Jaroslav Erik Frič was a Czechpoet, musician, publisher and organizer of underground culture festivals. Born in Horní Libina by Šumperk, he studied the primary and secondary schools in Ostrava; there he also spent a year learning English, Russian, French and Italian at a language school. In 1968, he travelled through the Western Europe immediately after the exams, spending most of the time in England and Scotland. During this time, he earned money for example as a busker. He returned to occupiedCzechoslovakia and studied English and philosophy, at first in Olomouc, then in Brno. He graduated in 1974. Not willing to collaborate with the communist regime in any way, he worked as a waiter until the 1989 revolution. In 1969, Frič started to publish in samizdat, together with fellow poets Petr Mikeš and Eduard Zacha, in Ostrava and then in Olomouc. His edition, after a theologist and another poet Rostislav Valušek joined them, turned into a line of books called Texty přátel. In 1973 Frič, together with Jiří Frišauf and Jiří Kuběna, founded an "apartment scene" Šlépěj v okně and then, in Brno, and later also in Vranov nad Dyjí and Podhradí, published samizdats for his closest friends; mainly the works of Josef Šafařík, Jiří Kuběna and also literature almanachs, usually in 5 - 10 copies. In 1991 he founded a publishing houseVotobia which, after several other people joined in, moved from Vranov to Olomouc. However, he left Votobia after two years and founded a publishing house named Vetus Via in Brno. Since 2000 he organised a Brno festival of poetryPotulný dělník. He also founded two non-governmental organizations: Proximus which is connected to the depths of Czech traditions and culture and which organises many festivals and other projects which take place every Thursday and introduce poets and musicians; and Christiania. He worked as a chief editor of BOX and Uši a vítr. He also wrote for Český rozhlas which broadcast three screenplays written by him. Since 2006 he started to perform as a busker again and then he started to write a daily blog. Jaroslav Erik Frič lived mainly in Brno. He died in his sleep at 5.45 am in Brno.
Works
Books
Kolotoče bílé hlasy, Vetus Via, Brno 1993, poetry
Houpací kůň šera a jiné básně, Vetus Via, Brno 1998, poetry
Americká antologie & Poslední autobus noční linky, bibliofilská edice Siluety, Zdeněk Janál, Prostějov 2004, poetry published as bibliophilia
