"[In Karlov] there were ten streets. I don't know what year it was, but they pulled down the first five. The Škoda factory expanded up there to the People's House. In [Karlov] we had grocer, a doctor, ... We used to go there to the so-called concretes, where we spent our free time. [They were the foundations of some rooming houses.] Opposite the Sokol building, at the corner in Lodní Street, there is a memorial [dedicated] to the [RAF from Karlov] pilots who died during the war. Every year there is a memorial event, where wreaths are laid. The event is organized by my friend Bohouš Kural, who takes care of it, and who also organizes a meeting of all Karlov natives every year in [the restaurant] Éčko in Guldener Street."
"I experienced the August 1968 occupation while working as a production manager in Třemošná. We lived in Pilsen and I remember that there was a tank standing by Šimerova and Heyrovského streets. Those boys were wide-eyed... Since we spoke Russian, we talked to them. They didn't know where they were. I was a production manager in Tremošná, and of course they were near there, too. They had a garrison in the woods above Tremošná. Their commander then came to the gatehouse and wanted to talk to the 'direktor zavoda'. The director refused, he didn't speak Russian, and so I, as head of production, brought the commander to the office. And he said he wanted to establish a friendship. I refused. And then I said, 'Well, you know what? We'll go to the factory committee room and announce that a commander of the occupation troops is here. And that whoever wants to talk to him can come.' For half an hour we were staring at each other stupidly. After half an hour he left and that was the end of it. I had some problems with it later, but since I was a recognized expert, I got away with it, thank God."
"My father was a convinced communist. I found some of his documents, [so I know] that he joined the party at the Škoda factory in 1924. He was a Russian language teacher, [and worked as] a sample models maker. My mother was [employed] in the steelworks as an operating accountant. We didn't talk about politics more or less, because I was brought up in the spirit of that era. We lived in a working-class neighborhood, so it's hard to comment on that, but I don't think I was specifically persuaded to be politically directed in any way. It wasn't necessary. [Briefly], I'm not aware that they would have had any political influence on me. Not in any way."
"During my studies I was chairman of the faculty committee of the [Czechoslovak] Youth Union. At that time I joined the [Communist] Party. I don't want to say it was out of youthful imprudence, but it was more or less recommended to me. Nowadays, looking back, I regret succumbing. Not pressure, but conviction... But I wasn't alone, there were many more of us. During the [Velvet] Revolution, of course, I returned my party membership book, and since then I have not been a member of any [political] party."
Zdeněk Musil was born on 12 March 1942 in Karlov, a working-class quarter in the south suburbs of Pilsen. His mother Ctislava, born Kraemerová, came from the Skvrňany district of Plzeň, his father František from Lažánky in Moravia. His father was a convinced supporter of the Communist Party, a Russian language teacher, and worked as a sample models maker. Mum was employed in the steelworks as an operating accountant. At the age of four, Zdeněk saw the Allied air raid on the Škoda factory, which hit also Karlov and Skvrňany. He was brought up in the spirit of that era. In 1964 he graduated from the University of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, at the same time he joined the Communist Party. During his studies he was the chairman of the faculty committee of the Czechoslovak Youth Union. After graduation he was appointed to work at the West Bohemian Ceramic Works in Horní Bříza. Until 1972 he was the production manager of the factory in Třemošná, where he met a local commander of the occupation troops in August 1968. In 1972-1975 he was a member of the National Committee of Pilsen and the District National Committee of Pilsen-Bory. He then worked as a production dispatcher in Horní Bříza. He finished his military service at the rank of second lieutenant. In 1975 he flew to Cuba on business. After his return, he worked as an advisor to the production director at the Ceramic Works in Horní Bříza. In 1986-1988 he was the director of central supply at Škoda, then as a diplomat he represented the Republic of Poland in foreign trade. After the Velvet Revolution he started his own business. Zdeněk Musil died on August 6th, 2023.
