German scriptwriter Herbert Reinecker dies at 92

dpa German Press Agency Published: Wednesday February 7, 2007

Munich- Herbert Reinecker, the German scriptwriter who created the long-running Derrick television crime series seen in many nations, has died at the age of 92, his widow confirmed Wednesday. Reinecker died on January 27, she said. He scripted more than 400 episodes of TV mysteries, with his 281 episodes of Derrick, which ceased filming in 1998, seen as his most lasting achievement.

Derrick, played by the German actor Horst Tappert, was a philosophical older detective-inspector who was never surprised by the new varieties of evil and depravity he met with in his inquiries.

Lifelong guilt often figured in the stories. As a youth, Reinecker wrote propaganda for the Hitler Youth and had a job as an official war reporter with the Waffen SS fighting force of the Nazi party.

© 2006 dpa German Press Agency