- Pérák, the Spring Man of Prague
Pérák, the Spring Man was an
urban legend originating from theCzechoslovakian city ofPrague during theGerman occupation of Czechoslovakia in the midst of theSecond World War . In the decades following the War, Pérák has also been portrayed as a Czechsuperhero .History
According to historians Callum McDonald and Jan Kaplan in their book "Prague in the Shadow of the
Swastika : a History of the German Occupation 1939-1945" (London, 1995), "the Springer" was said to leap out from shadowy alleys and startle passers-by. Oral tradition suggests that some of Pérák's leaps were of an extraordinary magnitude, including the act of jumping over train carriages, similar to England'sSpring Heeled Jack .A contemporary and perhaps associated rumour concerned a "Razor Blade Man" who was said to slash at victims with razors attached to his fingers.
Researcher
Mike Dash quotes George Zenaty, a noted authority on the policing of Prague during the war years, that:Pérák in fiction
The 14-minute Czech
animated cartoon "Pérák a SS" ("The Springer and the SS", also released in English-speaking markets as "Jumping Jack and the SS", "The Spring-Man and the SS Men" and "The Chimneysweep"), which was released in 1946, portrayed the ‘Springer’ as a heroic and mischievous black-cladchimney sweep , with a mask fashioned out of a sock. He was capable of performing fantastic leaps due to having couch springs attached to his shoes.This cartoon, created by the renowned Czech animator
Jiří Trnka and film-makerJiří Brdečka , featured Pérák taunting the German army sentries and theGestapo before escaping in asurrealistic ,slapstick chase across the darkened city.Trnka's post-War interpretation of Pérák as a quasi-
superhero , defying the curfew and the authority of the Nazi occupying forces, formed the basis for sporadic revivals of the character in Czechscience fiction andcomic book stories.In 1961, Pérák featured as a heroic character in the story "Pérový muž" ("The Spring-Man"), which was written by Czech science fiction writer Jan Weiss and published as part of a collection of short stories entitled "Bianka Braselli, A Two-Headed Lady". In his 1997 biographical essay on Weiss, Vilém Kmuníček speculated that the inspiration for this story was in response to Nazi
propaganda :In 1986, Czech science fiction writer
Ondřej Neff also portrayed Pérák as a heroic figure of resistance against the Nazi occupation of Prague. In 2001, he created (under the pseudonyme "Aston") a satirical comic strip titled "Pérák kontra Globeman" ("Pérák versus Globalman") which conflates the figures of the Springer and the Razor Blade Man and pits him against a villain called Globalman, who bears a strong resemblance toMcDonalds mascotRonald McDonald .Trnka and Brdečka's "Pérák a SS" is featured in a DVD anthology of World War 2 propaganda cartoons, "Cartoons for Victory", which was released on May 2, 2006.
The cartoonist Adolf Lachman, in cooperation with scriptwriters Monge and Morten, is producing a new series of comic strips about Pérák, portraying him as a World War 2-era costumed superhero who battles the Gestapo with the aid of various weapons and mechanical spring-powered boots. In addition, the Czech magazine "Živel" is giving space on its pages to those Czech writers and artists who have been influenced by the stories of Jan Weiss, Jiří Brdečka, Jiří Trnka and Ondřej Neff.
Parallels
Several researchers have noted similarities between the conflated rumours of Pérák/Razor Blade Man and so-called "phantom attackers" such as
Spring Heeled Jack andThe Mad Gasser of Mattoon as well as more benign mystery figures such asMothman .In his fictional post-War manifestation as a masked
freedom fighter battling against an oppressive regime, parallels can be drawn between Pérák and characters such asZorro and theScarecrow of Romney Marsh as well as the protagonist in the "V for Vendetta " graphic novel.References
* Dash, Mike: "Spring-Heeled Jack" Fortean Studies 3 (1996), 7-125.
* Janecek, Petr: "Cerna sanitka: Druha zen. Perak, ukradena ledvina a jine povesti." [Prague 2007] , 123-156.
* Kmuníček, Vilém: "Jan Weiss dnes" ("Jan Weiss Nowadays") "Z Českého ráje a Podkrkonoší", vol. 10, 1997, 109–128.
* Neff, Ondrej: "Perak, cesky super-hero" [1989]
* McDonald, Callum and Jan Kaplan: "Prague in the Shadow of the Swastika: a History of the German Occupation 1939-1945" (London 1995) 137.External links
* [http://reviews.goldenagecartoons.com/victory/ A review of "Cartoons for Victory" including a detailed description of "Pérák a SS"]
* [http://www.monge.cz/perak/ Website for "Projekt Perak", a comic book created by Adolf Lachman]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0239854/ IMDB entry for "Pérák a SS"]
* [http://www.hyena.cz/perak/ Website for the "Perak kontra Globeman" comic strip]
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