THE GOOD GERMAN – The Life of Gottfried von Cramm

The rediscovery of a tennis legend and a thrilling chapter in Germany’s cultural history.

This is a book about an extraordinary German man living in the 20th century: a baron from a centuries-old dynasty, a beau in 1930s Berlin, who at the time came second in the world tennis ranking and was considered by many to be the most elegant player of all times. There hardly ever was a more engaging German. In 1938, this opponent of Hitler was sent to jail because of his love for another man. Later, he married the richest woman in the world, Woolworth heir Barbara Hutton, who considered him more attractive than his predecessor Cary Grant. Gottfried von Cramm: world-famous, a star, loved and respected, regarded for decades as the face of a Germany one could admire. The “beautiful German” works as a contrast to the “ugly German”, which remained our label long after the Second World War.

Jens Nordalm was the first to be granted full access to the von Cramm family’s private archives at Castle Bodenburg, including letters and notes written by the “tennis baron” himself and many of his relatives. The book contains many photographs never before published.