Media Archive Images

An emblematic picture - Reinhard Mohn, still in his soldier's cloak, speaks to his employees at the topping-out ceremony in 1947 One of the first works meetings after the war on the occasion of the topping-out ceremony in 1947; Sales Director Fritz Wixforth at center Reconstruction of the publishing plant, ca. 1946 The foundations are laid for the new office building on Eickhoffstraße, 1946 The old print shop reconstructed in 1946, with MAN stop-cylinder presses Aerial view at the rebuild Bertelsmann headquarter in the 1950s Design for a special window promoting the inexpensive, popular Bertelsmann "Volksausgaben" edition. The stories are set in places like Vienna, "the city of love and music," and "give strength and comfort in all situations." As the people outside struggle, the ad declares: "Life is beautiful" - books as life coaches. The summer holidays, a great time to read - poster advertising Bertelsmann's new Volk editions Bertelsmann Lesering logo, 1950 In the early 1950s, the advertising buses become a striking hallmark for the Lesering. Large Lesering buses with a "living-room atmosphere" are also used in the 1950s. In October 1953, Sales Director Rudolf Wendorff (standing) presents the first volume in the Big Bertelsmann Lexikon (Encyclopedia) Actor Karl Böhm, interested reader: ad for the Bertelsmann Lexikon, 1954 "The three clever guys" - Lexikothek ad in the Michaelis Week parade in Gütersloh, 1958 After 1964, Lesering members can shop at "Bücherstube" bookstores as well Large crowds at an autograph session with Franz Beckenbauer and Sepp Maier (l.); Picture taken in 1966 at the Munich Lesering branch Organizational diagram showing the restructuring of Bertelsmann's production and sales departments in 1959 High technical standard: In 1960, 1.42 million Lesering members are serviced by Verlagsgemeinschaft Rheda Modern Hollerith punched-card tabulator in the data processing department at Verlagsgemeinschaft Rheda, 1961 In 1958, an ultra-modern building complex is constructed along Friedrichsdorfer Strasse, today Carl-Bertelsmann-Strasse The first generation of record presses for producing singles, 1958 The first high-bay warehouse at Kommissionshaus Buch und Ton, also known as the "book silo" Reinhard Mohn above the rooftops of New York, 1954 Modern office environments. In 1961, 270 Kommissionshaus Buch und Ton employees move into Germany's first open-plan offices The Kartographisches Institut at the 1960 Frankfurt Book Fair The increasing demands on lexical publications could only be met by establishing a separate institute A new map series requires numerous complicated processes In the technical department, the templates from the drafting department are carefully processed into printable final artwork The editorial team, supported by an extensive staff of research associates, regularly check all the details of the series and brings them up to date The work was performed using state-of-the-art cartography techniques Precise documentation, patience and a steady hand are required when a cartographer drafts a new map. Here, the maps for the "Bertelsmann's Big World Atlas" are being created. Maps and atlases are produced not only for Germany, but also for a number of other countries First drafts for the wordmark of Bertelsmann's own recording label. In July 1958, "Ariola" is introduced to the public, complete with its own program. In April 1958 Sonopress starts producing records in-house. The first generation of record presses for producing singles, from 1958 "Am Tag als der Regen kam" (On the day the rain came) - In 1959, Cairo-born singer Dalida earned Ariola its first No. 1 hit song "Cheers!" - Udo Jürgens and Peter Alexander with Bertelsmann executives Egmont Lüftner and Friedel Schmidt (left to right) "Mama" - the smash hit by child star Heintje, shown here with Peter Alexander. Ariola took special care to develop young artists. Chanson singer Mireille Mathieu, a.k.a. the "sparrow of Avignon," 1960 In 1960, the Schallplattenring program comprises 500 records across a wide variety of musical genres The first issue of