Thirty Cases of Major Zeman
Encyclopedia
Thirty Cases of Major Zeman (Třicet případů majora Zemana) is a Czechoslovakia
n action-drama television show intended as a political propaganda to support the official attitude of the communist party
. The series were filmed in the 1970s.
Each episode encompasses one year, and investigations are stylized to that year. Most are inspired by real cases. The series follows the life of police investigator Jan Zeman during his career from 1945 to 1975.
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
n action-drama television show intended as a political propaganda to support the official attitude of the communist party
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia
The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, in Czech and in Slovak: Komunistická strana Československa was a Communist and Marxist-Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992....
. The series were filmed in the 1970s.
Each episode encompasses one year, and investigations are stylized to that year. Most are inspired by real cases. The series follows the life of police investigator Jan Zeman during his career from 1945 to 1975.
Plot of the first episode
The first episode takes place in 1945. Young Jan Zeman is returning from a Nazi concentration camp. On the train he meets Václav Kalina, who tells him about his plan to join the police force. Jan returns to his home village and finds only his mother there. He discovers that his father has been murdered during the celebrations. The police are unable to find the murderer and close the case. Jan begins investigating on his own. He reveals a conspiracy and calls his friend Václav Kalina at Brno police headquarters; eventually, the murderers are captured. Kalina induces Jan to join the police and serve with him.List of episodes
- (1945) Smrt u jezera (Death at the Lake)
- (1946) Vyznavači ohně (Fire Devotees)
- (1947) Loupež sladkého "I" (The Robbery of the Sweet "I") - About profiteering on deficiency of InsulinInsulinInsulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
. - (1947) Rubínové kříže (Ruby Crosses) - inspired by Bandera'sOrganization of Ukrainian NationalistsThe Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists is a Ukrainian political organization which as a movement originally was created in 1929 in Western Ukraine . The OUN accepted violence as an acceptable tool in the fight against foreign and domestic enemies particularly Poland and Russia...
activities on the Czechoslovak territory. - (1948) Hon na lišku (Fox Hunt) - propagandaPropagandaPropaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
section about "Victorious February" - (1949) Bestie (The Beast) - about illegal crossing of the Czechoslovak state border, inspired by Hubert PilčíkHubert PilčíkHubert Pilčík was a Czechoslovak serial killer, human trafficker and rural herbalist. After second world war, Pilčík started smuggling people across the border from the Czech Republic into Germany. He started killing his customers in 1948, already in senior age. After his capture, Pilčík committed...
- (1950) Mědirytina (The Copperplate) - about countrerfeiting of Ration stamps used until 1953.
- (1951) Strach (Fear) - inspired by Mašín's sons
- (1952) Loď do Hamburku (The Riverboat to Hamburg) - one of the episodes about agentEspionageEspionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
Pavel Bláha. - (1953) Vrah se skrývá v poli (The Murderer Hides in the Field)
- (1954) Křížová cesta (Way of the Cross) - one of the episodes about agentEspionageEspionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
Pavel Bláha. - (1955) Kleště (The Tongs) - one of the episodes about agentEspionageEspionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
Pavel Bláha. - (1956) Romance o nenápadné paní (Romance of an Unobtrusive Lady)
- (1957) Konec velké šance (The End of Great Chance) - one of the episodes about agentEspionageEspionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
Pavel Bláha. - (1958) Kvadratura ženy (Woman Quadrature) - about dissected female body.
- (1959) Dáma s erbem (The Lady with a Coat of Arms)
- (1960) Prokleté dědictví (The Cursed Heritage)
- (1961) Bílé linky (The White Lines)
- (1962) Třetí housle (The Third Violin)
- (1963) Modrá světla (Blue Lights)
- (1964) Pán ze Salcburku (A Gentleman from Salzburg)
- (1965) Tatranské pastorále (High Tatra Pastorale)
- (1966) Šťastný a veselý (Happy New Year)
- (1967) Klauni (Clowns)
- (1968) Štvanice (The Hunt) - propagandaPropagandaPropaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
episode about end of political steps to the freedomAction Programme (1968)The Action Programme is a political plan, devised by Alexander Dubček and his associates in the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia , that was published on April 5, 1968. The program suggested that the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic find its own path towards mature socialism rather than follow the...
. - (1969) Studna (The Well) - horror episode about apocalyptic deaths in a country house.
- (1970) Rukojmí v Bella Vista (The Bella Vista Hostage)- episode about sabotage against Czech shipment for ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. Spy story having allusion to political situation in ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far... - (1971) Poselství z neznámé země (The Message from an Unknown Land) - continue of The Bella Vista Hostage
- (1972) Mimikry (Mimicry) - episode about plane hijack, with allusion to the music band Plastic PeopleThe Plastic People of the UniverseThe Plastic People of the Universe is a rock band from Prague, Czech Republic. It was the foremost representative of Prague's underground culture . This avant-garde group went against the grain of the Communist regime and due to its non-conformism often suffered serious problems such as arrests...
and young long-haired sympathizers of rock music called máničkyMáničkaMánička is a Czech term used for young people with long hair, usually males, in Czechoslovakia through the 1960s and 1970s...
. - (1973) Růže pro Zemana (The Rose for Zeman)