Jan Potměšil
Jan Potměšil | |
|---|---|
 Potmĕšil in 2006 | |
| Born | 31 March 1966 Prague, Czechoslovakia |
| Died | 16 April 2026 (aged 60) Prague, Czech Republic |
| Alma mater | Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1976–2026 |
Jan Potměšil (31 March 1966 – 16 April 2026) was a Czech actor.
Life and career
In the summer of 1989, Potměšil finished his lectures at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and joined Divadlo na Vinohradech. Later that year, he hooked up with other students and actors who were going to Ostrava to persuade the miners to support the Velvet Revolution. On the way back, he was injured in car accident, suffering a severe spinal injury. He was in the backseat at the time of the crash. It has been suspected that the accident was caused by the driver falling into a microsleep, a theory Potměšil supported.[1] Another actor, Jan Kačer was also in the car at the time of the crash, sitting in the passenger seat.[2][1] After the accident, Potměšil was paralysed from the waist down, requiring him to use a wheelchair.
Potměšil was a prominent member of the Kašpar theatre company that performs in the Divadlo v Celetné, Prague. He performed major characters in several plays. The most notable ones include Charlie Gordon in Flowers for Algernon (more than ten years on the repertoire), the title role in Richard III (received Alfréd Radok Award for best actor), Jesus in Felix Mitterer's Trouble in the House of God, or Polonius in Hamlet. In Lyra Pragensis, he performed Henri Toulouse-Lautrec in Pavlík's Beauty from Moulin Rouge, Fletcher in a scenic reading of Richard Bach's Jonathan Livingston Seagull, and Dickie in Running from Safety of the same author.
Potměšil died on 16 April 2026, at the age of 60, after a long period of severe health problems. His wife stated that he had died in his sleep.[2][3][4]
Selected filmography
- Žena za pultem (The Woman Behind the Counter; 1977) as Petr Holub
- Why? (1987) as Milan
- Princess Jasnenka and the Flying Shoemaker (1987) as Jíra, the shoemaker
- Bony a klid (1987) as Martin Holec
- In the Coat of Lioness' Arms (1994) as the knight
References
- 1 2 Šťastná, Barbora (17 April 2026). "Všechno ve mně volalo, ano, chci žít, vzpomínal na osudnou nehodu Jan Potměšil". Deník (in Czech). Vltava Labe Media. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
- 1 2 "Ve věku 60 let zemřel divadelní a filmový herec Jan Potměšil". iDNES.cz (in Czech). Mafra. Czech News Agency. 17 April 2026. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
- ↑ Novotný, Jáchym. "Zemřel Jan Potměšil. Hrál létajícího ševce či ve filmu Bony a klid". ČT24 (in Czech). Czech Television. Czech News Agency. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
- ↑ Grajcarová, Romana (17 April 2026). ""Better to be in a wheelchair than with communists": Actor Jan Potměšil dies at 60". Czech Radio. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
External links
- Jan Potměšil at IMDb
- Jan Potměšil discography at Discogs
- 1966 births
- 2026 deaths
- 20th-century Czech male actors
- 21st-century Czech male actors
- Male actors from Prague
- Academic staff of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague
- People with paraplegia
- Czech male film actors
- Czech male stage actors
- Czech male television actors
- Czech wheelchair users
- Recipients of the Thalia Award
- Survivors of road incidents
- Czech actor stubs