Title: Gregor Ziemer Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1929-1945

Creator:

• Ziemer, Gregor, 1889-1982

Call Number: U.S. Mss 47AF

Quantity: 6.4 c.f. (16 archives boxes)

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

Abstract:

Papers of a foreign correspondent, author, and radio news commentator for WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio. The collection consists largely of radio news scripts for wartime programs such as Background on the News and Views of the News, but also includes some writings, correspondence, and memorabilia. Writings include a draft of an article for Look, a manuscript fragment of Two Thousand and Ten Days of Hitler (1940) written by Ziemer's daughter, and two chapters of an unpublished volume on life in Germany before World War II. The correspondence includes five boxes of listener mail, personal letters, and some exchanges pertaining to the production of news programs. Single letters are present from John H. Bankhead, John W. Bricker, Hans V. Kaltenborn, and Lyndon B. Johnson. The memorabilia includes clippings, programs, and press releases.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-us0047af

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Gregor Athelstan Ziemer, author, educator, and broadcaster, was born in Columbia, Michigan, on May 24, 1899. He received his B.A. from the University of Illinois (1922), his M.A. from the University of Minnesota (1923), and his Ph.D. from the University of Berlin (1934).

After receiving his M.A., Ziemer became a member of the journalism faculty at Park Region Junior College. In 1926 he became superintendent of schools in the Philippines, a position he held until 1928 when he founded the American Colony School in Berlin. While a resident in that city, Ziemer was also a correspondent for the New York Herald, the London Daily Mail, and the Chicago Tribune. When the school was closed by the war, he returned to the United States.

In November, 1941, Ziemer became a radio broadcaster for station WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio. His two innovative programs of news and commentary, Views of the News and Background on the News, attracted a large audience and were instrumental in consolidating support for the war effort within the WLW listening radius.

In June, 1944, Ziemer joined a special war agency and went overseas with SHAEF. After the end of the war, he worked for the military government in Bavaria organizing newspapers. In 1948 he became vice-president of International Enterprises. From 1952 to 1964 he was head of publicity and education for the American Foundation for the Blind. In 1966 he became program director for the Institute for Lifelong Education in Berkeley, California.

Ziemer is the author of the following books: Two Thousand and Ten Days of Hitler (co-authored with his daughter, Patricia); Education for Death, The Making of the Nazi (1943); Should Hitler's Children Die? (1946); Whirlaway Hopper (1962); Too Old For What? (1968); Witness on Waterskies (1975); and Let'm Eat Grass (1975). In addition, he has authored several television and radio plays, and Education for Death was adapted for the screen (Hitler's Children, 1943). Ziemer has also published many magazine articles and lectured extensively.

Among the awards he has received are: the Silver Anvil Award from the American Public Relations Association (1956, 1958, and 1960); the Paul Revere Citation (1958); the Westinghouse Citation (1958); and the Man of the Year Award in Work with the Blind (1960). He is a member of a number of professional public relations and broadcasting groups.

The Ziemer Papers are gathered almost entirely from his wartime career as a radio broadcaster for WLW. The collection consists of scripts, writings, correspondence, and memorabilia. Together the materials provide a useful resource for studying the use of radio as a propaganda tool.

The SCRIPTS, 1941-1944, which comprise the largest portion of the collection, pertain chiefly to three WLW programs: Views of the News (MWF) and Background on the News (MTWTFS), both of which consisted of news and commentary; and World Front (Sunday), an informal roundtable discussion and interview program. Many of the scripts relating to the first two programs are unidentified. Because they are virtually identical in content they have been filed together in chronological order. Continuity and advertising scripts are attached to some individual programs. The researcher is warned that the dating was done by Ziemer some years after broadcast and that it may not be completely accurate. The collection also includes a small number of materials relating to World Front. In most cases these materials are not scripts, but rather a series of questions and occasional answers to questions. Materials relating to World Front tend to be fragmentary both in terms of substance and time coverage. A small number of miscellaneous scripts relate to other WLW programs.

