This past Saturday marked Vaclav Havel's birthday. Few Americans may know who this man was, but we feel it's important to cover impressive figures in our "Unsung Heroes" series. Not only is Havel impressive, he was also "cool."
Havel was born in Prague in 1936 to an affluent family. Post-World War II, Czechoslovakia was taken over by a Communist coup d'etat in 1948. This did not make life easy for Havel's family, and though he wished to pursue a career in the arts this was not a possibility.
However, determined and inspired by theater Havel got creative. He took work as a stagehand and dramatic arts courses through the mail. His first full-length play, The Garden Party, and his second play, The Memorandum, earned him international acclaim.
In 1968 during the Prague Spring, Havel took on his role as political dissident. He became the voice of Radio Free Czechoslovakia and wrote plays about his experiences and became one of the leading anti-Communist voices within his country.
To continue learning about Vaclav Havel and how he became the president of modern-day Czech Republic read Vaclav Havel: The Forgotten History of the Political Dissident Who Founded the Czech Republic at Ammo.com.