Oskar Czeija

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Photo taken around 1930 by Georg Fayer

Oskar Czeija (born September 5, 1887 in Vienna ; † March 7, 1958 there ) was an Austrian radio pioneer and long-time director of RAVAG .

Life

The son of Karl August Czeija , who was involved in setting up the telephone network of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy , was originally an administrative lawyer for the Styrian state government. Only after the end of the First World War did he come into contact with the radio system , the basics of which he acquired. Together with the Schrack AG company , he received the license for the first radio station in Austria. At this broadcasting company, RAVAG, Czeija was general director until 1938. During this time, Czeija had close contact with the first president of RAVAG, Anton Rintelen , which caused him difficulties due to Rintelen's prominent role in the failed July coup of the National Socialists in 1934. During this time, Czeija seemed anxious to maintain RAVAG's political independence and therefore acted skillfully between the various political camps. He neither rejected the emergence of National Socialism, nor did he later deviate from the line of the dictatorial federal government under Austrofascism .

In addition, from 1929 he was a board member of the "World Radio Association". With Hans Thirring he developed a process for the production of audio tapes and founded the Selenophon light and sound image company .

Many of the patents relating to sound recordings can be traced back to Czeija.

After the “ Anschluss ” of Austria in March 1938, Czeija was classified as an opponent of the new regime, dismissed as General Director and subsequently spied on. During the Second World War Czeija was an officer in the Wehrmacht , but was also dismissed here during the war because Czeija had a negative attitude towards the Nazi state. Nevertheless, Czeija was able to get closer to the National Socialist rulers, probably to protect his rights to severance payments or reinstatement. Czeija also repeatedly submitted applications for membership in the NSDAP , but according to his own statements, these applications were rejected, most recently in 1942 on the grounds that the party was not allowed to accept active military personnel in times of war. Nevertheless, Czeija saw himself as a party candidate , although the leadership as a party candidate was discussed controversially both in the administrative files during the Nazi era and later and not finally clarified.

As early as mid-April 1945, Czeija took over the rebuilding of Austrian radio. From August 8 to November 12, 1945 he was the public administrator of the “Austrian broadcast system” based at Radio Vienna, until the Volksstimme, the central organ of the KPÖ, published Czeija's candidate for the NSDAP and he was dismissed one more time. In 1949 he was rehabilitated, but this relief came too late for his radio career.

Honors

Street sign

In his honor, the Funk Documentation Archive set up the Oskar Czeija Memorial Fund on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of broadcasting in Austria.

In 1999 the Oskar-Czeija-Gasse in Vienna- Floridsdorf (21st district) was named after him.

literature

  • Reinhard Schlögl: Oskar Czeja: radio and television pioneer, entrepreneur, adventurer , Böhlau Vienna 2005, ISBN 3-205-77235-0 .
  • P. Kudlicza: ITT Austria 1884-1984 , 1984.
  • Michael Schmolke (Ed.): Trailblazer of Journalism in Austria , Österreichischer Kunst- und Kulturverlag Vienna 1992, ISBN 3-85437-038-5 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ (Broadcast) Radio history of Austria
  2. ↑ a b c Street names in Vienna since 1860 as “Political Places of Remembrance” (PDF; 4.4 MB), p. 262ff, final research project report, Vienna, July 2013
  3. ↑ Reinhard Schlögl Oskar Czeija (PDF; 76 kB)
  4. ^ Documentation archive Funk
  5. ^ Oskar-Czeija-Gasse in the Vienna History Wiki of the City of Vienna

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Czeija, Oskar
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian broadcasting pioneer
DATE OF BIRTH September 5, 1887
PLACE OF BIRTH Vienna
DATE OF DEATH March 7, 1958
Place of death Vienna