Ziemer's WRITINGS, 1940-1942, n.d., represented in the collection include a draft fragment of Two Thousand and Ten Days of Hitler which includes some pages in his daughter's youthful handwriting; two manuscript chapters and drafts from an unpublished book entitled “Right Under Hitler's Nose,” which Ziemer wrote for Ann McNulty, a fellow member of the American contingent in pre-war Berlin; a manuscript and draft version of “Branded by Death,” an article written for Look; and several miscellaneous manuscripts including a proposed outline for a book on sex in Hitlerian Germany. This section also contains a speech written for Mrs. Ziemer to deliver while he was recovering from an automobile accident.

The CORRESPONDENCE, 1929-1945, divides into three categories (Listener, Personal, and WLW) and includes both incoming and carbons of outgoing mail. The Listener Mail, which has been weeded to remove routine correspondence and sorted by month, consists of questions and comments from Ziemer's audience. A letter from Governor John Bricker (June 2, 1942) may be found in this section. The Personal Correspondence includes mail from Ziemer's family, friends, acquaintances, and his literary agent, publisher, and lecture service representative. With the exception of two items (1929, 1936), this segment relates only to the World War II period. Of interest in this section is a letter from H.V. Kaltenborn (January 13, 1944) relating to the Overseas Press Club. The WLW Correspondence includes letters and memoranda relating to the production of news programs. In general, this segment provides disappointing documentation and perhaps the most revealing item is an undated letter dealing with the broadcaster's keen sense of time. Noteworthy correspondents include John H. Bankhead and Lyndon B. Johnson. The Johnson letter, dated February 23, 1943, concerns a mutual interest in the transportation costs of civilian employees of the military. There are also several letters from Burnett Hershey concerning his appearance on WLW. Also of interest is a letter from a listener to James Shouse, vice-president of the Crossley Corporation, concerning the dispute between Ziemer and Carroll Alcott, another WLW broadcaster, over U.S. military strategic priorities.

The MEMORABILIA, 1941-1943, includes biographical clippings, press releases, and programs.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Gregor Ziemer, Palos Verdes Peninsula, California, January 8, 1963; July 7 and September 10, 1964; and June 16, 1965. Accession Number: MCHC 63-3, 64-68, 85 and 65-65

Processing Information

Processed by Janice O'Connell and Carolyn Mattern, July 1, 1977.

	Series: Scripts, 1941-1944
	News Scripts,
Box   1 Folder   1-5	1941, November 4-1942, January 26
	1942,
Box   2 Folder   1-4	January 27-March 31
Box   3 Folder   1-5	April 1-July 14
Box   4 Folder   1-5	July 15-September 23
Box   5 Folder   1-5	September 24-December 6
Box   6 Folder   1-4	December 7-1943, February 28
	1943,
Box   7 Folder   1-4	March 1-May 29
Box   8 Folder   1-4	May 30-October 26
Box   9 Folder   1-4	October 27-1944, February 23
Box   10 Folder   1-4	1944, February 24-June 9; n.d.
Box   11 Folder   1-2	World Front, 1941, December 31-1943, June 23; n.d.
Box   11 Folder   3	Miscellaneous Scripts, 1942
	Series: Writings, 1940-1942, n.d.	⇧
Box   11 Folder   4	Two Thousand and Ten Days of Hitler, Draft Fragment, 1940
Box   11 Folder   5	“Right Under Hitler's Nose,” Draft Fragment, ca. 1940
Box   11 Folder   6-7	“Branded By Death,” Manuscript & Draft Fragment, n.d.
Box   11 Folder   8	Miscellany, n.d.
Box   11 Folder   9	Speech Draft, 1942
	Series: Correspondence, 1929-1945	⇧
	Listener Correspondence,
Box   11 Folder   10-11	1941, November-December
	1942,
Box   12 Folder   1-6	January-May
Box   13 Folder   1-9	June-December, n.d.
Box   14 Folder   1-7	1943, January-April
Box   15 Folder   1-7	1943, May-1944, May
	Personal Correspondence
Box   16 Folder   1	1929; 1936; 1941-1942, April
Box   16 Folder   2	1942, May-December
Box   16 Folder   3	1943-1944; 1945
	WLW Correspondence,
Box   16 Folder   4	1941, December-1942
Box   16 Folder   5	1943-1944
	Series: Memorabilia, 1941-1943	⇧
Box   16 Folder   6	Clippings, 1941-1943
Box   16 Folder   7	Programs and Press Releases, 1941-1943; n.d.