in other theatres. Because he did not enjoy performing on a daily basis, he then left the theatre and became a member of the acting ensemble of the Barrandov Film Studio.

Menšík was married twice. He had two children with each of his wives.

Selected work

;Films

  • September Nights (1957)
  • The Slinger (1960)
  • Hledá se táta (1961)
  • The Cassandra Cat (1963)
  • Lemonade Joe (1964)
  • Loves of a Blonde (1965)
  • Marketa Lazarová (1967)
  • All My Good Countrymen (1968)
  • The Cremator (1969)
  • Světáci (1969)
  • You Are a Widow, Sir (1970)
  • The Girl on the Broomstick (1972)
  • Three Wishes for Cinderella (1973)
  • How to Drown Dr. Mracek, the Lawyer (1974)
  • Což takhle dát si špenát (1977)
  • Tomorrow I'll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea (1977)
  • How to Wake a Princess (1978)
  • The Prince and the Evening Star (1979)
  • Love Between the Raindrops (1980)
  • Dobří holubi se vracejí (1987)

;TV series

  • Pan Tau (1970–1979)
  • F. L. Věk (1971–1972)
  • Byl jednou jeden dům (1975)
  • Chalupáři (1975)
  • Arabela (1979–1981)
  • Návštěvníci (1983–1984)
  • Létající Čestmír (1984)

Honours and legacy

He won the national Most Popular Actor poll four times (in 1969, 1973, 1974 and 1978). In 1974, he became Meritorious Artist (a state-awarded honorary title for outstanding artists). In 1978, he was awarded National Artist (a higher-degree honorary title).

A tram in Brno was named after Menšík in 2016.