Martin Štěpánek (actor)

Martin Štěpánek
Minister of Culture
In office
4 September 2006  9 January 2007
Prime MinisterMirek Topolánek
Preceded byVítězslav Jandák
Succeeded byHelena Třeštíková
Personal details
Born(1947-01-11)11 January 1947
Prague, Czechoslovakia
Died16 September 2010(2010-09-16) (aged 63)
Prague, Czech Republic
Political partyIndependent for the Civic Democratic Party
Parent

Martin Štěpánek (11 January 1947 – 16 September 2010) was a Czech actor, journalist and politician. He joined Mirek Topolánek's First Cabinet as Culture Minister in September 2006, serving in the position until January 2007. He was the son of actor Zdeněk Štěpánek. In 1981 he emigrated to Austria. In 1983 he moved to Munich, where he spent a significant part of his career working for Radio Free Europe. In Munich he joined Czech language exile Masonic Lodge U tří hvězd, which moved to Czechoslovakia in 1990, today part of the Grand Lodge of the Czech Republic. Štěpánek died in Prague in September 2010 due to suicide.