Dean Bauck — Canadian track and field athlete (high jumper)

In Poland of the 1970s, sport played an exceptionally important role in everyday life—much greater than it might seem today to readers unfamiliar with the realities of Eastern Europe at the time. During the era of the Polish People’s Republic (PRL), access to many forms of entertainment was limited, and foreign travel for ordinary citizens was restricted. As a result, sport became one of the few widely accessible “windows to the world.”

During major football (soccer) matches, the streets would empty, and cinemas—despite showing highly sought-after Western films that were usually difficult to get tickets for—often stood nearly empty. Television broadcasts of sporting events brought entire families together, and the successes of Polish athletes were a genuine source of national pride.

Although other sports never matched the popularity of football, they still attracted considerable interest and generated strong emotions. Like most of my peers, I followed sports to some extent—it was a frequent topic of conversation and debate. However, I was never a particularly devoted fan, and after leaving Poland, I gradually lost interest in sports altogether.

Let me go back, however, to the year 1974. On June 30th, I went with my father to the “Skra” stadium in Warsaw (52°12'53.1"N 20°59'36.1"E / 52.214750, 20.993361) to attend an international track and field meet (Poland-Canada-United Kingdom). It was probably the first time in my life that I experienced such an event in person. The weather was pleasant, although the stadium—quite large—was not especially full, which was fairly typical for athletics meets at the time.

A commemorative pin from the track and field competition held in June 1974. Photo courtesy of Mr. Dean Bauck

Track and field competitions seemed somewhat monotonous to me back then, especially compared to the fast-paced action of football or hockey, where something is happening almost constantly. Athletics follows a different rhythm: multiple events take place simultaneously, often requiring patience and sustained attention from the spectator. Nevertheless, it was a worthwhile and memorable outing—one that I still recall very clearly today, not only because of the sporting experience itself, but also because I managed to collect six autographs, which I will describe in subsequent entries.

On that particular day, I forgot to bring my autograph notebook—a serious oversight for a young collector. As a result, I later glued the autographs into a small blue booklet and added notes beside them.

The first autograph from that day belongs to Dean Bauck (born 1954), a Canadian track and field athlete specializing in the high jump.

Dean Bauck

His athletic career unfolded during a particularly complicated period in Olympic history. Although he qualified for the Summer Olympics twice, he was ultimately unable to compete on either occasion. In 1976, at the Montreal Games, he was sidelined by a knee injury. Four years later, in 1980, his opportunity was taken away by the Western boycott of the Moscow Olympics, in which Canada participated. For many athletes of his generation, such circumstances meant that years of preparation never culminated in an Olympic appearance.

Photo courtesy of Mr. Dean Bauck

Despite these setbacks, Bauck achieved notable success at the international level. In 1978, he won a bronze medal for Canada in the high jump at the Commonwealth Games—an important multi-sport event involving countries of the former British Empire. The following year, he placed fifth at the Pan American Games. His greatest athletic achievement came in 1981, when he won the gold medal at the Pacific Conference Games in Christchurch, setting a personal best of 2.21 metres.

After retiring from competitive sport, he successfully transitioned into academic and professional life. He studied at the University of British Columbia, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics, followed by a Master of Business Administration (MBA). He further expanded his qualifications with a diploma in urban land economics and postgraduate certification in property valuation.

For over three decades, he has been active in the real estate market in the South Delta area of Vancouver, British Columbia, where he has built a reputation as a highly experienced and well-credentialed agent and broker.

Looking at his autograph today, one cannot help but reflect on how varied the life paths of athletes can be—and how success is often measured not only by medals, but also by what comes after a sporting career ends.

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But that’s not the end of the story. I decided to write him a short email, mentioning those competitions and asking for a photo for my blog. A few days later, I received a very nice reply from him, along with his photograph and an image of the pin from those events shown above, which I am publishing below with his permission: 

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18/04/2026

Hi Jack,

Thank you for bringing back these nice memories for me, and also for requesting my autograph. It was always an experience I found flattering and I did my best to make it special for those that asked.

As a young high jumper, I was fortunate to travel in 1974 with the Canadian Athletics team for a tour of competitions in Europe.

Our first stop was in Warsaw, Poland. We stayed in athletes’ rooms right in Skra Stadion.

There was a team competition between Canada, Great Britain and Poland and I was fortunate to win my event.

There may have been a second, international competition – at one of them I competed against Jacek Wszoła. We each jumped 2.16 m and I won on the countback. Given his Olympic success 2 years later that win remains a special memory for me!

The most memorable result during our time there was Irena Szewińska in the women’s 400 m on June 22 setting a new world record with the first sub 50 sec result. I was in the infield during the race and close to the finish line as it ended. I remember thinking how nice it was not only to witness but to have been circled by that performance!

My salient recollection of touring around the city of Warsaw was noticing the number of still damaged buildings that had endured bombing in WW2. I also remember the people being kind and lovely but subdued – it was still in the time before Lech Walesa!

In 1979 a smaller Canadian team spent time and competed in Madrid. Also attending was a contingent from Poland including Grażyna Rabsztyn who was the world record holder in the 100 m hurdles at the time. They were lovely people and we enjoyed hanging out and socializing with them – despite the language difference!

Dean Bauck

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Once again, the world is a small place!

