Otto Šimánek
Date of birth: 1925-04-28
Place of birth: Třešť, Československo
Known for: Acting
Also known as: Oto Šimánek, Otta Šimánek, Ota Šimánek
Biography
Otto Šimánek (April 28, 1925 Třešť - May 8, 1992 Prague) was a Czech mime, film and theater actor. He has starred in a number of comedies and several fairy tales. Probably his most famous role was the title role in the series Pan Tau. He trained as an electrician at Tesla in Prague and has so far played the theater only amateuristically. He later got to the Theater on May 5 and also traveled for a few months at the Theater under the Placht of Jindřich Plachta. He gained acting experience in various theaters. He worked in theaters in Zlín, Ostrava and finally in 1958 he was engaged in the Municipal Theaters of Prague, where he lasted until 1990. He played a number of large roles on the stage. The character of the clown Jean Debureau remains unforgettable for the audience in the dramatization of Kožík's novel The Greatest of the Pierots, where he could fully use his love for pantomime. Acting in the Prague theater also meant an opportunity to win film and television roles. He mainly played smaller roles in about forty films. The most famous is probably the role from the movie I'll Get Up Tomorrow and Bake My Tea. His character, Mr. Tau, entered the European and, to some extent, world film consciousness in the co-production series of the same name by director Jindřich Polák and screenwriter Ota Hofman. He also taught pantomime at the Prague Conservatory and DAMU. Among his students was, among others, the actor Petr Čepek. On the site of the pharmacy where Otto Šimánek was born, an ash statue was installed in 2011 depicting an actor in the role of Mr. Tau with a typical hand movement near his hat. The author is Daniel Stejskal.
Movie Credits
Měšťáci
1958-02-05
Tlustý anděl z Rouenu
1958-03-12
Dařbuján a Pandrhola
1959-12-24
The miner Dařbuján has a lot of children that he cannot support and another one has just been born.
Where an Alibi Is Not Everything
1961-07-28
“A bored housewife, a husband who married her for show, and a stupid boy who is full of himself beca
Básník, služka a král
1977-12-02
Vo modrým ptáčku
1968-12-24
Tři chlapi v chalupě
1963-12-25
The three Potůčks live in a house in Ouplavice: a widower grandfather, a son whose wife has run away
Dům na Ořechovce
1959-10-16
The growing conflict between the unruly owner of the villa and his lodger ends up in court. The coha
The End of Agent W4C
1967-10-06
The invincible agent Cyril Juan Borguette alias W4C has been assigned a mission to go to a hotel in
Švec Janek v pohádkové zemi
1979-12-30
Tomorrow I'll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea
1977-08-12
Former Nazi Klaus Abard survives to the 1990s by taking anti-ageing pills. He plans to use a time tr
Kamenný orchestr
1982-03-11
Black Saturday
1961-01-06
In this crime story, surprisingly, neither the all-powerful criminals nor the spies or saboteurs are
Šach mat
1985-01-01
Policejní hodina
1961-04-21
The story of a poor, disintegrating family of a mother Fišerová and her three children. It is set in
O kohoutovi, kose a kocourovi
1969-09-14
The Black Dynasty
1962-11-30
The family is connected with Prague's "Kolbenka", the ČKD locomotive factory. Grandfather Antonín, a
Mature Wine
1981-07-31
A loose sequel to the 1976 comedy Stormy Wine. The screenwriters and the director recreate on screen
Malý Bobeš ve městě
1962-12-07
A loose sequel to the film Little Bobes, it catches up with the title child hero in the town where h
Objev na Střapaté hůrce
1962-11-16
The Pioneers are leaving for a holiday camp for young astronomers. And it's going to be an interesti
Death Is Called Engelchen
1963-05-03
Pavel is a Czech partisan fighter in the waning days of the war. Just as peace is declared, Pavel is
Začít znova
1964-03-13
Young Jan Stehlík signs up for a job to build a new mine. On the train he meets the pretty Alena, wh
Bajaja
1960-12-24
Táto, přečti to!
1963-01-01
A young father spends Sunday with his young daughter.
Sganarel lékařem
1962-12-25
Tvrdohlavá žena a zamilovaný školní mládenec
1962-05-01
Bubny
1965-03-12
An anthology in three jazz-infused tales: an idealistic student’s romance with a pragmatic trumpeter
Zelená vlna
1982-06-25
A short film about Prague, Prague residents, and the beginning of the weekend.
Poslední návrat
1983-07-17
Lucy, the Menace of Street
1984-10-01
A first part of a funny adventures of six years old Lucie and her two magic dolls.
Zajatci tmy
1964-01-01
Crime at the Girls School
1966-02-18
Three short story omnibus. The main hero and connecting link is Lieutenant Boruvka, created by Lubom
Poslední růže od Casanovy
1966-08-05
The story takes place at the time when Giacomo Casanova, probably the most famous conqueror of women
The Phantom of Morrisville
1966-07-15
Inspector Brumpby (Jaroslav Marvan) and the young crime reporter Allan Pinkerton (Vít Olmer) attend
Sedm sestřiček
1966-12-25
Who Wants to Kill Jessie?
