Mailbox
This week in Mailbox: We disclose the identity of October’s mystery man and announce the names of the four listeners who will receive prizes from Radio Prague for their correct answers. Listeners quoted: Kshitij Chaturvedi, Ian Morrison, S. J. Agboola, Gordon Martindale, Patricia Hyde, Kristina Pletková, Jenny Cohen, David Eldridge, Uday Nayak, Charles Konecny.
Welcome to Mailbox. Many thanks again for your supportive e-mails regarding the possible changes to Radio Prague’s broadcasting scheme. Negotiations are still underway so at this moment we cannot bring you any new information.
This being the first Mailbox in November, it's my duty to reveal the identity of last month’s mystery man. Later in the programme it’ll be my pleasure to announce the names of the four listeners who will be sent Radio Prague goodies for their correct answers. Now let’s get to some of the answers. Kshitij Chaturvedi from India was the first one to write in:
“The answer is Heinz Edelmann. He was the art director for the 1968 film 'Yellow Submarine'. Heinz Edelmann, along with his contemporary Milton Glaser, pioneered the psychedelic style.”
Ian Morrison writes from China: “The illustrator born into a Czech-German family in 1934 in Ústí nad Labem is Heinz Edelmann, who died earlier this year. I've always loved the Yellow Submarine, being a fan of the song of the same name since I was a child.”
S. J. Agboola follows Mailbox in Nigeria:
“He was an internationally-acclaimed illustrator of children's books. He was born on June 20, 1934 and died earlier this year on July 21. His work on the film Yellow Submarine brought him fame and popularity.”
This is what Gordon Martindale from the UK wrote:
“At the end of the film, he set up his own ‘Cartoon Studio’ called ‘Trick Film Workshop’ in London. In 1970, Heinz Edelmann returned to Germany to continue his freelance graphic art career. Later moving into an academic career, he taught at the Stuttgart State Academy.”
Our Canadian listener Patricia Hyde writes:
“The illustrator for Yellow Submarine was Heinz Edelmann. I enjoy Radio Prague very much. I was in Prague many, many years ago and found it delightful and very beautiful. It was only five years after the Velvet Revolution and I expect there have been many more changes since I was there.”
Kristina Pletková listens to Radio Prague in the Czech Republic:
“He was born in Ústí nad Laben in 1934, later studied at the Düsseldorf Art Academy and became a freelance graphic designer in 1958... In addition, he also designed many book covers, including the first German edition of Tolkien's ‘Lord of the Rings’.”
Jenny Cohen now lives in the US but comes from a town not far from Heinz Edelmann’s native Ústí:
“The name of the graphic designer and illustrator of the Yellow Submarine is Heinz Edelmann. My name is Jenny Cohenova and I am 97 years old and used to live in the Czech Republic in Lovosice nad Labem.”
David Eldridge listens to Radio Prague in England:
“Edelmann, a Sudeten German, was a product of the Academy of Fine Arts in Düsseldorf where he studied art education and later worked as a tutor. From 1986 to 1996 he taught at the Stuttgart State Academy of Art and Design and had a reputation of a ‘harsh’ tutor but provider of a fine education. In ‘Yellow Submarine’ Edelmann created the ‘Blue Meanies’, music hating creatures that seal Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band of idyllic ‘Pepperland’ into a music-proof bubble and go on to attack other colourful aspects of Pepperland. He contributed to several films other than ‘Yellow Submarine’ and one of his more recent creations was ‘Curro’, the bird-like mascot for the 1992 Seville World Fair.”
Uday Nayak writes from India:
“I wouldn't have known this great personality if this question hadn't been asked by Radio Praha... By this mail, I pay my tribute to late Mr. Edelmann on this 21st October three months after his demise.”
“Heinz really had his surrealistic juices flowing overtime on this one. The fact that he did not have other offers for a feature film encore is no surprise as it would be hard to duplicate ‘Submarine's’ heavy psychedelic and drug culture success. It seems to me that your mind would be fried after viewing the whole thing. But who am I to know since I only saw a few short clips on ‘YouTube’.”
Interesting and well-researched as all your answers are, the rule allows only four of you to be rewarded each month. This time the lucky ones are: Nicolay Loginov from Russia, Asghar Shah from Pakistan, Rudy Hartono from Indonesia and Patricia Hyde from Canada. My congratulations and your parcels are in the post. If you haven’t been lucky this time, why not give it another try in November. Our mystery Czech series continues and this month we are asking for the name of the composer of this notorious piece of music:
Your answers need to reach us by the end of November at [email protected] or Radio Prague, 12099 Prague which are also the addresses for your questions, comments and reception reports. Thank you for listening today and Mailbox will be back again next week.
