Adolf Dobrovolný (8 May 1864 – 17 January 1934) was a Czech actor and a radio announcer, the first regular radio news reporter in Czechoslovakia.
Early life and theatre career
Dobrovolný was born in Postoloprty, a small town on the Czech–German language border in Bohemia, then part of the Austrian Empire. His father was a watchmaker, and Adolf was taught the craft which he also practised for several years.[1] At the age of 19 he joined an itinerant theater, and in 1897 he started to act in Švanda Theatre, Smíchov, Prague.[2] From 1900 to 1906 he was a director and actor at Slovene National Theatre in Ljubljana (then in the Slovenian part of the Austrian Empire).[1] In time, he also played several roles in the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb and also the role of Napoleon in Madame Sans-Gêne at National Theatre in Prague. He was one of the founding members of Vinohrady Theatre in 1907.[1] In 1914 he left for Ljubljana again to work as a drama and operetta director.[2] From 1919 to 1924 he worked for Karel Hašler as a comedian and host at Cabaret Lucerna (today Lucerna Music Bar).[2]
Radio and film career
He spent the last decade of his life (1924–1934) working for Radiojournal, the first Czechoslovak radio station established in 1923.[2] He was a popular announcer who became the station's first regular reporter who prepared and presented the news from the daily papers.[2] He also arranged poetic and literal programmes and directed several radio plays.[2]
On 2 August 1924 he did the first live broadcast of a sports event in Europe – the heavyweight boxing match between Frank Rosse (Czechoslovakia) and Harry (Rocky) Knight (United Kingdom) in Prague.[2][3][4] He was not at the venue but got the description of the match via telephone and then relayed it to the listeners.[5]
His voice and figure with a round bald head was used in five silent and two sound films.[2] He was the first to dub a documentary for Czech cinema – a humorous wildlife film Dassan: An Adventure in Search of Laughter featuring Nature’s Greatest Little Comedians (Cherry Kearton, 1930).[2]
Private life
He married Saša Kokošková (1866–1942), a theatre and film actress.[2] He died on 17 January 1934 in Prague and was buried at Olšany Cemetery.
