WEITZ, John 1923-2002

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born May 25, 1923, in Berlin, Germany; died of cancer October 3, 2002, in Bridghampton, NY. Fashion designer and author. Weitz was a renowned clothing designer who was particularly notable for his clothes for active men, but he also made a name for himself later in life as an author of novels and nonfiction. The son of a World War I hero who was a clothing manufacturer, Weitz learned from his father and also from fashion modernist Edward Molyneaux in London. After attending schools in London, he and his family moved to the United States in the late 1930s. During World War II Weitz served with the Office of Strategic Services in Germany. He then returned to New York City and worked as a designer of women's sportswear. Weitz gained experience at various clothing companies before founding John Weitz Designs in 1954, where he built a reputation for designing active wear for men and introduced the "European cut" dress shirt. With a keen sense of marketing, Weitz also was the first designer in the United States to aggressively license his company's name to products such as men's cologne, housewares, and even sewing patterns. Winning the Coty Award, the most prestigious prize in the fashion industry, in 1974, Weitz felt he had brought his company far enough along that he no longer had to actively run the business. He stepped back to let others take charge while he turned his attention to writing books. His first published work was the novel The Value of Nothing (1970), which was followed by several more books, including works about Nazi Germany such as Hitler's Diplomat: The Life and Times of Joachim von Ribbentrop (1992) and Hitler's Banker: Hjalmar Horace Greeley Schacht (1997). At the time of his death Weitz was finishing a rewrite of a novel about German boxer Max Schmeling.

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

books

Contemporary Designers, third edition, St. James Press (Detroit, MI), 1997.

Who's Who in America, 56th edition, Marquis (New Providence, NJ), 2001.

periodicals

Chicago Tribune, October 8, 2002, section 2, p. 9.

Los Angeles Times, October 5, 2002, p. B21.

New York Times, October 4, 2002, p. C21.

Times (London, England), November 16, 2002.

Washington Post, October 6, 2002, p. C10.