Gerd Heidemann
Gerd Heidemann ( born December 4, 1931 in Altona ) is a former reporter for the magazine Stern. He became well known after he had acquired on behalf of the magazine " Hitler Diaries ", which had been turned out soon after the sensational publication by the star, created by art forger Konrad Kujau.
Heidemann reported for the star of many theaters of war ( Biafra, Angola, Mozambique, Burundi, Guinea- Bissau, Uganda, Congo ) and saved the war reporter Randolph Braumann 1970 at the Black September uprising - life. About his - now controversial - research on B. Traven, he published in 1977 the book Postlagernd Tampico. From the research out 1967, the five -part television docudrama already emerged in the bush of Mexico ( Director Jürgen Goslar ) in which Heidemann plays himself.
Heidemann was known by the coverage of Siegfried Müller, known as Congo -Müller, during surgery Tshuapa along with the star reporter Ernst Petry; the tape recordings were first used for a series of articles in the Star and later sold to the East German filmmaker Walter Heynowski, of the documentary film " command 52" assembled from the material, which premiered on 15 November 1965 in Leipzig at the International Film Festival.
Heidemann was five years significant Edda Goering, daughter of the Nazi Reich Marshal Hermann Goering.
Hitler diaries
Gerd Heidemann - he earned early eighties 10,500 marks a month for Stern - presented on 25 April 1983, a press conference his " sensational discovery ". Three days later, the star began with the partial imprint of the diaries. Heidemann had received the diaries of Konrad Kujau. After uncovering the scandal surrounding the forged Hitler diaries Heidemann was discharged from the star and arrested following a complaint of the star - founder Henri Nannen on suspicion of fraud. He was sentenced to four years and eight months in prison in July 1985 by the Hamburg Regional Court. The Court considers that he had embezzled millions of DM more. The publisher Gruner Jahr, in which the star appears, Heidemann had left 9.3 million DM for the acquisition of the diaries. Konrad Kujau claimed in court, however, to have only received part of the money of Gerd Heidemann. Tapes, which should relieve Heidemann, were not allowed to be played in court, as for the telephone recordings existed no court authorization. His application for revision in 1986 was rejected without notice. The detention time spent Heidemann in an open prison.
The niece has Kujaus later expressed their assumption that Heidemann had probably embezzled money.
In the satirical film Schtonk! is played Gerd Heidemann appropriate role of the scandal reporter Willié Hermann Götz George. Gerd Heidemann himself took two extras roles. In the British television series Hitler to sell the property, based on the book by Robert Harris, Heidemann is portrayed by Jonathan Pryce.
Stasi accusations
2002 The mirror opposite Heidemann were made allegations in the news magazine that he was an informant of the Ministry of State Security for 33 years under the code name " Gerhard". Heidemann admitted that he was approached in 1953 by a Stasi officer, when he applied for a visa to the World Youth Festival in Bucharest in East Berlin. After his return to Hamburg where he had reported this process immediately the Protection of the Constitution. " The President of the State Office asked me to keep the connection to the Stasi. The Federal Office for Protection of the Constitution was brought in as well as the English ".
Prizes and awards
Works
- Postlagernd Tampico - The adventurous search for B. Traven. Del Rey, Munich 1977, ISBN 3-7645-0591-5.