Bolek and Lolek

Bolek and Lolek
Genre	Buddy comedy Slapstick
Written by	Władysław Nehrebecki
Starring
Theme music composer	Waldemar Kazanecki
Country of origin	Poland
Original languages	Polish
No. of seasons	11
No. of episodes	174+9 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer	Studio Filmów Rysunkowych in Bielsko-Biała
Running time	9-10
Release
Original network	Telewizja Polska Minimax
Audio format	Mono
Original release	August 12, 1962 (1962-08-12) – 1986 (1986)

Bolek and Lolek monument in Bielsko-Biała, where the show was produced

Bolek and Lolek are two Polish cartoon characters from the children's TV animated comedy series by the same title.^[1] They were partially created by before being developed by Władysław Nehrebecki and . The series is about two twin brothers and their fun (and sometimes silly) adventures which often involve spending a lot of time outdoors.

History and background[]

The characters first appeared in an animated film in 1962. Their names are diminutives of Bolesław and Karol. In English, the cartoon was distributed as Bennie & Lennie, Jym and Jam and Tim & Tom . Some episodes were seen as part of CBS' Captain Kangaroo from 1963 to 1984, the syndicated series Romper Room and Friends from 1963 to 1994, and Nickelodeon's Pinwheel from 1977 to 1991, In Canada, the show reruns on TVO Kids on TVOntario from 1995 to 2018, it also aired on YTV from 1989 to 1992, and even Treehouse TV from 1997 to 2002. In 1973 the creators of the film placed on the request from the female viewing audience a girl character by the name of Tola, a little girl who lives in the forest, and meets Bolek and Lolek there. The first time she appeared in occurred in the episode entitled "Tola". In total, Tola appeared in 30 episodes.

In a similar vein to The Pink Panther theatrical cartoons, most episodes do not have dialogues. Exceptions are feature-length films and the series from the 1980s, where the main characters' voices were done by: Bolek – Ewa Złotowska, Ilona Kuśmierska; Lolek – Danuta Mancewicz, Danuta Przesmycka.

During the period of the Polish People's Republic, Bolek and Lolek were reproduced in a large quantity of toys: action figures, movies, postcards, online arcades, puzzles, etc., which can be seen in the Museum of Dobranocki (bed-time stories) of the PRL. They are also currently made in computer programs, coloring books, general picture books and games.

Of all the Polish animated cartoons Bolek and Lolek ranks as the number one all-time favorite. The series was popular in many countries, and was one of the few animated films allowed to be broadcast by Iranian television, along with other popular Polish animated cartoon Reksio, just after the Iranian Revolution of 1979.

In 2011 a monument of Bolek and Lolek was erected in Bielsko-Biała.^[2]

Judicial proceedings against Siegessäule[]

The copyright holders of Polish cartoon Bolek and Lolek filed a lawsuit in 2006 to examine a case of the illegal use of the images of Bolek and Lolek by German homosexuals who wanted to encourage German homosexual minorities to participate in the Warsaw Pride Parade.

The copyright holders, , Władysław Nehrebecki, and , felt indignant with what they alleged to be an illegal use of the images of Bolek and Lolek on the cover of German magazine Siegessäule without their permission. The characters had been changed, and Bolek was transformed into a woman. The owners took particular offense to the suggestion of Bolek and Lolek's apparent homosexuality in the image. During one of the interviews, Roman Nehrebecki commented, "The most important thing for me is that children were used for the purposes they should not be used for, for promoting ideas and organizations."^{[citation needed]} The residents of Bielsko-Biała, the city where Bolek and Lolek were created, also signed petitions against the improper use of the image of the characters.

The lawsuit lasted two years and took place in Berlin. The main line of defense of the magazine's owners was the fact that in 2005 the president of Warsaw, Lech Kaczyński, forbade the organization the Pride Parade, manifesting inclination toward uneven treatment of minorities. However, this argument was deemed insignificant by the court, since the subject of the dispute was violation of copyright on the image of Bolek and Lolek and not on the alleged unfair treatment of homosexual minorities. Despite the fact that the lawsuit was prolonged due to the complex German judicial proceedings, it was closed with an agreement. German magazine Siegessäule was obliged to pay the copyright owners 4,000 euro in compensation, as well as to publish an official apology in their pages.

Characters[]

• Bolek (voiced by and ) - Lolek's older brother.
• Lolek (voiced by and ) - Bolek's younger brother.
• Tola - A cute and lovely little girl who lived deep in the forest. Tola is very girly when she looks like a magical fairytale princess, but she is really an ordinary tomboy, and she had her boyish looking rather than a magic princess. Tola has orange hair with pigtails. She wears a white shirt, a sleeveless blue dress, white socks and black shoes. In her first appearance in the episode "Tola", Tola is leaving the forest and moved to Bolek and Lolek's house and met them for the first time. According to the episode "Zgubiony Ślad", Tola lives in the wooden cottage in the forest. She is Bolek and Lolek's love interest and the supporting character in the series.

TV series[]

Films[]

Feature films[]

• Wielka podróż Bolka i Lolka – Bolek and Lolek's Great Journey (adapted into the 15-episode series of the same name) – September 16, 1977
• Kawaler Orderu Uśmiechu – The Knight of the Order of the Smile (the sequel to Great Journey) – 1979

Episodes edited into films[]

• Bolek i Lolek na Dzikim Zachodzie – Bolek and Lolek in the Wild West – December 5, 1986
• Sposób na wakacje Bolka i Lolka – How Bolek and Lolek do vacations – 1986
• Bajki Bolka i Lolka – Tales of Bolek and Lolek – 1986

Educational films[]

References[]

External links[]

• Bolek i Lolek at IMDb