Name Jan Troska | Role Writer | |
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Died September 3, 1961, Prague, Czech Republic Books Zapas s nebem, Kapitan Nemo | ||
Jan Matzal (August 3, 1881 in Valasske Klobouky, Moravia – September 3, 1961 in Prague), known under pen names J. M. Troska and Jan Merfort, was a Czech writer.
Contents
After his studies Jan Matzal worked in the Skoda Works and other industrial companies. During World War I he was sent to the front because of attempt to cover up a sabotage by factory workers. After the war Matzal lived in Yugoslavia (1921-1926), then returned to Czechoslovakia. As a lifelong sufferer from Meniere’s disease he obtained a disability pension at the age of 49. During years 1932–1949, he spent his time by writing.
Writer
He published his first novel, Bozi soud (1935, about village life), under the pen name Jan Merfort. Later (1936 – 1943) he used the pen name J. M. Troska (Troska means a ruin in Czech, to point out his physical suffering) and published mostly science fiction novels. In these novels Matzal freely ignored rules of physics, used very simple and naive language, employed dramatic situations and many new ideas of his time (powerful robots, huge underground cities constructed inside a Hollow Earth, nuclear weapons, automatically guided missiles, interplanetary travels, cosmic empires, aliens and telepathy). His books were very popular among children and teenagers: they are similar to fairy tales, where characters are crystal clear and the good always wins.
The books were illustrated by Zdenek Burian (covers) and Jiri Wowk. Some of his books were reprinted in 1960–70 (illustrated by Milos Novak) and 1990–2000 (illustrated by Teodor Rotrekl).
Works
Trivia
A main-belt asteroid 17776 Troska discovered in 1998 by a Czech astronomer from the Ondrejov Observatory was named after the writer. [1] The name was chosen at the meeting of sci-fi fans Avalcon in Chotebor on May 5, 2001. [2]