Thomas Brezina facts for kids
Thomas C. Brezina (born on January 30, 1963) is an Austrian writer. He writes many popular children's books and is also a TV presenter. He is famous for his book series like The Knickerbocker Gang and A Case for You and the Tiger-Team. He also created stories about the talking bike Tom Turbo. Thomas Brezina has written over 550 books. His books have been translated into 35 different languages.
About Thomas Brezina
Thomas Brezina was born in Vienna, Austria. Even when he was in school, he loved to write. He won a big award called the "Grand Austrian Youth Prize" for his TV scripts. These scripts were for a puppet show called "Tim, Tom and Dominik."
After school, he worked with puppets. He even played a magician named Tintifax! Later, he wrote stories for bedtime and radio. He also worked as an assistant director for children's TV shows. One of these shows was Am Dam Des on the Austrian TV channel ORF.
His Career in TV and Books
Thomas Brezina then became a full-time staff member at ORF. He worked as an editor, director, and later as a presenter for kids' shows.
His big break as a writer came in 1990. This was when he started the popular series The Knickerbocker Gang. Three years later, in 1993, he created the Tom Turbo book series. This series is about the "world's smartest bicycle" who solves mysteries. Tom Turbo later became an interactive TV show for children. Since 2008, Thomas Brezina has been in charge of the children's program okidoki on ORF eins.
Awards and Charity Work
Thomas Brezina has won many awards for his work. He received the "Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria". He also won the important Austrian TV award Romy. This was for his educational show Forscherexpress (which means "Researcher's Express").
Thomas Brezina lives in Vienna and London. He cares a lot about helping children. In 1996, he became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Austria. This means he helps UNICEF, a group that supports children around the world. For his 50th birthday, he sponsored a child through "Light for the World." He also works with the Austrian group Volkshilfe to help people in need.
Thomas Brezina's Work
Thomas Brezina has created many exciting stories and shows.
Books
Overall, Thomas Brezina has written more than 550 books. Some of these books have been translated into over 35 languages! He has sold about 40 million copies of his books. This makes him one of the most successful children's authors in the German language.
The Knickerbocker Gang
His first big book series was The Knickerbocker Gang in 1990. These are detective stories about four smart kids who solve mysteries. The series was so popular that it became a musical, a play, a movie, and a TV series in the 1990s.
Tom Turbo
Three years later, Thomas Brezina created Tom Turbo. Tom Turbo is known as the "coolest bike in the world." The Tom Turbo book series and interactive TV show have been running for over 20 years! Tom is a talking bicycle who can do 111 amazing tricks. He solves mysteries with his two friends, Caro and Claro, and his boss, Thomas Brezina. Their main enemy is a silly villain named Fritz Fantom.
Other Popular Books
Thomas Brezina also wrote other popular book series. These include No Boys! – Witches Only, Pssst! Our Secret!, and Seven Paws for Penny. The Penny books are about a girl who lives on a farm and saves dogs. The "seven paws" in the title refers to her dogs.
His adventure series A Case for You and the Tiger-Team was very successful around the world. It was especially popular in China. At one point, it even sold more copies than Harry Potter there!
Books to Movies and More
Many of Thomas Brezina's books have been made into movies and TV shows. Examples include The Knickerbocker Gang: The talking tomb and Tom Turbo – From 0 to 111. His stories have also become theater plays, musicals, radio plays, and video games.
He has also helped create textbooks for schools. He wrote and presented educational videos about famous composers. He even wrote an interactive series of art books for children called Museum of Adventures. His newer books include A MINI-Case for You and the Tiger-Team (for younger readers) and Liz Kiss (about a girl who becomes a ninja superhero).
TV Shows
Thomas Brezina has been involved in over 40 TV series and shows for children. He has worked as an author, producer, or presenter. His shows are mainly on ORF in Austria. But they are also shown internationally on channels like Arte and SuperRTL.
Helmi and Traffic Safety
For many years, Thomas Brezina wrote scripts for the Austrian TV series Helmi. This show teaches kids about traffic dangers and how to stay safe. He also created the character of Sokrates, a funny dog who is Helmi's friend.
Interactive TV Shows
Thomas Brezina has hosted many interactive TV shows for kids on ORF. These include Am Dam Des, Die Rätselburg (Quiz Castle), Drachenschatz (Dragon's Treasure), and Forscherexpress (Researcher's Express).
Tom Turbo Detective Club
One of his most famous TV shows in Austria is Tom Turbo Detective Club. This interactive show features Tom, the talking bicycle with 111 tricks. Young detectives and the audience at home help Tom catch clumsy crooks and solve mysteries. The show has been filmed in many interesting places across Austria. It has been running since 1993!
okidoki Children's Program
In 2008, Thomas Brezina and his company Tower10 relaunched ORF's children's program. They renamed it okidoki. Since then, they have been in charge of the program. As part of okidoki, Thomas Brezina has presented shows like 7 Wunder (7 Wonders), Trickfabrik (Trick Factory), and Genau so geht’s (That's How It Goes).
Other Exciting Projects
Besides writing books and making TV shows, Thomas Brezina also creates fun events for children.
Vienna Detective Game
He helped with the Wien-Detektiv (Vienna-Detective) project. This was an educational book project by the city of Vienna. Kids received free books and could play a citywide detective game.
Musicals and Adventure Trails
Thomas Brezina has written four musicals for the family festival "Forchtenstein Fantastisch." These musicals are about a small knight named Rups and his adventures. They have been performed for seven years at Castle Forchtenstein in Burgenland, Austria.
He also designed an adventure trail for children in the tourist area of Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis. This trail is called “Mountain of Adventures.” It has three hiking routes where children can solve puzzles using special detective equipment.
Audio Guides and Apps
Thomas Brezina has written audio guides for St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna. These guides tell the cathedral's history in an adventurous way that kids can enjoy.
In 2017, he designed the Visitors Area for Vienna International Airport. This is a fun multimedia experience for both kids and adults.
For the Tiergarten Schönbrunn (Schönbrunn Zoo), Thomas Brezina designed an app called "Zoo Adventures by Thomas Brezina." The app guides users on different tours through the zoo, like "Thomas Brezina's favorite animals." It is available for smartphones.
