网页Josef Čapek (brother) Helena Čapková (sister) Signature. Karel Čapek (Czech: [ˈkarɛl ˈtʃapɛk] ⓘ; 9 January 1890 – 25 December 1938) was a Czech writer, playwright, critic and journalist. He has become best known for his science fiction, including his novel War with the Newts (1936) and play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots, 1920 ...