Roger Willemsen would have turned 70: memories of one of the smartest heads

He is missing. That says so easily, but it is not. There is no more on German television (more). Even today, almost ten years after Roger Willemsens (1955-2016) death, you can see no successor in the German media landscape, especially on television, which would only be equally equal. This is the actually painful thing about this emptiness caused by his death in public space.

Roger Willemsen would celebrate his 70th birthday on August 15th. 70 – that would be a nice anniversary for one of the leading intellectuals in the country, by no means the end. A period of the age mildness could follow the age anger, characterized by the wisdom of the jubilee. Unfortunately, only the review remains with Roger Willemsen.

“He was considered a wise man early on,” wrote the publicist and companion Manfred Bissinger. Others refer to him as “universal genius”. Roger Willemsen was a big number at 50, had a name as a successful author and columnist (time magazine, the week), was a honorary professor at Humboldt University (HU) Berlin and radio presenter. And he was one of the most striking television faces.

From 1994 to 1998 Roger Willemsen was seen every Friday evening on ZDF. 1.96 meters tall, angular face, cradle head, glasses, open view and an unexpectedly high voice – so he presented topics with wit, sharpness and depth for 60 minutes in “Willemsen’s week”.

He spoke to guests like Gerhard Schröder, Sting, Yoko Ono, Billy Joel, Jeanne Moreau, Isabelle Huppert, David Copperfield, Isabel Allende, Jassir Arafat or Joan Baez. With Isabella Rossellini, Mikhail Gorbachev and Peter Ustinov there were special programs with just one interview guest.

“Willemsen’s week” polarized spectators and critics. The journalist Nils Minkmar, an editor of “Willemsen’s Week” at the time, later wrote: “A market research once showed that he was particularly well received by older, not particularly educated housewives from rural areas, and that really met. If appropriate groups were waiting for him or recognized him, he whispered: ‘My target group!’ He returned this affection uninhibitedly and did not have to pretend because he was in front of the people without any conceit and without shyness. “

Within the ZDF, Willemsen was not undisputed because of his frequent criticism of the medium of television. After ridiculating the doctoral thesis by Chancellor Helmut Kohl as a “refusal of performance”, he got trouble as well as after an interview with the mother of RAF terrorist Birgit Hogefeld.

Actually, he never wanted to watch TV, he himself had no TV at home until 1991. His world was the books and art. He knew that from his parents’ house. The father of the Bonn native was Ernst Willemsen, a well -known art historian, conservator and painter, mother Regine worked as an art dealer and expert in East Asian art in a Cologne auction house.

After studying German studies, philosophy and art history in Bonn, Florence, Munich and Vienna, he became Dr. phil. PhD. During his studies, he worked as a night watchman in Bonn for two and a half years, “for the simple reason because you could then read twelve hours and also made money. As he later told.” I went on a tour in between, then I read on. “

Roger Willemsen began his television career in 1991 at the new Pay TV broadcaster Premiere as a moderator of the talk show “0137” – named after the telephone code. He moderated more than 600 editions and received three guests work every day. His interlocutors included Audrey Hepburn shortly before their death, Palestinian leader Jassir Arafat and a Japanese cannibal.

From 1992 he changed in the moderation with the young Sandra Maischberger (58), with whom he was lined up and a half. Willemsen never got married and lived childless in his house in Wentorf near Hamburg.

In 2002, TV was over for him. He later devoted himself to his teaching activity as a honorary professor at the Institute for German Literature at HU Berlin. And he wrote. All Willemsen books such as “good days”, “Little Lights”, “Afghan trip”, “The Knacks”, “I give them my word of honor” and above all “the ends of the world” or “momentum” were on the “Spiegel” bestseller list for months.

For “the Hohen House” he sat on the grandstand of the Bundestag and recorded what he saw there – and no longer ended: “The stereotypes, the rituals, the dead meat of communication, which is shown. The image of excitement, is poorly played because politicians are not actors. The conviction, the played argument about factual arguments that have long been exchanged, no one. lets. “

Shortly after his 60th birthday, it became known that he was suffering from pancreatic cancer. His father had already died of cancer at 57. On February 7th, Roger Willemsen died in his house in Wentorf.

His former employee Nils Minkmar wrote with a view of the future: “This blasphemous, lustful, smoking, crowing genius is irreplaceable. We will have to work quite nicely, yes, so as not to end without ending in a republic.”