Reporter Gerd Heidemann and “Stern” celebrated the presentation of the “Hitler Diaries” in 1983 as a sensation; it turned out to be a disaster. Because the diaries were forgeries. Heidemann has now died at the age of 93.
But shortly afterwards it turned out that the “Hitler Diaries” were a forgery by Konrad Kujau. Heidemann and the “Stern”, which had already published excerpts, were embarrassed, especially since warning voices had been ignored. Henri Nannen, founder of “Stern”, asked readers for forgiveness, and the magazine’s circulation fell. In 1992 director Helmut Dietl filmed “Schtonk!” the events satirically.
In 1985, Heidemann was finally sentenced to several years in prison for embezzling several million German marks in the course of purchasing the so-called “Hitler diaries”. The sentence was four years and eight months. Heidemann himself denied having committed the crime.
Heidemann was born in Altona in 1931, came to “Stern” in 1955 and made a career there as a photo and war reporter, among other things. In 1965 Heidemann received the World Press Photo Award; he had, among other things, portrayed the German mercenary Siegfried Müller (nickname: “Congo-Müller”) during the civil war in the Congo.
Heidemann later became known to the public for other reasons: The journalist acquired the “Carin II”, the former yacht of “Reichsmarschall” Hermann Göring, who was a leading figure of the National Socialist dictatorship. Heidemann maintained a relationship with Göring’s daughter Edda for several years.
After the scandal surrounding the fake “Hitler Diaries” and serving his sentence, Heidemann continued to devote himself to building his contemporary historical collection with a focus on the Second World War. In an interview with t-online, historian Thomas Weber from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland classifies Heidemann’s life and the importance of his collection for historical research.