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{{Short description|Czechoslovak children's television series}}
{{Infobox television
| image                = Pan Tau - logo.png
| image_size           = 180
| caption              =
| alt_name             = 
| genre                = Adventure, Comedy, [[Children's television series]], fantasy
| creator              = 
| developer            = 
| writer               = 
| director             = 
| creative_director    = 
| presenter            = 
| starring             = [[Otto Šimánek]]<br>[[Vladimír Menšík]]<br>[[František Filipovský]]<br>[[Jiřina Bohdalová]] <br>[[Karel Höger]] and others down
| judges               = 
| voices               = 
| narrated             = 
| theme_music_composer = 
| opentheme            = 
| endtheme             = 
| composer             = 
| country              = [[Czechoslovak Socialist Republic|Czechoslovakia]]<br>[[West Germany]]
| language             = Czech
| num_seasons          = 3
| num_episodes         = 33
| list_episodes        = 
| executive_producer   = 
| producer             = 
| editor               = [[Ota Hofman]]<br>[[Jindřich Polák]]
| location             = 
| cinematography       = 
| camera               = 
| runtime              = 
| company              = [[Czechoslovak Television]] (ČST)<br>[[Westdeutscher Rundfunk]] (WDR)<br>[[Barrandov Studios]]
| channel              = <!-- or network -->
| first_aired          = {{start date|1970|12|13}}
| last_aired           = {{end date|1979|02|04}}
| related              =  
}}
[[File:Třešť-Tau2014.jpg|thumb|Wooden statue of Pan Tau in [[Třešť]], hometown of actor [[Otto Šimánek]]]]
[[File:Automobilové klenoty 2019 A29. Tatra 12.jpg|thumb|1930 [[Tatra 12]], car used in the series]]
'''Pan Tau''' ([[Czech language|Czech]] for "Mr. Tau") is a character created for a [[children's television series]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hayes |first1=Alan |title=Avengerworld - The Avengers in Our Lives |date=2016 |publisher=Lulu |isbn=9781326522506 |page=79 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v9C0CwAAQBAJ&dq=%22pan+tau%22+czechoslovakia&pg=PA79 |accessdate=27 May 2020}}</ref> There were 33 episodes in 3 series made by the [[Czechoslovak Television]] (ČST) in cooperation with [[Barrandov Studios]] and the [[West Germany|West German]] TV network [[Westdeutscher Rundfunk]] (WDR). A pilot film was shot in 1966, and 33 episodes were made from 1970 until 1979. The project ended with a [[Pan Tau (film)|feature film]] in 1988.

The protagonist Pan Tau, who generally didn't speak and communicated through [[pantomime]], was played by [[Otto Šimánek]] (1925–1992). The series was written by [[Ota Hofman]] and directed by [[Jindřich Polák]]. The plot of each episode was generally comical but contained some kind of problem for a child, and here Pan Tau found the way to solve the problem.

Pan Tau always had a gentle expression and a friendly smile, he was elegantly dressed in a [[stroller (style)|stroller]], with an umbrella and a white [[carnation]] in the lapel. Foremost, he was famous for his magic [[bowler hat]]. By tapping on his hat, Pan Tau was able to change his appearance into a puppet, to conjure up miscellaneous objects or to do other magic. His most characteristic behaviour is that he would help children who were experiencing some sort of difficulties in-between their dreams and reality, like finding a place for skiing, settling family problems on [[Christmas]], and even give a boy a good time at a fair when he is supposed to have piano lessons. To adults, he usually remained invisible.

Although Czechoslovakia then was under a [[communism|Communist]] regime, this never was very obvious for the viewers. Pan Tau was a popular children's program in several countries at both sides of the [[Iron Curtain]] (such as in both West and [[East Germany]] and also in the [[Scandinavia]]n countries), which also appealed to the adult viewers to a certain degree.

[[Theodor Pištěk (costume designer)|Theodor Pištěk]] designed the costumes for the series.

Ten years after the end of the series, Šimánek again appeared as Pan Tau in a 1988 cinema film. He was also featured in the German singer [[Nena]]'s 1990 music video for ''Du bist überall'' ("You Are Everywhere", from her ''[[Wunder gescheh'n]]'' studio album), which was shot in [[Prague]].<ref>{{Cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fa-jDdyiDwk|title=Du bist Überall|publisher=[[YouTube]]|date=2019-04-30|access-date=2024-05-26|language=de}}</ref>

In 2020 a [[Pan Tau (2020 TV series)|reboot]] with Matt Edwards as Pan Tau produced by German broadcaster [[ARD (broadcaster)|ARD]] was broadcast. Unlike the original, the 2020 reboot was filmed in English.

