Imre Antal (31 July 1935 – 15 April 2008) was a Hungarian pianist,

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces or hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. It is common for people ...

and

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

His career as a pianist

He graduated from the Hungarian Academy of Music Zeneakadémia, Budapest. He became a celebrated young pianist in the 1960s. He was 2nd prize winner of the 7th and 8th

World Festival of Youth and Students The World Festival of Youth and Students is an international event organized by the World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) and the International Union of Students after 1947. History The festival has been held occasionally since 1947, mainl ...

, Vienna, 1959 and Helsinki, 1962. In 1960 he was awarded the 2nd prize at the XII Concorso Busoni, and six years later he won the 1st prize at Budapest's

Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic period. With a diverse body of work spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most pro ...

- Bartók International Pianist Competition (Although the international jury pronounced him as the winner, the organizers did not award the 1st prize - possibly for a political pressure, officially he received a 2nd prize as the best performer.)

Hungaroton Hungaroton is the oldest record and music publisher company in Hungary. Hungaroton was founded in 1951, when its only competitors in the Hungarian music market were record labels like Melodiya, Supraphon and from other socialist countries. P ...

record publisher has recorded and released some

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...

and

works in his interpretation in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was awarded with Erkel Prize (

Erkel Ferenc-díj Erkel may refer to the following. * Arjan Erkel (born 1970), Dutch medical aid worker * Ferenc Erkel (1810–1893), Hungarian composer, who wrote the Hungarian national opera ''Bánk bán'' *Sándor Erkel Sándor Erkel (2 January 1846 – 14 Octo ...

for the recognition of outstanding artists).

Filming and television career

From the mid-1960s he began presenting programmes for the music section of Hungarian television. He also took acting jobs, most notably in the 1969 TV-series ''Bors''. In 1971 an illness of his hands ended his music career and he devoted himself fully to television. His proficiency in foreign languages allowed him to host at television shows notable celebrities visiting to Hungary from the western side of the iron curtain. His most notable guests were the Italian movie actress Gina Lollobrigida and the American violinist Yehudi Menuhin. His biggest success was the comedy television program ''Szeszélyes évszakok'' (''Capricious Seasons'') which he presented on the national channel M1 from 1981 to 2005.

Late years

His autobiography was published in 1990 and reprinted in 2002. In 2006 he reappeared briefly on

RTL Klub RTL (formerly: RTL Klub and abbreviated as RTL HU) is a Hungarian free-to-air television channel owned by RTL Group. History Since its start, RTL Klub has focused to gain viewers from the urban population. The channel airs programs mostly for ...

with András Csonka, however, he was diagnosed with cancer. As his sickness grew on him he wished to continue making comedy programmes until his death. RTL Klub offered him to host their show ''Szeszélyes'' (''Capricious'') (which was actually only a low-key copy of his original show). On his honor a ''Budapest'' private nursery school was named after him in 2007. He died in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

on 15 April 2008.

References

External links

* 1935 births 2008 deaths Hungarian classical pianists Hungarian male classical pianists Hungarian television personalities Hungarian comedians People from Hódmezővásárhely 20th-century Hungarian classical pianists 20th-century comedians 20th-century Hungarian male musicians {{Hungary-musician-stub