orig. Tomas Straussler
born July 3, 1937, Zlín, Czech.
Czech-born British playwright.
After living in East Asia with his family during World War II, he moved to England and adopted his stepfather's surname. His first play, A Walk on the Water , was televised in 1963, and he won fame with the absurdist Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1966; film, 1990). His later plays, marked by verbal brilliance, ingenious plotting, and a playful interest in pivotal historical moments, include Jumpers (1972), Every Good Boy Deserves Favour (1977; with music by André Previn ), The Real Thing (1982), and Arcadia (1993). He has also written radio plays and screenplays for films such as Empire of the Sun (1987) and Shakespeare in Love (1998, Academy Award). Stoppard was knighted in 1997.