Pan Samochodzik (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

for 'Mister Automobile', also known as Tomasz N.N.) is a fictional

art historian Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Traditionally, the ...

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

, renowned adventurer and historical detective created by Polish writer

Zbigniew Nienacki Zbigniew Nienacki (Polish: ; January 1, 1929 in Łódź – September 23, 1994 in Morąg) was a pen name of Polish writer, Zbigniew Tomasz Nowicki. He was most known for his popular '' Pan Samochodzik'' (Mister Automobile) series of adventure n ...

. He is a main character in a series of adventures centering on historical mysteries and treasures. As a museum and government employee, Pan Samochodzik not only has to discover treasures, but protect them from thieves. His nickname comes from his fantastic (heavily customized) automobile.

Characters

Pan Samochodzik

Pan Samochodzik, a.k.a. Tomasz N.N., is an employee of the fictional Department of Artifact Protection in the Polish Ministry of Culture and Art. He is a special envoy with extensive knowledge in the areas of history, riddle-solving, finding treasures and protecting them from thieves. As such, he is sometimes called a Polish version of

Robert Langdon Robert Langdon is a fictional character created by author Dan Brown for his ''Robert Langdon'' book series: '' Angels & Demons'' (2000), ''The Da Vinci Code'' (2003), '' The Lost Symbol'' (2009), '' Inferno'' (2013) and '' Origin'' (2017). H ...

Dirk Pitt Dirk Pitt is a fictional character created by American novelist Clive Cussler and featured in a series of novels published from 1976 to 2021. Pitt is a larger-than-life hero reminiscent of pulp magazine icon Doc Savage. Pitt is a citizen of th ...

Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise consisting of five films and a prequel television series, along with games, comics, and tie-in novels, that depicts the adventures of Indiana Jones (character), Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, ...

. His nickname, Pan Samochodzik (Polish for 'Mr. Automobile'; French (this version also appeared in one of the books): 'Monsieur La Bangnolette'), comes from his unique vehicle: a heavily modified by his uncle

Ferrari 410 SuperAmerica Ferrari America is a series of flagship grand touring Ferrari models primarily built for the North American market in the 1950s and 1960s. The America models were equipped with large V12 engines and often had custom bodywork done by famous coachb ...

(a wreck after a serious car crash on the way to

Zakopane Zakopane (Gorals#Language, Podhale Goral: ''Zokopane'') is a town in the south of Poland, in the southern part of the Podhale region at the foot of the Tatra Mountains. From 1975 to 1998, it was part of Nowy Sącz Voivodeship; since 1999, it has ...

; the only thing that remained functional was the engine—Mr Automobile's uncle bought it and installed in his self-constructed vehicle). The car can reach a very high speed and is capable of traversing water and difficult terrain. Many people perceived this vehicle as ugly because of its dubledore-like design. His other name, Tomasz N.N., comes from the author's real name, Zbigniew Tomasz Nowicki, the second "N" representing his adopted surname, Nienacki.

Allies

Pan Samochodzik is sometimes accompanied by youngsters—often Polish Boy Scouts. Novels written by authors other than Nienacki also feature Paweł Daniec, a young

, ex-

commando A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines. Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as oppo ...

and

sidekick A sidekick is a close companion or colleague who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to those whom they accompany. Origins The first recorded use of the term dates from 1896. It is believed to have originated in pickpocket slang of ...

of Samochodzik.

Villains

Pan Samochodzik's nemesis is Waldemar Batura, former

smuggler Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

and

thief Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal short ...

. Novels written by authors other than Nienacki feature Jerzy Batura, new villain, son and successor of Waldemar.

Novels

Original Nienacki novels

''Note: The dates of the following novels may be inaccurate, as some of them may have been published in a different order than they were written.'' In the first three novels (, and ), Pan Samochodzik is a journalist, not a government employee. In the 1990s, Nienacki rewrote those three books so they would be consistent with the series. The books were released by various publishers, and it was not until 1987 that a single publisher (Pojezierze) decided to rerelease the series with one graphic design. * — ''Permit for the transport of a lion'' (new title: — ''First Adventure of Pan Samochodzik'') (1961) * — ''The Treasure of

Athanaric Athanaric or Atanaric (; died 381) was king of several branches of the Thervingian Goths () for at least two decades in the 4th century. Throughout his reign, Athanaric was faced with invasions by the Roman Empire, the Huns and a civil war with C ...

