This undated photo appeared in the AP Log newsletter in February 1986 shows Ulrich Renz a former head of The Associated Press German-language service who also covered trials of leaders of the Auschwitz death camp a former head of The Associated Press German-language service who also covered the trials of leaders of the Auschwitz death camp in World War II a close friend for 50 years and a former AP colleague who lived in the same senior citizen residence in Frankfurt Widely known as “Uli,” Renz began working for the AP in Germany in 1971 after a stint at United Press International he first worked on the foreign desk and eventually headed the German-language service at its Frankfurt headquarters from 1986-92 The German-language news service was begun after World War II to help establish a free press and support democracy in postwar West Germany It was sold to the German news agency DDP in 2009 Renz was born in Stuttgart in 1934 and grew up in the village of Giengen an der Brenz in southwestern Germany he worked as a reporter for the Heidenheimer Zeitung newspaper where he stayed until moving to UPI in 1959 During his decades as a journalist in Germany he focused on reporting about the country’s highest court and wrote extensively about the trials of many former Nazis The 1963-65 trial in Frankfurt of 22 men who helped run the Auschwitz death camp in Germany-occupied Poland was one of the biggest following the Allies’ Nuremberg war crimes trials immediately after World War II It confronted people in then-West Germany with the Nazi past and is credited as a turning point in German efforts to address the crimes of that period Renz devoted his time to researching the life of Georg Elser a carpenter who tried to kill Hitler in Munich but was thwarted because the Nazi leader unexpectedly left the room minutes before a bomb exploded Renz published several books on Elser’s life and the failed attempt gaining recognition from scholars and political leaders He was honored with the German Cross of Honor for his work “Renz’s passion for researching the Third Reich sprang at least partly from his father’s refusal to talk about his own role in it as a civilian administrator in Nazi-occupied Poland,” Gehrig said there wasn’t much interest into digging into the dark past Uli was among the young Germans who thought otherwise.” Former AP Bonn correspondent Terrence Petty said that “as a journalist and digger into uncomfortable truths Uli was an inspiration to those who knew him and worked with him visiting coffee shops in Frankfurt and reading although recently his sight had diminished | https://www.mariettatimes.com | 740-373-2121 she rarely had herself photographed with her teddy bears; on the right excerpt from the Trademark Directory of 1905 The "Knopf im Ohr" ("Button in Ear") is one of the most traditional German brands Yet its founder Margarete Steiff had to overcome health hurdles before she could become a successful entrepreneur 1847 in Giengen an der Brenz in Württemberg and would have celebrated her 175th birthday these days Margarete was a lively child and grew up carefree until she contracted polio at the age of one and a half her legs are paralyzed and she can only move her right hand with pain She is confined to a wheelchair for the rest of her life and several cures for the disease are unsuccessful This means that marriage is out of the question for her in the second half of the 19th century nor does she have any prospect of a self-determined life the young Margarete fights for her place in life She succeeds in getting permission to attend school yet she cannot attend high school because that is reserved for boys She found sewing by hand difficult because her right hand had limited strength due to her disability she fought her way through with her strong will and great discipline and successfully completed her tailoring apprenticeship at the age of 17 At times Margarete works in the ladies' tailor shop of her sisters Pauline and Marie The elephant was intended as a pincushion - until children discovered it for themselves as a toy (Elefäntle before 1892) Margarete's father sets up her own workroom she ventured into self-employment: Steiff founded a felt clothing business in which she sold garments and household articles she had produced herself The goods sold well and she was soon able to employ several seamstresses Margarete discovers the pattern for a small fabric elephant in a fashion journal the first best-seller of the Steiff factory the demand for the small felt elephants increases so that the workshop soon also produces other animals made of felt her toy business is entered in the commercial register as "Margarete Steiff Filzspielwarenfabrik Giengen/Brenz." In the same year the toys are presented for the first time at the Leipzig Toy Fair Steiff now employs four seamstresses and ten home workers Word and figurative mark "Steiff - Button in Ear" Margarete Steiff's favorite creative nephew and creator of numerous Steiff creations It is he who in 1902 designs the "Bear 55 PB" the world's first plush bear with movable arms and legs Margarete Steiff herself was skeptical about the bear's potential for success the company presents the stuffed bear at the Leipzig Toy Fair an American dealer buys the entire collection (3,000 pieces) - the triumphant advance of the "Teddy Bear" in the USA begins