Otto Fuerbringer(September 27, 1910 – July 28, 2008) was an editor for the American news magazineTime.
Otto Fuerbringer | |
|---|---|
 Otto Fuerbringer in 1982 | |
| Born | September 27, 1910 |
| Died | July 27, 2008(aged 97) Fullerton,California,U.S. |
| Alma mater | Harvard |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, editor |
| Employers | |
| Spouse | Winona Gunn |
| Children | 4 |
| Father | Ludwig E. Fuerbringer |
Life
editFuerbringer was born inSt. Louis,Missouri,U.S. toLudwigand Anna Zucker Fuerbringer. His father was a Lutheran minister. He was the youngest of five children.[1]As a student atHarvard,he edited the student newspaperThe Harvard Crimson.
After graduating in 1932, he started working for theSt. Louis Post-Dispatch,before being hired byTimein 1942.[2]Reaching the rank of assistant managing editor in 1951, he was appointed managing editor in 1960.[3]Later, as head ofTime Inc.'s magazine-development group, he also introducedPeopleandMoneymagazines.[2]He did much to rejuvenate what was a rather austere publication, and once famously said of the journalism his staff did that "It only has to be truethis week."[4]Though a social conservative, Fuerbringer nevertheless did much to focus the magazine's attention on thecounter-cultureand the political and intellectual radicalism of the 1960s.
A 1964 issue dealt with the sexual revolution, while in 1967 thebirth control pillwas discussed.
During Fuerbringer's tenure as editor, the magazine's circulation rose from three to five million.[1]His best known act as editor was probably his April 8, 1966 cover story "Is God Dead?"[5]In the accompanying article he explored the role of religion in an increasingly secular society, and investigated a trend among contemporary theologians to writeGodout of the field oftheology.[2]Fuerbringer had initially been a supporter of theVietnam War,but in 1968 he wrote aneditorialconceding that the war was unwinnable.[2]
Shortly before his death, in 2007, he wrote an autobiography, titled "On TIME".[1]Fuerbringer was married to his wife Winona Gunn Fuerbringer for 68 years. The couple had four children.[2]ThePulitzer Prize-winning journalistDavid Halberstamonce said of Fuerbringer "He was the most controversial man withinTime magazine,immensely influential, perhaps the most influential conservative of his generation in journalism, but outside the magazine almost no one knew his name. "[6]Timeemployees sometimes called him "Otto Fingerbanger" or "The Iron Chancellor" for his imperious demeanor.
Fuerbringer died inFullerton, Californiain a retirement home.[1]
Family
editIn 1940, Fuerbringer married Winona Gunn Fuerbringer, who survived him, and lived inGreenwich, Connecticutfor more than 45 years. They had four children: Jonathan, Peter, Alexis, and Juliana.[1]His brother wasAlfred Fuerbringer,a Lutheran seminary president.[7]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abcdeHevesi, Dennis (July 30, 2008)."Otto Fuerbringer, Former Time Editor, Dies at 97".The New York Times.RetrievedMay 12,2009.
- ^abcdeSchudel, Matt (August 1, 2008)."Otto Fuerbringer; Time Editor in 1960s Helped Start Money, People Magazines".The Washington Post.RetrievedMay 12,2009.
- ^"Staff changes".Time.March 28, 1960.Archivedfrom the original on October 8, 2010.RetrievedMay 12,2009.
- ^Corliss, Richard (May 20, 2005)."Cannes Diary X: Palmed Off".Time.Archived fromthe originalon September 11, 2005.RetrievedMay 12,2009.
- ^Fuerbringer, Otto (April 8, 1966)."Toward a Hidden God".Time.Archived fromthe originalon December 11, 2006.RetrievedMay 12,2009.
- ^Halberstam, David (2000).The Powers That Be.University of Illinois Press. p.453.ISBN0-252-06941-2.
- ^"Agnes M. Fuerbringer; Taught 48 Years".St. Louis Post-Dispatch.April 25, 1985. p. 21.RetrievedJanuary 23,2023.
Further reading
edit- Fuerbringer, Otto (2007).On TIME.Peter Fuerbringer.