'' (new title: — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Treasure of

'') (1960) * — ''Sacred place'' (new title: — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Holy Reliquary'') (1957) * — ''The Island of Villains'' (new title: — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Island of Villains'') (1964) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and the

Knights Templar The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a Military order (religious society), military order of the Catholic Church, Catholic faith, and one of the most important military ord ...

'' (1966) * — ''Unearthly Mansion'' (new title: — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Unearthly Mansion'') (1970) * — ''New Adventures of Pan Samochodzik'' (new title: — ''Pan Samochodzik and

Captain Nemo Captain Nemo (; also known as Prince Dakkar) is a character created by the French novelist Jules Verne (1828–1905). Nemo appears in two of Verne's science-fiction books, ''Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas'' (1870) and '' The Mysterious Is ...

'') (1970) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and

Fantômas Fantômas () is a fictional character created by French writers Marcel Allain (1885–1969) and Pierre Souvestre (1874–1914). One of the most popular characters in the history of French crime fiction, Fantômas was created in 1911 and appeared ...

'' (1973) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Riddles of

Frombork Frombork (; ) is a town in northern Poland, situated on the Vistula Lagoon in Braniewo County, within Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. As of December 2021, it has a population of 2,260. The town was first mentioned in a 13th-century document. In the ...

'' (1972) * — ''The Book of Fear'' (new title: — ''Pan Samochodzik and Strange Checkerboards'') (1967) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Secret of Secrets'' (1975) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and

Winnetou Winnetou is a fictional Native American hero of several novels written in German by Karl May (1842–1912), one of the best-selling German writers of all time with about 200 million copies worldwide, including the ''Winnetou'' trilogy. The ...

'' (1976) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Invisible'' (1977) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Golden Gauntlet'' (1979) * — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Man from

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO) is an object or phenomenon seen in the sky but not yet identified or explained. The term was coined when United States Air Force (USAF) investigations into flying saucers found too broad a range of shapes ...

'' (new title: — ''Pan Samochodzik and the Immortal'') (1985)

Nienacki novels completed by Jerzy Ignaciuk

* (1997) (Only partially written, completed by Jerzy Ignaciuk) * (1997) (re-written by Jerzy Ignaciuk, originally unconnected with the Pan Samochodzik series and named )

Novels by other authors

After Nienacki's death in 1994, his publishers (Warmia) received permission from his estate to continue the series. The new novels take place in post-

communist Poland The Polish People's Republic (1952–1989), formerly the Republic of Poland (1947–1952), and also often simply known as Poland, was a country in Central Europe that existed as the predecessor of the modern-day democratic Republic of Poland. ...

, introduce two new main characters (sidekick Paweł Daniec and villain Jerzy Batura), and in the newest book, replace the old vehicle with a new,

Jeep Jeep is an American automobile brand, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with other assets, from its previous owner, American Motors Co ...

