Cottageers: three mistakes crept into the series, one of the actresses fell under the car

“Did you know that I didn’t want to shoot the Cottagemen? After such series as FL Age or Marriages of Reason, I perceived them as small consumer goods, “recalls years after his first courtship with the series, director František Filip, who finally got convinced and started shooting. Today, he does not regret it and admits that he was wrong in his judgment at the time.

In the following lines, we bring you the authentic memories of two actresses – Gabriela Vránová and Luba Skořepová – who are no longer with us, but I often talked to them, not only about the Chalupářs.

Dance U Fleků

The 11-part series was filmed in the first half of the 1970s in the small village of Višňová near Příbram. Screenwriters František Vlček and Václav Borovička played a bit with the name of the village, so they renamed it Třešňová. “To this day, I have a vivid memory of the local church, above the entrance of which was written the phrase: The clock strikes your time, remember the end,” actress Gabriela Vránová recalled the picturesque village. “The whole shooting was accompanied by an incredibly pleasant atmosphere, and maybe that’s why I remember almost all the scenes very well even after such a long time.

However, I prefer to remember the famous U Fleků scene, where I danced on the table with full commitment. Of course, the filming slowly turned into a private celebration, which lasted until the early hours of the morning, “said the series Anča Čiháková with a fondness and a smile on her face about the work Romeo from the bus.

“The partnership with Vladimír Menšík, who played my husband, was amazing. We had a lot of unprecedented fun with him. However, he was most impressed during the preparation of the stage, when he was to hang himself in one episode during rehearsals for a theatrical performance called Hubička. He showed an incredible number of different variants of what it might look like in the final. It was during this scene that the thousandth flap fell. Of course, it was celebrated right away. “

Gabriela Vránová also had a lot of experiences with colleagues Josef Kemr and Jiří Sovák. “You can’t forget especially how they had fun during the filming, not only in front of the camera, but also in civilian clothes. They also came up with a lot of other funny scenes and announcements for the series. It was a beautiful summer, “she never forgot to point out.

Chickens in dreams

Luba Skořepová also had a lot of experiences from filming Chalupáři. However, she did one of them for good every time a speech came on the set, which was really unforgettable for her. “In Chalupáři, as a gypsy, I was in charge of chickens with my husband of the same skin, Otto Lackovič. To this day, it seems to me in terrifying dreams how newborn chickens are afraid for life, how they eat, I don’t want to say what the more able ones endure and the weaker ones fall, then they throw them on a wagon and take them to a poultry slaughterhouse to be chopped. Since then, I’ve avoided eating out of those unfortunate crumbs. I only eat their livers, and only out of coercion, because of their red blood cells, “the actress said.

Aranka had a great response to her role after each broadcast, not only from the audience through letters. “I remember the gypsies flying after me on the street then, shouting, ‘Hééérečka!’ It’s the hééérečka that plays us. Yes, he plays us, he plays us! ‘ The directors then assigned me the role of gypsies for a very long time, “said Skořepová, adding that she had not met Jiřina Bohdalová, for example, for a long time since she was filming the series Chalupáři. Their larger acting reunion did not occur until the filming of the series Příkopy in 2007.

Broken head and falling under the car

Probably the youngest witness of the series today is the 53-year-old actress Mahulena Bočanová, who did not even go to primary school at the time of filming. It was her very first acting experience in front of a camera. And the fact that Mahulena was really a very lively child is also evidenced by the fact that she broke her head during the filming, and once even fell under the car of Čestmír Řanda in the final episode of The Wedding.

“Mr. Randa was coming by Mercedes for a wedding, and we children were supposed to run to him. But because of how competitive I was from an early age, I overtook them all, despite the disagreement of the director. At that speed, however, my foot slipped on the gravel and I drove straight under the oncoming car. I cried, but fortunately nothing happened to me. However, they had to take Mr. Randa to the hospital. He felt sick from the crazy fright, “admits Mahulena.

One of the interesting things is the fact that the series was not allowed to air for some time. It was because of the central song When You Have an Orchestrion in the Cottage, which was sung by Waldemar Matuška. The well-known singer emigrated to the USA in 1986, which is why the Chalupáři received a “zarach”. Communist censorship eventually resolved its decision in its own way. Instead of the whole song, she let only the instrumental underplay play. After the Velvet Revolution, the nightingale’s voice returned to the jingle with the return of freedom.

The bug creeps in…

The cottagers were filmed in a professional way, but there were still a few mistakes. Most of the revealed were in the episode Romeo from the bus, when the villagers went shopping and culture in Prague. So far, three staff mistakes have been traced: Vladimír Menšík did not drive the bus because he could not. He was therefore represented by a professional, but at one point both Vladimír Menšík in front of the bus and the bus driver behind the wheel are in the picture.

Actor Vítězslav Černý will appear in the scene in the metro at the Museum for the second time, but in a different role. He accidentally had two roles in the series. We saw him for the first time in the second episode of Carp, at a gas station. And thirdly: When you watch the series, pay close attention to Jiřina Bohdalová’s shopping packages. So try it at home…

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