The Communists didn’t bother us in the circus
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Jaroslav Proche was born on 19 July 1942 in Říčany near Prague, where he grew up with his parents Jaroslav and Hermína and his five year older sister Daniela. The negative background profiling of his father, who had refused to join the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, caused the witness to be denied his university application after graduating from secondary school. He found employment as a helping hand at the state enterprise Czechoslovak Circuses, Variety Shows and Luna Parks Prague. In 1960 he suffered a severe accident - he was attacked by lions and his leg had to be amputated. However, he stayed in the company, and in time he worked himself all the up to the manager of Praga Circus. His sister emigrated in 1966, his mother in 1968, and in 1977 he also left Czechoslovakia, together with his East German wife Margot. He worked in various positions in West Germany, but although he received an offer to return to circus work, he turned it down. His friendship with Miroslav Masák, who became an advisor to Czechoslovak President Václav Havel, caused him to accept a job offer in 1990 to manage the Royal Garden at Prague Castle. Three years later, when Václav Havel was re-elected to office, he handed in his resignation and returned to Germany. He was married twice, a third relationship with actress Věra Křesadlová lasted several years. He moved back to the Czech Republic in 2005. He lives in Týnec nad Sázavou.