==Series overview==
===Pan Tau and First Adventure===
====Plot summary====
Pan Tau makes his first appearance helping a young boy, who is reluctantly attending piano lessons, to overcome his boredom.

====Cast====
*[[Otto Šimánek]] - Pan Tau
*[[Václav Štekl]] - pianist teacher
*[[Vladimír Horka]] - pianist

===First series===
====Plot summary====
====Cast====
*[[Otto Šimánek]] - Pan Tau
*[[Josef Filip]] - Emil
*[[František Filipovský]] - Shop Owner
*[[Jiří Sovák]] - Emil's Father
*[[Slávka Budínová]] - Emil's Mother
*[[Josef Bevyl]] - Emil's Grandfather
*[[Blanka Krátká]] - Emil's Sister
*[[Veronika Renčová]] - Claudie
*[[Jan Werich]] - Claudie's Grandfather
*[[Věra Ferbasová]], [[Věra Tichánková]] - Claudie's Educators
*[[Pavel Landovský]] - Taxi driver
*[[Václav Štekl]] - teacher
*[[Vladimír Hlavatý]] - School director
*[[Miroslav Homola]] - School inspektor
*[[Miloš Kopecký]] - Owner of losses and finds
*[[Václav Trégl]] - traveler
*[[Karel Effa]] - A migrator
*[[Milan Neděla]] - A migrator
*[[Stanislav Fišer]] - A migrator
*[[Václav Kotva]] - A migrator
*[[Jan Libíček]] - Publican
*[[Viktor Maurer]] - Hunter
*[[Václav Neckář]] - Television repairer

===Second Series===
====Plot summary====
Pan Tau meets dysfunctional family Urban and decides to bring back Alfonz, Father Urban's brother (and a dead lookalike of Pan Tau), from a lonely island Alfonz has fled to in his adventurous youth for a [[Robinson Crusoe|Robinson]]-like life.  
====Cast====
*[[Otto Šimánek]] - Pan Tau, Alfonz Urban
*[[Jiřina Bohdalová]] - Mother Urban
*[[Vladimír Menšík]] - Father Urban
*[[František Filipovský]] - Grandfather Urban
*[[František Peterka]] - Neighbor
*[[Magda Křížková / Šebestová]] - Kateřina Urban
*[[Gustav Bubník]] - Rudolf Urban
*[[Karel Augusta]] - Secret policeman
*[[Svatopluk Beneš]] - Grandfather's brother 
*[[Josef Somr]] - Petr Kalina / Doctor Azor
*[[Zdeněk Dítě]] - uncle Lojzík
*[[Eugen Jegorov]] - Father Kudrna
*[[Jiří Kúkol]], [[J. Krafka]] - Adopted sons
*[[Jaroslav Štercl]] - Porter
*[[František Kovářík]] - Lecturer
*[[Jiří Vondráček (actor)|Jiří Vondráček]] - Martin (Kateřina Love)
*[[Jiří Hrzán]] - Mafia
*[[Jiří Vala]] - Mafia
*[[Bohuml Šmída]] - Mafia
*[[Josef Bláha]] - Mafia
*[[Jindřich Narenta]] - An employee of the weather institute
*[[Josef Kemr]] - An employee of the weather institute
*[[Václav Štekl]] - An employee of the weather institute
*[[Ladislav Potměšil]] - Driving school teacher
*[[Jana Hlaváčová]] - Teacher / later Alfonso's wife

===Third Series===
====Plot summary====
====Cast====
*[[Otto Šimánek]] - Pan Tau
*[[Vlastimil Brodský]] - 3. air traffic inspector Málek
*[[Josef Bláha]] - 1. air traffic inspector Kučera
*[[Jiří Kodet]] - Pilot
*[[Jiří Lábus]] - Dispatcher
*[[Petr Nárožný]] - Alenka's Father
*[[Michael Hofbauer]] - Otík Málek
*[[Zdena Hadrbolcová]] - Málek's wife
*[[Josef Dvořák]] - Transport for safari Jan Kalous
*[[Zdeněk Srstka]] - Transport for safari
*[[Lenka Termerová]] - Kalous's wife
*[[František Husák]] - Pilot powdering aircraft
*[[Robert Vrchota]] - Agronomist
*[[Jana Brejchová]] - Wizard Stella
*[[Mahulena Bočanová]] - Her daughter
*[[Vladimír Hrubý]] - Wizard Brehm from Berhm
*[[Petr Čepek]] - Wizard Orlando
*[[Václav Štekl]] - Organizer of the magical festival
*[[Antonín (strýček) Jedlička]] - Backdrop
*[[Marie Rosůlková]] - Grandmother
*[[Václav Lohniský]] - Cook Hurta 
*[[Helena Růžičková]] - Cook from the camp near the creek
*[[Jan Skopeček (actor)|Jan Skopeček]] - Driver with meat (Mirek's father)
*[[Karel Augusta]] - Drafts
*[[Josef Kemr]] - Grandfather Hanousek
*[[Tomáš Vacek]] - Mirek
*[[Julie Jurištová]] - Terezka / the lead of girls in the pioneer camp
*[[Jan Sedláček]] - Láďa / the lead of boys in the pioneer camp

