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Czech pop singer Karel Gott dies at 80

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PRAGUE, Czech Republic - Czech pop singer Karel Gott, who became a star behind the Iron Curtain, has died. He was 80.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 02/10/2019 (2550 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Czech pop singer Karel Gott, who became a star behind the Iron Curtain, has died. He was 80.

Gott died late Tuesday at his home in Prague after battling a long illness, his wife Ivana said in a statement. Gott recently announced he had acute leukemia.

Gott released some 300 albums starting in the 1960s and sold tens of millions of copies in his country, the Soviet Union and elsewhere in the Communist world.

FILE - This Feb.3, 2010 file photo shows most popular Czech pop singer Karel Gott during a film premiere in Berlin, Germany. Gott died at 80 on Tuesday, October 1, before midnight at home in his family circle, his spokeswoman Aneta Stolzova said Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019. (Jens Kalaene/dpa via AP)
FILE - This Feb.3, 2010 file photo shows most popular Czech pop singer Karel Gott during a film premiere in Berlin, Germany. Gott died at 80 on Tuesday, October 1, before midnight at home in his family circle, his spokeswoman Aneta Stolzova said Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019. (Jens Kalaene/dpa via AP)

But he was also a rare example of a pop singer from eastern Europe whose music became popular in some Western European countries, especially in West Germany.

“The golden voice from Prague” as Gott was called in that country, had one of the biggest hits there with “Maya the Bee” (“Die Biene Maja” in German), the title song from a 1970s cartoon television series.

Czech President Milos Zeman said Wednesday his death is sad news for the entire country.

Prime Minister Andrej Babis proposed a state funeral for Gott at the St. Vitus Cathedral, the country’s biggest church. It was not immediately clear when that might happen.

Babis said he wanted the funeral day to be declared a day of national mourning.

FILE - This June 18, 2019 file photo shows most popular Czech pop singer Karel Gott as he gives an interview to the Czech News Agency (CTK), in Prague, Czech Republic. Gott died at 80 on Tuesday, October 1, before midnight at home in his family circle, his spokeswoman Aneta Stolzova said Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019. (Ondrej Deml/CTK via AP) *** SLOVAKIA OUT ***
FILE - This June 18, 2019 file photo shows most popular Czech pop singer Karel Gott as he gives an interview to the Czech News Agency (CTK), in Prague, Czech Republic. Gott died at 80 on Tuesday, October 1, before midnight at home in his family circle, his spokeswoman Aneta Stolzova said Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019. (Ondrej Deml/CTK via AP) *** SLOVAKIA OUT ***
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Gott died late Tuesday at his home in Prague after battling a long illness, his wife Ivana said in a statement. Gott recently announced he had acute leukemia.

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