the "Schallplattenring Illustrierte," for the 3rd quarter of 1956 Work begins at Kommissionshaus Buch und Ton, with its 14,350 square meters of storage space on Friedrichsdorfer Straße A small portion of the Kommissionshauses Buch und Ton customer files Major progress over the old packing room on Eickhoffstrasse - semi-automatic book delivery, shown here with an integrated package-sealing machine Mechanical relief is provided at the enveloping station, too, where tens of thousands of books are shipped around the world every day. View of a storage room in the consignment building, above it one of the circular conveyors that delivers the packaging materials The consignments are picked and packed on conveyor belts that ensure swift, consistent processing The Kommissionshaus' facilities are dominated by a system of conveyors, conveyor belts and packing lines, thoroughly thought-out and tested down to the last detail Thanks to the Kommissionshaus' daily consignments, the Gütersloh Post Office holds a new record: It is Germany's largest parcel deliverer Reinhard Mohn in 1967 on a Círculo de Lectores motor scooter in Barcelona Donauland bookstore in the Meidling district of Vienna. Donauland, in which Bertelsmann has owned a stake since 1966, is by far the largest book club in Austria. A Círculo de Lectores promotional bus, shown against the backdrop of the famous Sagrada Familia church designed by Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí Arnold Schmitt (l.) and Reinhard Mohn in 1967, in front of a Círculo de Lectores bus in Barcelona A bookstore operated by the French book club France Loisirs in Paris. With 4.2 million members, the French book club is the largest in the world in the 1980s. Every second book sold in Colombia comes from Círculo. A printing plant built in 1977 supplies books to Mexico, Ecuador and Venezuela. In 1964, Bertelsmann takes over the Printer Industrias Artes Gráficas printing plant in Barcelona. Picture from 1967 Expansion to Latin America - Klaus Lasser, Hans Zopp, Hermann Hoffmann and John Reiser (l to r) in 1981 in front of the "Bertelsmann de Mexico SA" vans The establishment of Bertelsmann Fernsehproduktion in 1960 kicks off the entry into the TV business Bertelsmann-Film München gets most of its orders from industry. Shown here, shooting a documentary for the company Claas in 1963 Headquarters of Ufa's music publishers in Munich, 1962. The author roster includes such world-famous names as Robert Gilbert and Michael Jary The Ufa-Haus and Universum Filmtheater in Dusseldorf Besides production companies, Ufa also operates numerous cinemas. A look into the auditorium at Dusseldorf's Residenz-Theater Ufa-Fernsehproduktion filming the teleplay Henry IV starring Horst Tappert in 1967 Ufa-Theater AG opens its first drive-in theater in Gelsenkirchen in 1968 Child star Heintje with Peter Alexander on the set of "Hurra die Schule brennt" in 1969 View of the Pressehaus in Hamburg, 1973 All under a shared roof: Stern-Jasmin-Brigitte -Eltern-Schöner Wohnen and many more Range of magazines published by Gruner +Jahr, 1979 Lifelong friends: Reinhard Mohn, Chairman & CEO Bertelsmann AG and Dr. Gerd Bucerius (r), Verleger, Gruner+Jahr shareholder and Chairman of the Bertelsmann Supervisory Board, 1975 In 1960 Bertelsmann establishes the Institute for Research on the Book Market in Hamburg. It is devoted to business consulting for the book trade and published a number of relevant standard works. Shown here presenting at the Frankfurt Book Fair. In the Bertelsmann bookshop, too, books are increasingly sorted and sold by the various subject areas. Reinhard Mohn with an interested customer at the academic publishing company's book stand Good advice for modern women doesn't have to be expensive! Bertelmann Ratgeberverlag shows how it's done Bertelsmann Kunstverlag, art publisher Bertelsmann Jugendbuchverlag for young-adult books Picture from Bertelsmann Universitätsverlag (university publishing), 1968 Bertelsmann Sachbuchverlag booth at a book fair in 1972, on left in the picture Thor Heyerdahl, one of its most successful non-fiction authors