==Episodes==
*Pan Tau a první dobrodružství - Pan Tau and first adventure

===First series===
*Pan Tau přichází - Pan Tau is coming
*Pan Tau naděluje - Pan Tau gives gifts
*Pan Tau na horách - Pan Tau in the mountains
*Pan Tau a neděle - Pan Tau Sunday
*Pan Tau jde do školy - Pan Tau goes to school
*Pan Tau a samá voda - Pan Tau and a lot water.
*Pan Tau a Claudie - Pan Tau and Claudie
*Pan Tau to zařídí - Pan Tau will arrange it
*Pan Tau a cesta kolem světa - Pan Tau and journey around the world
*Pan Tau v cirkusu - Pan Tau in the circus
*Hledá se pan Tau - looking for Pan Tau
*Pan Tau a tisíc kouzel - Pan Tau and a thousand spells

===Second series===
*Pan Tau se vrací - Pan Tau is coming back
*Pan Tau a robinson - Pan Tau and robinson
*Pan Tau a příliš velký balón - Pan Tau and too big balloon
*Pan Tau a pes kozopes - Pan Tau and Dog Goat-Dog
*Pan Tau a rodinná slavnost - Pan Tau and Family festival
*Pan Tau jde do práce - Pan Tau go to work
*Pan Tau pět hrušek a tři jablka - Pan Tau five pear's and Three apple's
*Pan Tau a černý deštiník - Pan Tau and black umbrella
*Pan Tau a Velký Ples - Pan Tau and big festival
*Pan Tau a rosnička - Pan Tau and frog
*Pan Tau {{not a typo|a}} Aladinova lampa - Pan Tau and Aladin's Lamp
*Pan Tau a zlatý kufr - Pan Tau and gold suitcase
*Pan Tau odchází - Pan Tau leaving

===Third Series===
*Poplach v oblacích - Alarm in the clouds
*Lov na Slona - Elephant hunting
*Noc v safari - Night in safari
*Pan Tau a kouzelnice - Pan Tau and sorceress
*Pan Tau na pionýrském táboře - Pan Tau on the pioneer camp
*A která je ta pravá - And which is the right one?
*Od zítřka nečaruji - From tomorrow I'm so not using magic

Third Series (7 episodes) was cut into two films - Poplach v oblacích (Czech - Alarm in the clouds, 1 - 3 episodes and episode 4 miss) and Od zítřka nečaruji (From tomorrow I'm so not using magic, 5 - 7 episodes)

==Trivia==
* In 1970, a then unknown Ivana Marie Zelníčková (later [[Ivana Trump]]) appeared on Pan Tau in Season 1, Episode 3 "Pan Tau na horách" (Pan Tau in the mountains), which was her first television role.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0920073/|title=Pan Tau na horách|publisher=[[IMDb]]|access-date=2022-07-16|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://m.instory.cz/celebrity/8198-ivana-trumpova-jako-herecka-zahrala-si-v-jednom-z-nejslavnejsich-serialu-pro-deti.html|title=Ivana Trumpová jako herečka. Zahrála si v jednom z nejslavnějších seriálů pro děti.|last=Černý|first=René|website=Instory.cz|date=2020-01-29|access-date=2022-07-16|language=cs}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF_Go5WYDL8|title=Ivana Trump (then Zelníčková, 20 yo) in the movie "Pan Tau" (1970)|website=[[YouTube]]|date=2016-11-21|access-date=2022-07-16|language=cs}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.radio.cz/pictures/filmy/pan_tau1.jpg Pan Tau photo on the website of Radio Praha]
* {{IMDb episode|0157238|Pan Tau}} (Internet Movie Database)
* [https://www.csfd.cz/film/71337-pan-tau/prehled/ About the series at the Cesko-Slovenská filmová databàze]

[[Category:Children's television characters]]
[[Category:Czech children's television series]]
[[Category:1970 Czechoslovak television series debuts]]
[[Category:1979 Czechoslovak television series endings]]
[[Category:1970s Czechoslovak television series]]
[[Category:Czech fantasy television series]]
[[Category:Czech adventure television series]]
[[Category:Czech comedy television series]]