Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek (/s-payble & hoor-vee-neck/) is a Czech puppet comedy duo conceived by puppeteer Josef Skupa. Spejbl was carved by Karel Nosek in 1920 and HurvÃÂnek by his nephew in 1926. Over time, their appearances, including physical shapes and costumes, gradually changed, and each carver contributed their unique style.
The duo, which became internationally successful, has its own theatre in Prague. They have appeared in a number of television series and VeÃÂernÃÂÃÂek titles as well as several full-length films, including the 2017 3D animated Harvie and the Magic Museum. Various comedy albums have been released, each usually containing one story, about the dim-witted father Josef Spejbl and his son HurvÃÂnek, who live in one apartment with and her granddaughter , as well as the dog à ½eryk (), who has the ability to bark words.
The first of the puppets, created by Josef Skupa in Plzeà  in 1920 and carved by Karel Nosek, was SpejblâÂÂa disgruntled teacher barely able to keep up with his surroundings. Skupa performed with him in cabarets in western Bohemia. In 1926, he brought to life Spejbl's son, HurvÃÂnekâÂÂa sometimes lazy, sometimes hyperactive son whose puppet was carved by . By that time, Skupa had mastered performing with both puppets, even providing voices for them.
The success Skupa had with the two puppets was enough for him to establish a dedicated venue, Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek Theatre, in 1930âÂÂthe first professional puppeteer's stage in Czechoslovakia. That year, he added two new characters to the set, namely and the dog à ½eryk ().
Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek Theatre operated as a touring company until 1943, and Skupa was arrested a year later for anti-Nazi activity during World War II. After his release and the end of the war, the company moved to its current location in Prague.
Skupa delegated the puppeteering work to other artists in the theatre and concentrated on providing voices and writing new plots. After his death in 1957, the next actor to voice Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek was . MániÃÂka was first voiced by Anna Kreuzmannová, then by Boà ¾ena Weleková from 1945, and by Helena à  táchová, Kirschner's wife, from 1969. In 1971, à  táchová helped create the character of , MániÃÂka's grandmother, and she also voiced her. After Kirschner death in 1996, Martin Klásek became the third interpreter of Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek. He was followed by Ondà Âej LÃ¡à ¾novský, and after his departure from the theatre in 2022, Martin Trecha took over the roles. Following à  táchová's death in 2017, Marie à  imsová became the voice of MániÃÂka and Mrs. Kateà Âina, and she was in turn replaced by Jana Mudráková in 2022.
Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek have performed across Czechoslovakia (present-day Czechia and Slovakia) as well as overseas, including in Germany, the United States, Canada, Japan, Taiwan, India, Egypt, Jordan, Mexico, and Spain.
In Skupa's hometown of Plzeà Â, there is a memorial statue of the puppet duo.
Skupa died childless, and the trademark to his puppets passed to his wife, (née Schwarzová). It was subsequently held by the Municipal Institute of Social Services in Plzeà Â, which initiated a lawsuit against the theatre company in 1998 in order to obtain a share of the revenue from the puppets. In 2007, the Supreme Court of the Czech Republic upheld Helena à  táchová's rights to the puppets, in her role as director of the theatre at the time.
The minor planets 29472 HurvÃÂnek and 29471 Spejbl, both discovered by Lenka Kotková, are named after the characters.
On 25 May 2022, HurvÃÂnek was sent into space. A two-centimeter glass figurine dressed in a miniature white spacesuit was launched on board the Czech satellite, carried by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Planetum 1 was an educational project that involved a control centre at the Prague planetarium. It was the second time a Czech children's character had flown into space, after the Little Mole, who went up twice.
In 2003, Canadian DJ Tiga used an imitation Spejbl puppet in a music video for a cover of the Nelly song "Hot in Herre". This caused consternation among Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek Theatre staff as well as fans, as the likeness was used without permission. Helena à  táchová stated that "This is a blatant violation of our trademark; without a license, no one is allowed to use the puppets for their own purposes". She later said that she liked the video, however, but that "this is an important precedent; we have to handle it properly".
Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek
MániÃÂka
à ½eryk
Ms. Kateà Âina
Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek have appeared in a number of film and television productions:
In 2012, Spejbl and HurvÃÂnek received the Special Thalia Award for Lifetime Mastery in the Field of Puppet Theatre.