Blogi są również dostępne w języku polskim/blogs are also available in the Polish language

Marek Walczewski — the most “demonic” actor of Polish cinema

I obtained Marek Walczewski’s autograph (1937–2009) at the Dramatic Theatre in Warsaw. Interestingly, he was not performing that day — instead, he was sitting next to me in the audience.

Marek Walczewski

He was difficult to overlook, and even harder to forget — his distinctive face and shaved head made a powerful impression.

Walczewski was widely regarded as one of the most remarkable and unconventional actors of his generation, known for roles that were often intense, unsettling, or psychologically complex.

As one source puts it, he was “considered a total actor, the most demonic among Polish actors.”

In the late 1970s, I attended a meeting with Krystyna Janda. At one point, she mentioned that she would soon be appearing in a new film titled Golem, with Marek Walczewski cast in the leading role. The audience immediately responded with laughter and applause — joking that he wouldn’t even need any makeup for the part! 

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Blogi są również dostępne w języku polskim/blogs are also available in the Polish language

Jerzy Zelnik — Ramesses XIII in "Pharaoh"

In the early 1970s, my mother worked as a kind of “advisor,” or instructor, in the field of mushroom cultivation—a surprisingly respected and specialized profession in Poland at the time. Her work often required visits to mushroom growers in towns and villages around Warsaw, and from time to time I would accompany her.

It’s worth noting that she had neither a private car nor a company vehicle. These trips were therefore made by train, by bus, or sometimes simply by catching whatever transport happened to be available—something quite typical in Poland in those days.

As it turned out, one of the growers we visited was related to Jerzy Zelnik (born 1945). By sheer coincidence, the actor himself happened to be there at the time, and he very kindly agreed to write me a personal dedication and give me his autograph on March 4, 1974.

Jerzy Zelnik

Although Zelnik has appeared in many films and stage productions, he is best known for his role as Ramesses XIII in the famous film Pharaoh, directed by Jerzy Kawalerowicz--which I had watched before meeting him.

For readers less familiar with Polish cinema, Pharaoh (Faraon) is widely regarded as one of the greatest achievements of Polish filmmaking. This monumental historical epic, set in ancient Egypt, is not merely a spectacle—it is also a sophisticated study of power, politics, and the tension between youthful idealism and an entrenched, conservative system. Many viewers have also interpreted it as a subtle reflection on political realities in communist-era Eastern Europe.

The film was very well received both in Poland and internationally, including in the United States, where some critics hailed it as a masterpiece and one of the finest historical films ever made. It was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

Many years later, the renowned director Martin Scorsese recognized Pharaoh as one of the masterpieces of Polish cinema. In 2014, he selected it for presentation in the United States and Canada as part of the retrospective Martin Scorsese Presents: Masterpieces of Polish Cinema, helping to introduce this remarkable film to a new international audience.

Author: Jarosław Roland Kruk / Wikipedia, licence: CC-BY-SA-3.0

Blogi są również dostępne w języku polskim/blogs are also available in the Polish language

Emilia Krakowska — Jagna Boryna in The Peasants

I obtained this second autograph on the same day—January 13, 1974—when I also met Jan Kociniak. It belongs to Emilia Krakowska (born 1940), a well-known Polish stage and film actress.

She left the strongest impression on me through her role as Jagna Boryna in the film The Peasants (1973), an adaptation of the Nobel Prize–winning novel by Władysław Reymont. For readers unfamiliar with Polish literature, The Peasants (Chłopi) is considered one of the most important works in Poland’s literary canon, portraying rural life at the turn of the 20th century in rich, almost ethnographic detail.

Krakowska’s portrayal of Jagna—a young woman whose beauty and independence set her apart from the rigid norms of village life—was intense, emotional, and at times controversial. Her performance captured both the sensuality and vulnerability of the character, helping make her one of the most recognizable actresses in Poland during that era.

Emilia Krakowska

I also remember her from the cult comedy Brunet Wieczorową Porą (1976), directed by Stanisław Bareja, a master of satire under communist rule. She appears there in a memorable and humorous museum scene. Her character delivers an absurd “history lesson” to a group of students using bottles of vodka from the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries—explaining, with deadpan seriousness, that this was how “the gentry used to drink the peasants into submission.”

This scene perfectly captures the unique tone of Polish People’s Republic–era satire—layered, ironic, and often subtly critical of authority—and it remains one of the film’s most quoted and fondly remembered moments.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Blogi są również dostępne w języku polskim/blogs are also available in the Polish language

Jan Kociniak, my first autograph

My first autograph, in a small blue notebook, dates back to January 13, 1974 and — according to my handwritten note at the time — was obtained in the Congress Hall of the Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw (a “gift” to Poland from Josef Stalin — for a while it bore his name). It belongs to Jan Kociniak (1937–2007), an actor whom I later remembered, among other roles, for his brief appearance in Stanisław Bareja’s film “Miś” (1980). Over the years, this very first signature took on a special meaning for me — not only as a keepsake, but also as the beginning of my entire collection.

Jan Kociniak

At that time, I was a frequent visitor to the Congress Hall, where concerts, theatre performances, and various artistic events were held. It also helped greatly that my father, for a period, had access to (often complimentary) tickets, which allowed me to attend such events quite regularly.

Source: Wikimedia Commons (CC license)

Blogi są również dostępne w języku polskim/blogs are also available in the Polish language