Thirty Cases of Major Zeman

Thirty Cases of Major Zeman (Třicet případů majora Zemana) is a Czechoslovak action-drama television show intended as a political propaganda to support the official attitude of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. The series were filmed in the 1970s.

Each episode encompasses one year, and investigations are stylized to that year. Most are inspired by real cases. The series follows the life of police investigator Jan Zeman during his career from 1945 to 1973.

Cast

 * Vladimír Brabec as major Jan Zeman / Richard Lipinski
 * Miloš Willig as colonel Václav Kalina
 * Josef Větrovec as colonel Pavlásek, chief of criminal police
 * Vladimír Ráž as medical examiner Veselý
 * Rudolf Jelínek as major Jiří Hradec
 * František Němec as major Žitný of StB
 * Ladislav Mrkvička as first lieutenant Stejskal
 * Emil Horváth as lieutenant Gajdoš
 * Renáta Doleželová as Zeman's first wife Lída
 * Jaroslava Obermaierová as Zeman's second wife Blanka
 * Ivana Andrlová as Zeman's daughter Lída
 * Radoslav Brzobohatý as Pavel Bláha, SNB first lieutenant who becomes western agent

Plot of the first episode
The first episode takes place in 1945. Young Jan Zeman is returning from a Nazi concentration camp. On the train he meets Václav Kalina, who tells him about his plan to join the police force. Jan returns to his home village and finds only his mother there. He discovers that his father has been murdered during the celebrations. The police are unable to find the murderer and close the case. Jan begins investigating on his own. He reveals a conspiracy and calls his friend Václav Kalina at Brno police headquarters; eventually, the murderers are captured. Kalina induces Jan to join the police and serve with him.

Controversy
A re-broadcast of the series in the Czech Republic in 1999, caused controversy and public criticism about the series, which was accused of conveying communist propaganda and portraying those who think differently politically as criminals.