-based variant. * (17) by Jerzy Szumski (1997) * (18) (2 parts), by Jerzy Szumski (1998) * (19) (2 parts) by Jerzy Szumski (1999) * (20) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (1999) * (21) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (1999) * (22) by Sebastian Miernicki (1999) * (23) by Jerzy Szumski (2000) * (24) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2000) * (25) (2 parts) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2000) * (26) by Tomasz Olszakowski (2000) * (27) (2 parts) by Sebastian Miernicki (2000) * (28) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2001) * (29) by Sebastian Miernicki (2001) * (30) (2 parts) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2001) * (31) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2001) * (32) by Sebastian Miernicki (2001) * (33) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2001) * (34) , by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2002) * (35) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2002) * (36) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2002) * (37) by Sebastian Miernicki (2002) * (38) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2002) * (39) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2002) * (40) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2002) * (41) by Sebastian Miernicki, (2002) * (42) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2002) * (43) by Sebastian Miernicki (2002) * (44) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2002) * (45) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2002) * (46) by Sebastian Miernicki (2002) * (47) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2003) * (48) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2003) * (49) by Sebastian Miernicki (2003) * (50) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2003) * (51) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2003) * (52) by Sebastian Miernicki (2003) * (53) by Sebastian Miernicki (2003) * (54) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2003) * (55) by Sebastian Miernicki (2003) * (56) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2003) * (57) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2003) * (58) by Jacek Mróz (2003) * (59) by Józef Burny (2003) * (60) by Sebastian Miernicki (2003) * (61) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2004) * (62) by Sebastian Miernicki (2004) * (63) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2004) * (64) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2004) * (65) by Sebastian Miernicki (2004) * (66) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2004) * (67) by Sebastian Miernicki (2004) * (68) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2004) * (69) by Józef Burny (2004) * (70) by Jacek Mróz (2005) * (71) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2005) * (72) by Sebastian Miernicki (2005) * (73) by Sebastian Miernicki (2005) * (74) by Krzysztof Zagórski (2005) * (75) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2005) * (76) by Iga Karst (2005) * (77) by Andrzej Pilipiuk (under the pen name Tomasz Olszakowski) (2005) * (78) by Sebastian Miernicki (2005) * (79) by Sebastian Miernicki (2005) * (80) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2006) * (81) by Sebastian Miernicki (2006) * (82) by Arkadiusz Niemirski (2006) * (83) by Sebastian Miernicki (2006) * (84) by Krzysztof Zagórski (2006) * (85) by Sebastian Miernicki (2006) * (86) by Iga Karst (2007) * (87) by Maciek Horn (2007) * (88) by Jakub Czarny (2007) * (89) by Sebastian Miernicki (2007) * (90) by Sebastian Miernicki (2007) * (91) by Sebastian Miernicki (2007) * (92) by Jakub Czarny (2007) * (93) by Jakub Czarny (2007) * (94) by Jakub Czarny (2008) * (95) by Iga Karst (2008) * (96) by Marek Żelech (2008) * (97) by Jakub Czarny (2009) * (98) by Jakub Czarny (2009) *(99) by Marek Żelech (2009) *(100) by Sebastian Miernicki (2009) *(101) by Jakub Czarnik (2009) *(102) by Jakub Czarnik (2009) *(103) by Jakub Czarnik (2010) *(104) by Jakub Czarnik (2010) *(105) by Jakub Czarnik (2011) *(106) by Jakub Czarnik (2011) *(107) by Marek Żelech (2011) *(108) by Marek Żelech (2012) *(109) by Marek Żelech (2012) *(110) by Andrzej Irski (2012) *(111) by Marek Żelech (2013) *(112) by Andrzej Irski (2013) *(113) by Andrzej Irski (2013) *(114) by Andrzej Irski (2013) *(115) by Paweł Wiliński (2013) *(116) by Paweł Wiliński (2013) *(117) by Marek Żelech (2013) *(118) by Andrzej Irski (2014) *(119) by Luiza Frosz (2014) *(120) by Paweł Wiliński (2014) *(121) by Konrad Kuśmirak (2014) *(122) by Kamil Kozakowski (2014) *(123) by Amos Oskar Ajchel (2014) *(124) by Andrzej Irski (2014) *(125) by Paweł Wiliński (2014) *(126) by Marek Żelech (2014) *(127) by Andrzej Irski (2014) *(128) by Paweł Wiliński (2015) *(129) by Bartłomiej Giziński (2015) *(130) by Andrzej Irski (2015) *(131) by Paweł Wiliński (2015) *(132) by Luiza Frosz (2015) *(133) by Bartłomiej Giziński (2015) *(134) by Andrzej Irski (2015) *(135) by Bartłomiej Giziński (2016) *(136) by Paweł Wiliński (2016) *(137) by Andrzej Irski (2016) *(138) by Paweł Wiliński (2016) *(139) by Andrzej Irski (2016) *(140) by Andrzej Irski (2016) *(141) by Marek Żelech (2017) *(142) by Luiza Frosz (2017) *(143) by Andrzej Irski (2017) *(144) by Paweł Wiliński (2017) *(145) by Andrzej Irski (2017) *(146) by Andrzej Irski (2017) *(147) by Andrzej Irski (2017) *(148) by Andrzej Irski (2018) *(149) by Łukasz Supel (2018) *(150) by Marek Żelech (2018) *(151) by Andrzej Irski (2019) *(152) by Marek Żelech (2019) *(153) by Łukasz Supel (2019) *(154) by Andrzej Irski (2020) *(155) by Grzegorz Szmatuła (2020) *(156) by Marek Żelech (2020) *(157) by Łukasz Supel (2020) *(158) by Stefan Kot (2021) *(159) by Maciej Burski-Walden (2021) *(160) by Łukasz Supel (2021) *(161) by Stefan Kot (2021) *(162) by Marek Żelech (2022) *(163) by Stefan Kot (2022)

