Puudutused ja jäljed. Mõtteid. Urmas Ott

The 136-page collection *Puudutused ja jäljed* (Touches and Traces) presents a selection of thoughts from the books of the unforgettable TV reporter Urmas Ott, published by SE&JS between 1994 and 2012. In this book, you will find a perspective on the "behind-the-scenes" moments of a complex life—one defined by personal experiences, dreams, disappointments, hope, determination, and love. Urmas Ott became a legend during his own lifetime, yet he remained a figure always surrounded by an air of mystery. "Fame is pleasant, provided you don't have to suffer for it yourself," he wrote in the 1990s in his book *Carte blanche*.

With Urmas Ott, what happened "off-camera"—hidden within the subtext of the dialogue—was arguably just as important as the direct questions asked during his broadcasts. Although everything appeared effortless and polished on screen, the interviews themselves often involved profound philosophical reflection. Figuratively speaking, while life and death might not have been literally at stake, the destiny of the guest appearing on the show certainly was. More than once, thanks to Urmas’s TV program *Carte blanche*, a guest would later discover a new path full of possibilities unexpectedly opening up before them.

Through the thoughts gathered in *Puudutused ja jäljed*, we encounter the authentic Urmas Ott—the man he truly was: sensitive, self-critical, passionate, vulnerable, romantic, and wise. The compilers of the anthology *Puudutused ja jäljed* (Touches and Traces) hope that, as they leaf through this work, the cherished and loyal buyers of Estonian books will encounter not only the charismatic Urmas Ott but also themselves.

"It is a stroke of good fortune that I have been able to write a few books, including the one you are reading now. I have tried to put a part of myself into what is being read—to leave some trace of myself behind before time, like a crisp autumn sea, washes away what once was." — Urmas Ott in the book *Playback* (1994).

"Urmas Ott rose to greatness because he was born for it." — Raul Rebane