Bolek and Lolek

Bolek and Lolek are two Polish cartoon characters from the TV animated series by the same title. They are based on Władysław Nehrebecki’s sons, named Jan and Roman, and were partially created by German-born Alfred Ledwig before being developed by Władysław Nehrebecki and Leszek Lorek. The series is about two young brothers and their fun and sometimes silly adventures which often involve spending a lot of time outdoors. They first appeared in an animated film in 1963.

The names of the two characters are diminutives of Bolesław and Karol. In English, the cartoon was distributed as Jym & Jam and Bennie and Lennie. Some episodes were seen as part of Nickelodeon’s Pinwheel. In 1973 the creators of the film placed on the request from the female viewing audience a girl character by the name of Tola. The first time she appeared in occurred in the episode entitled “Tola”. In total, Tola appeared in 30 episodes.

Most episodes do not have dialogues. Exceptions are feature-length films and the series from the 1980s, where the main characters’ voices were done by: Bolek – Ewa Złotowska, Ilona Kuśmierska; Lolek – Danuta Mancewicz, Danuta Przesmycka.

During the period of the Peoples Republic of Poland, Bolek and Lolek were reproduced in a large quantity of toys: action figures, movies, postcards, online arcades, puzzles, etc., which can be seen in the Museum of Dobranocki of the PRL. They are also currently made in computer programs, coloring books, general picture books and games.