Rolf Hochhuth
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Rolf Hochhuth (born April 1, 1931 in Eschwege/Werra) is a German author.
Hochhuth is best known for his 1963 drama Der Stellvertreter. Ein christliches Trauerspiel (The Deputy, a Christian tragedy), a controversial work because of its criticism of Pope Pius XII. Though of little historical value, it is acknowledged as a work of considerable literary merit by some, while publisher Ed Keating and journalist Warren Hinckle, who organized a committee to defend the play as a matter of free speech, considered it "dramaturgically flawed." (If You Have a Lemon, Make Lemonade, 1974.) [1]. It was first produced in the United Kingdom by the Royal Shakespeare Company in London in 1963, and revived by the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow in 1986. It will receive only its third British production at the Finborough Theatre, London, in August 2006.
Hochhuth's next play, Soldiers, Necrology on Geneva (1967) criticizes the allied bombing campaigns as war crimes and Winston Churchill as a war criminal. It also cast doubts about the British involvement in Władysław Sikorski's death. Controversy arose in the UK when the mooted premiere at Britain's National Theatre was cancelled, but the play was produced soon after in the West End. The play heavily relied on the work of the young British historian David Irving, who later became notorious as a holocaust denier. Since that time, Irving and Hochhuth have been close friends and in 2005 Hochhuth drew criticism as he defended his friend against being a holocaust denier, calling the charge "idiotic" and Iriving "an honourable man". The play received much critical acclaim when revived at the Finborough Theatre, London, in August 2004.
In 1978 his novel A Love in Germany stirred up a debate about the past of Hans Filbinger, minister-president of Baden-Württemberg, who had been a military judge at the end of World War II and allegedly was responsible for executions even after Germany's capitulation. This debate resulted in Filbinger's resignation.
His 1987 drama Alan Turing featured one of the father of modern computer science, who had made significant contributions to breaking German ciphers during Word WarII. The play also covered Turing's homosexuality.
In 2004 he again caused controversy with the play McKinsey is coming, which raises the questions of unemployment, social justice and a "right to work". A passage in which he put the chairman of the Deutsche Bank in one line with leading business men who had been murdered by left-wing terrorists and also with Gessler, the villainous bailiff killed by William Tell. This was widely seen as advocating or at least excusing violence against leading economy figures. Hochhuth viogorously denied this.
Other works include Guerrillas (1970), The Midwife (1972), The Survivor (1981).
The movie Amen, filmed in 2002 by Costa-Gavras, was based upon The Deputy but focused more on the true story of Kurt Gerstein, a devout Protestant and later member of the SS, who wrote an eyewitness report about the gas chambers, and after the war mysteriously died as a POW. [2]
Besides this movie, Hochhuth also collaborated with scripts for cinema and television:
- Berliner Antigone (1968)
- Élo Antigoné (1968)
- Ärztinnen (1984)
- Effis Nacht (1998)
- Eine Liebe in Deutschland (1983)
References
- "The Year They Tried To Block The Deputy" by Warren Hinckle, The Review of Arts, Literature, Philosophy and the Humanities, Volume XIII, Number 3, Fall, 1997
- Kurt Gestein websitecs:Rolf Hochhuth