Steinmeier honors Loriot on his 100th birthday
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has paid tribute to Loriot on his 100th birthday and recalled the creation of the Waldmops characters in Brandenburg an der Havel. The humorist, caricaturist and actor Vicco von Bülow was born there on 12 November 1923.
According to the city, more than 25 horned forest pugs - a fictional character from a Loriot sketch - are on display as bronze sculptures in his honor. Loriot, who died on Lake Starnberg in 2011, is buried in the Waldfriedhof cemetery in Berlin-Charlottenburg.
Steinmeier, who as a member of the Bundestag had his constituency in Loriot's hometown, wrote in a witty tribute: "I am partly responsible for a small zoological sensation. Brandenburg an der Havel has probably become the only biotope in the world that is home to the wild woodchucks - the species that Loriot once discovered." Together with other culturally interested citizens, he founded a cultural association that wanted to honor the city's great son at the Federal Garden Show in Brandenburg/Havel in 2015.
Wood pug figurines and shoe prints
"Anyone who wants to honor Loriot somehow always feels as if they want to say something dignified, eager and honestly felt, but have a noodle on their nose," said Steinmeier, recalling the quote "Hildegard, please don't say anything now!" from the Loriot classic "The Noodle" from the 1970s. A conventional memorial - Loriot on a pedestal - was out of the question, Steinmeier said.
In the end, a pedestal was created using only Loriot's shoe prints and the Waldmops figures, which stand on the banks of the Havel, in meadows and at Loriot's baptismal church. Artists such as Armin Müller-Stahl, Sten Nadolny, Gerhard Polt, Günter Grass and Martina Gedeck had supported charity events to finance the "reintroduction", Steinmeier said. "I'm sure Loriot would be happy that his home town of Brandenburg has now become the only wood pug biotope in the world."
The pug was Vicco von Bülow's favorite animal, who is also known for the quote: "Life without a pug is possible, but pointless."
Vicco von Bülow always remained attached to his native Brandenburg, where he spent the first three years of his life. After reunification, he set up a foundation and campaigned for donations to save the cathedral in the Havel city, among other things.
- The city of Brandenburg an der Havel honored Loriot's love for his native land by installing more than 25 colorful bronze sculptures of Loriot's fictional character, the wood pugs, across the city on his 100th birthday.
- During his tribute to Loriot, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier mentioned how as a member of the Bundestag, he helped found a cultural association to honor Loriot's hometown at the Federal Garden Show in Brandenburg/Havel, and the association financed the project with the help of notable artists like Sten Nadolny and Günter Grass.
- Loriot, who was born on November 12, 1923, in Brandenburg an der Havel, was known for his fondness of the pug as his favorite animal, and he always remained attached to his childhood memories and experiences in his native Brandenburg.
Source: www.dpa.com
