Fritz J. Raddatz has died: farewell to one last point – Frankfurter Neue Presse

He was considered one of the most influential literary critic in Germany: Now the long-standing literary editor of “Time” Fritz J. Raddatz has died.

Raddatz died Thursday at the age of 83 years. 1931 born in Berlin, he was considered one of the most warlike and eloquent critic of Germany. In the fall of 2014 he had stated on more than 60 years his journalistic work over. “I have survived me,” wrote the 83-year-old. Today the Rowohlt publishing his book “years with Single” about the life of the legendary publisher Heinrich Maria Ledig-Rowohlt appear.

“My aesthetic criteria are outdated, rusty silverware of the diagnostician, my greed joy in beauty of Art has become ashes, the feathered Pegasus, with whom I galloped through image and text, flat, “he explained in 2014 retired from the” newspaper work “and concluded by saying:” Time to say goodbye. Goodbye. “

Raddatz was one of the most influential players in the West German cultural scene. He studied German literature, history, theater studies, art history and American studies at the Humboldt University in East Berlin. Until 1958 he was employed by the State Publishing House “people and the world” in East Berlin, then moved to the Federal Republic and was in Munich chief editor of the Kindler publishing house.

From 1960 to 1969 he was deputy head of Rowohlt -Verlags. Here, he discovered and cultivated writers such as Hubert Fichte, Rolf Hochhuth, Walter Kempowski or Elfriede Jelinek. The end of 1969, Raddatz separated by differences with publisher Heinrich Maria Ledig-Rowohlt.

1977 sparked Raddatz as literary editor of the weekly newspaper “Die Zeit” Dieter E. Zimmer. In this position, he became one of the most influential German literary critic and led many interviews, including with philosopher and Nobel Prize winners. Controversial was his 1979 article published about the involvement German poet in the Nazi regime. At the end of 1985, the militant advocate of literature resigned as head of literature, after about an alleged quote by Goethe (“It began at that time, the area behind the station to change”) had stumbled.

made a name for himself Raddatz as a translator, writer and editor. His diaries are a panoply of West and East German publishing scene and author since 1945. His work includes novels and short stories, biographies, essays, theoretical writings and television films about literary and cultural topics.

His first novel, ” The clouds drinker, “he published in 1987. Discussed were his biographies of Karl Marx and Heinrich Heine. Reputation Raddatz acquired as editor of the Collected Works of Kurt Tucholsky. With its vain, sometimes merciless nature of the “troublemakers” was, as the title of his autobiography, as contentious. In his diaries, he went with artists, politicians and colleagues harshly

The “Frankfurter Rundschau” said Raddatz end of January. “I will not tell anyone with me when it’s over. But I know it. “He was a supporter of assisted suicide. “I think it’s a worthy form to end his life.”