Photo of Miloš Kopecký
Acting

Miloš Kopecký

Profession
Acting
Born
August 22, 1922 · Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]
Died
February 16, 1996

Biography

Miloš Kopecký was a Czech actor, active mainly in the second half of the 20th century.  He was born into the family of craftsmen, Kopecký was involved with music and theater throughout his entire life.  Starting on stage in 1939, as a member of an amateur elocution group, Kopecký performed with numerous young artists during the German occupation of then Czechoslovakia.  Near the end of World War II, Kopecký’s mother was murdered at the Auschwitz concentration camp for her Jewish heritage, while Miloš was interned in the labor camp Bystřice u Benešova.  He would later credit these experiences as the cause for his struggle with Bipolar Disorder, then known as Manic-Depressive Disease.   Following the liberation, Kopecký began acting in the avant-garde studio Větrník in 1945, before joining the Vinohrady Theatre in 1965 at the behest of then-director František Pavlíček.  Kopecký  continued to make guest appearances at theaters throughout Prague, working with many notable actors of his era before appearing on film and television.  His first minor role was in the historic film Jan Roháč z Dubé (1947), but he quickly graduated to more important characters and gradually became one of the most popular actors in Czechoslovakia.   He may be best known today as Dr. Štrosmajer in the Czech television series Nemocnice na kraji města.  During his career he played mainly negative roles of traitors, lechers, and villain, which he famously depicted with elegance and esprit.   In the mid-1980s Kopecký acted in a politically biased documentary film about emigrants, and also presented very critical speech against current communist régimes in May, 1987, at the Fourth Congress of Dramatic Artists.  He was married five times, at one point to Czech actress Stella Zázvorková.

Known for

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen poster
The Fabulous Baron Munchausen
Film · 1962 · ★ 7.4
Lemonade Joe poster
Lemonade Joe
Film · 1964 · ★ 7.1
Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet poster
Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet
Film · 1978 · ★ 7.5
The Emperor and the Golem poster
The Emperor and the Golem
Film · 1951 · ★ 7.0
The Good Soldier Švejk poster
The Good Soldier Švejk
Film · 1957 · ★ 7.5
The Three Veterans poster
The Three Veterans
Film · 1984 · ★ 7.8
The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians poster
The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians
Film · 1981 · ★ 6.1
How to Drown Dr. Mracek, the Lawyer poster
How to Drown Dr. Mracek, the Lawyer
Film · 1975 · ★ 6.6
Once Upon a Time, There Was a King... poster
Once Upon a Time, There Was a King...
Film · 1955 · ★ 8.0
The Proud Princess poster
The Proud Princess
Film · 1952 · ★ 7.2
I Killed Einstein, Gentlemen poster
I Killed Einstein, Gentlemen
Film · 1970 · ★ 5.9
You Are a Widow, Sir poster
You Are a Widow, Sir
Film · 1971 · ★ 6.8

Filmography