Georg von Holtzbrinck

George von Holtzbrinck (11 May 1909 – 27 April 1983) was a German publisher and founder of Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group.

Biography
He was born in Schöplenberg, Hagen on 11 May 1909. In 1931, Holtzbrinck joined the Nazi Young Workers. In 1933, he became member number 2,126,353 of the Nazi Party.

With his partner, August-Wilhelm Schlösser, Holtzbrink formed a book club business in the 1930s. Their business prospered under the Nazis. With a letter of recommendation from Adolf Hitler's private office obtained by Schlösser, their company Deutsche Verlagsexpedition (Devex), secured a contract with the German Labor Front (DAF), the largest and financially strongest Nazi mass organization with 25 million members. "Devex" distributed the DAF magazines Schönheit der Arbeit and Freude und Arbeit.

Holtzbrinck's Nazi past was successfully concealed for many years until major acquisitions in the United States by the Holtzbrink Publishing Group aroused curiosity about the accuracy of the company's official history. In June 1998, Vanity Fair published a feature article on Holtzbrink and Bertelsmann entitled "The German Front" or "Ich Bin Ein Book Person" that explored the publishers' Nazi-era activities.

Holtzbrinck had three young children with his wife Addy von Holtzbrinck, born Griesenbeck on 13 February 1913, Rummenohl; † 2005: Georg-Dieter, Karin Monika and Stefan, who is current CEO of Holtzbrinck Publishing Group.

Holtzbrinck died 27 April 1983 in Stuttgart.

Awards

 * Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
 * 1952: Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria