Claus Ritter

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Claus Ritter (born August 21, 1929 Altenburg ; † August 9, 1995 unknown) was a German journalist , non-fiction author , writer and literary and film scholar specializing in film history and science fiction .

activity

Ritter studied library and publishing at the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena . He then worked as a speaker for cultural mass work, later as a publishing editor. In 1964 he published his first work, a film historical study, together with DEFA film director Joachim Hellwig .

Sovjet Pavilion, Osaka Expo'70

From 1968 both developed the non-feature film project Utopia 2000 , which was to be shot on the occasion of the world exhibition Expo 70 in Osaka / Japan . The futuristic buildings there were supposed to serve as a film set. The project failed because the GDR had no diplomatic relations with Japan. The project was then to be carried out in the Soviet Union under the title Journey into the 3rd Millennium , but this also failed.

Ritter and Hellwig received their doctorate in 1975 with the joint dissertation “Findings and problems, methods and results in the artistic design of socialist visions of the future in film with special consideration of the experiences of the AG defa-futurum ” at the University of Leipzig ; one of the reviewers was Lothar Bisky from the Central Institute for Youth Research . In subsequent years Ritter published a series of works in which he generally with the history of utopia , but also West German science fiction like the Perry Rhodan - Heftroman series dealt critical. His work “Start nach Utopolis” has an interior illustration of the Perry Rhodan character Lord Zwiebus by Johnny Bruck from Perry Rhodan's booklet No. 500 as a dust jacket .

Ritter's best-known work is “Kampf um Utopolis” (1987), in which the militaristic visions of the future from the end of the 19th century to the first decades of the 20th century are analyzed. After the fall of 1989/1990 , the work was also sold in West Germany.

Ritter died after a serious illness in 1995 at the age of 65. He was married to the librarian Lisa Klaube-Ritter.

Works

  • With Joachim Hellwig: Papa's cinema. Also a moral history from the film , Berlin 1964.
  • Deep canvas. References to a film art , Berlin 1972.
  • With Joachim Hellwig: Findings and problems, methods and results in the artistic design of socialist visions of the future in film with special consideration of the experiences of the AG defa-futurum , Leipzig 1975 (Phil. Diss.).
  • Week after week. Report on rainbow postils , Berlin 1976.
  • Start to Utopolis. Eine Zukunfts-Nostalgie , 4th edition Berlin 1982 (first edition 1979).
  • Anno Utopia or so was the future , 2nd edition Berlin 1986 (first edition 1982).
  • Battle for Utopolis or The Mobilization of the Future , Berlin 1987. ISBN 3-373-00083-1

literature

  • Hans-Edwin Friedrich: Science fiction in German literature. A paper on research until 1993 , Tübingen 1995.
  • Joachim Hellwig / Claus Ritter: Findings and problems, methods and results in the artistic design of socialist visions of the future in film with special consideration of the experiences of the AG defa-futurum , Leipzig 1975 (Phil. Diss.).

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Knight, Claus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German journalist, non-fiction author, writer and literary and film scholar
DATE OF BIRTH August 21, 1929
DATE OF DEATH August 9, 1995