1966-08-26
In this zany Czechoslovakian comedy, a scientist invents a machine that projects a sleeping person's
Honza a Růžová panenka
1975-05-18
Sedm žen Alfonse Karáska aneb Když holky berou, já nevím kterou
1967-12-31
Alfons Karásek says goodbye to his wife Růžena at the train station, who is going to the spa. He pla
Údolie večných karaván
1968-02-15
Kalif čápem
1970-04-12
Maryla
1969-12-24
One of Them Is the Murderer
1971-04-23
Marek (Jirí Holý), formerly a driver of a long-distance lorry, has served his term for smuggling art
Svatby pana Voka
1971-03-26
Czech nobleman Petr Vok of Rozmberk (Milos Kopecký) is no longer so young, but his amatory adventure
Pan Tau – der Film
1988-11-03
Pan Tau, the friend of all children, now also helps the adults. A movie producer is in trouble and
Letiště nepřijímá
1960-02-26
The conflicts in one pilot's fractured marriage come to a head just as Soviet jets are introduced to
Touha Sherlocka Holmese
1972-03-03
Sherlock Holmes likes to play violin and expects a great career in music. He gets a place in a spa o
Lásky Emanuela Přibyla
1971-12-31
No Magic from Tomorrow
1979-11-01
Mr. Tau, the quiet and kind magician with a bowler hat and an umbrella, shows up unexpectedly on the
Alarm in the Clouds
1978-11-01
In defiance of all the laws of physics Mr. Tau is walking on the wing of an aircraft flying close to
Bidýlko
1967-05-24
Světáci
1963-05-01
Two families live in a weaver's cottage - the Menecs and the Hroms. The women are pretty from the st
Every Young Man
1966-05-13
Jurácek's feature debut is shot in two parts. In the first, a corporal accompanies a new recruit wit
Dva muži hlásí příchod
1975-09-26
An only son, Jirí Valenta (Jaromír Hanzlík), has been drafted to the army. At the barracks he acquir
Duch soudce Pauknera
1983-07-03
Wine Working
1976-04-30
It is the summer of 1968 and also in South Moravian Pálavice appear political clashes. The so far pe
...and again that Lucy!
1984-12-01
A second part of a funny adventures of six years old Lucie and her two magic dolls.
Ohnivé ženy se vracejí
1987-03-28
A loose continuation of the production of The Fiery Women. The souls of the witches Marta and Magdal
Vajíčko
1969-02-19
The Hope
1964-01-17
A group of outcasts, including a vagabond and a prostitute, gather at the outskirts of the industria
Chicken on Travels
1962-06-01
The story of a childhood dream come true. Schoolchildren discover an abandoned poultry farm with an
The Fabulous Baron Munchausen
1962-07-01
A 20th century man lands on the Moon and discovers that Baron Munchausen has beaten him to it, accom
Desire
1958-12-25
A poignant overview of how short life can be, this interesting drama from Czech director Vojetch Jas
Men About Town
1969-10-10
Three blue collar workers have a night out in big city Prague.
The Fabulous World of Jules Verne
1958-08-22
As the world progresses into the industrial age, a professor studying the "nature of pure matter" is
You Are a Widow, Sir
1971-01-15
After a soldier cuts off the arm of king's cousin, king decides to deactivate the army. Of course, g
O bílém jadýrku
1983-05-09
A romantic fairy tale about how a castle lady found her lost son, who demonstrated rare bravery, kin
Kde bydlí štěstí
1987-10-11
The poor shoemaker's daughter was hardworking, kind, and honest, and with her character and immense
Panenka z vltavské tůně
1976-12-24
The funny TV fairy tale THE DOLL FROM THE VLTAVSKA POOL (1976) tells not only about the coexistence
A Prayer for Katerina Horovitzova
1965-10-13
A group of wealthy American Jewish businessmen have been captured by the SS and are told that they a
Fear
1964-04-03
A car deliberately runs down a young man on a road by a small border town. The locals recognize the
Merry Christmas Octopus
1987-11-01
Eva and her younger brother Johnny own two sentient octopuses made out of strange matter. Will their
Trezor
1989-01-01
Spadla s měsíce
1961-08-18
A story about the uproar caused by the arrival of a new, young and, by local standards, too energeti
Shoesmachine
1954-09-24
The happenings in a shoe factory serve as a not very thinly veiled examination of the pros and cons
Stalo se jedné neděle
1985-01-01
Šlechetný cowboy Sandy
1964-01-01
In a small Texas town where cowboys lived their usual lives, local villain Bill Crooked Mouth and hi
Polka jede do světa
1965-01-01
Cesta řeky k moři
1966-12-25
Všude žijí lidé
1960-12-16
Even if a person grumbles about difficulties, he should realize that he will find a place where he d
Svatební cesta aneb Ještě ne, Evžene!
1966-12-31
After a night of partying together, the groom-to-be and his friend wake up to find that the wedding
Tři chlapi po roce
1964-10-31
Ta naše písnička česká
1967-08-11
The Haszler songs of Prague, so popular in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, have n
I andělé ztrácejí trpělivost
1949-01-01
Statečný Azmun
1986-12-21
In a seaside village, fishermen have no catch and are starving. The bravest of them, Azmun, sets off
Přísně tajné premiéry
1968-01-26
A crime writer is accused of being too imaginative and his ideas unworkable, but everything changes
Nedělní dostaveníčko
1954-01-01
Co je platno kárat, co je platno kázat
1978-02-11
The story of how it turned out when a young lawyer tried to intellectually elevate a cute dancer fro
Santa Lucia
1985-02-07
Podnájem na Champs Ellysèes
1991-01-18
Medvěd
1956-04-18
Zkouška pokračuje
1960-09-02
As a young actor František Lukávec and his teacher Vladimir Tuma became enemies. František insisted
Three Wishes for Cinderella
1973-11-16
Popelka, a resourceful and independent young girl, is a servant in her stepmother's house and confid
The Octopuses from the Second Floor
1987-07-01
While on vacation with their bickering parents, young Eva and her little brother Johnny find in a po
Young Wine
1986-09-01
Third wine session, this time with a computer. The film was made in direct relation to the audience
Území strachu
1986-08-31