In order to distinguish the company's own high-quality products from cheap competitor products Margarete's nephew Franz Steiff designs the "Button in Ear" as a trademark for Steiff goods in 1904 The trademark is applied for at the patent office and registered in 1905 the word mark "Steiff" is registered (DE97027) the company with 400 employees and 1,800 home workers already produces 973,999 teddy bears and a total of about 1.7 million toys 1909 in her hometown as a result of pneumonia Steiff's nephews continue to run the company Margarete Steiff's creations achieve world fame beyond her death Steiff North America announces that the Toy Association has bestowed its highest award upon the founder of the company Margarete Steiff (1847-1909) has been inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame She is known as the pioneer who sewed the world’s very first plush toy Her legacy will be recognized during the Toy Association’s annual Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards “It is hard to imagine a more fitting honoree for the Toy Industry Hall of Fame,” said Jim Pitocco “Margarete became one of the world’s earliest female CEOs despite societal norms and her physical disabilities her long-stated philosophy is still the company’s guiding principle: ‘Only the best is good enough for our children’,” he added Margarete Steiff was stricken with polio at 18 months old and would spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair Even though the disease had left her permanently paralyzed she learned to use her one good arm to operate a sewing machine — becoming skilled enough to begin making and selling clothing under her own brand name While thumbing through a fashion magazine of the era Margarete noticed a pattern for a small elephant pincushion She decided to make a few of these as gifts for friends and family the children of Giengen had adopted and repurposed the pincushions as the world’s first soft toys an entirely new kind of plaything was born replacing the wooden and tin toys and hard bisque dolls of the era Steiff’s company shifted away from the clothing business to focus exclusively on toys The growing entity gained its biggest boost in 1897 He went on to invent the Teddy bear in 1902 undoubtably the most famous toy of all time Margarete Steiff GmbH was producing more than 1 million Teddy bears a year her company continues to thrive today — more than 140 years after its founding Margarete Steiff joins an impressive roster of 77 toy industry luminaries who have been inducted into the Hall since it was established in 1984 including those who brought to life Mickey Mouse (Walt Disney) For additional information on Steiff and Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony please visit www.steiffusa.com and www.toyassociation.org Antoinette RahnPublished Jul 16 2015 4:08 PM PDTShare this storyBy Antoinette Rahn The history associated with Steiff bears and toys dates back to the late 19th century and it shines the light on an innovative legacy of the company started by a woman who earned her seamstress certification at the age of 17 1 The seldom-seen Steiff mourning bear pictured below of the Titanic, circa 1912, with black fur, shoe button eyes lined with red felt, black stitched nose and claws, and sans an official Steiff button, commanded $34,800 (with buyer’s premium) during an auction presented by Morphy Auctions in November 2011 2 The mastermind behind Steiff stuffed toys and bears, Margarete Steiff fought through a challenging childhood to achieve her goals but the illness left her legs paralyzed and she suffered chronic pain in her right arm she attended sewing school and earned her seamstress certification at the age of 17 and ultimately founded Steiff Manufacture in 1880 3 Although Steiff is largely synonymous with bears Margarete’s first stuffed animal was actually an elephant who in 1902 designed the first stuffed toy bears that featured arms and legs that moved 4 An early 20th century golden mohair Steiff bear with shoe button eyes, Steiff button and an intact leather muzzle, measuring 24 inches in height, realized $10,497 during a March 2014 auction presented by Bertoia Auctions 5 Steiff collectors are an active community has more than 30,000 members from around the world more than 15 events dedicated to Steiff plush toys have been held in 2015 the Official Steiff Fan page on Facebook has nearly 8,700 Likes 6 The Steiff Museum features an exhibition representing various elements of the more than 130-year Steiff history a tour of Margarete Steiff’s sewing center demonstration of the traditional Steiff production process petting zoo and the largest Steiff store in the world 7 In 2012, an animated advertising automaton, manufactured by “Margarete Steiff GmbH, Gingen, Germany,” circa 1970s, featuring 14 original Steiff animals in a workshop setting, sold for $2,995 through Auction Team Breker 8 The recognizable brand tag “Steiff – Button in Ear” was developed by Franz Steiff in 1904 and to ward off imitations – of which there were many 9 Inspired by the book “The Roosevelt Bears” by Seymour Eaton Steiff and other companies began manufacturing clothing for teddy bears inspired by those in “The Roosevelt Bears,” sold for 5 cents each and in recent years have fetched more than $1,000 at auction © 2025 Active Interest Media All rights reserved.