Pan Samochodzik in other media

Film

* (1965, directed by

Stanisław Jędryka Stanisław Jędryka (27 July 1933 – 22 April 2019) was a Polish film director and writer. A graduate of the National Film School in Łódź National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a per ...

), based on * (1986, directed by Janusz Kidawa), based on * (1988, directed by Kazimierz Tarnas), based on * (1991, directed by Janusz Kidawa), based on

Television

* (1971, five-episode

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

directed by

Hubert Drapella Hubert is a Germanic masculine given name, from ''hug'' "mind" and '' beraht'' "bright". It also occurs as a surname. Saint Hubert of Liège (or Hubertus) (c. 656 – 30 May 727) is the patron saint of hunters, mathematicians, opticians, and m ...

), based on

Crossovers

''Pan Samochodzik'' has crossovers with ''

Jakub Wędrowycz Jakub Wędrowycz is the protagonist of a number of short stories by Andrzej Pilipiuk, a Poland, Polish science fiction and fantasy writer. Wędrowycz is an antihero, an elderly alcoholic, moonshine producer, poacher, amateur exorcism, exorcist an ...

'' and the protagonists of the '' Kuzynki'' series, both written by Andrzej Pilipiuk.

Pan Samochodzik series writers

—17 novels * Sebastian Miernicki (Sebastian Mierzyński)—27 novels * Tomasz Olszakowski ( Andrzej Pilipiuk)—19 novels * Andrzej Irski (Ireneusz Sewastianowicz)—19 novels * Arkadiusz Niemirski—16 novels * Jakub Czarny (Jakub Czarny)—12 novels * Marek Żelech (Marek Żelkowski)—12 novels * Paweł Wiliński—9 novels * Jerzy Szumski (Jerzy Ignaciuk)—4 novels * Luiza Frosz—3 novels * Bartłomiej Giziński—3 novels * Iga Karst—3 novels * Łukasz Supel—3 novels * Józef Burny (Józef Burniewicz)—2 novels * Maciej Burski-Walden—1 novel * Jacek Mróz (Józef Jacek Rojek)—2 novels * Krzysztof Zagórski—2 novels * Amos Oskar Ajchel—1 novel * Maciek Horn (Maciej Książek)—1 novel * Stefan Kot—1 novel * Kamil Kozakowski—1 novel * Konrad Kuśmirak—1 novel * Grzegorz Szmatuła—1 novel

External links

Official site

Polish Pan Samochodzik and Zbigniew Nienacki's Fans Forum

Polish Pan Samochodzik Fandom Site

About Pan Samochodzik

Fanclub site

Slovak site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Samochodzik, Pan Fictional amateur detectives Fictional historians Fictional Polish detectives Fictional Polish people Fictional reporters and correspondents Characters in mystery novel series Characters in novels of the 20th century Pan Samochodzik