Karl Frenzel

Karl Wilhelm Theodor Frenzel (6 December 1827 – 10 June 1914) was a German novelist, essayist and theatre critic.

Life

Born in Berlin as son of an innkeeper, Frenzel studied here since 1849 philology, philosophy and history, finished his studies in 1853 with a doctorate and worked first full-time as teacher at the Friedrich- and Dorotheenstädtische Realschule. At the same time Frenzel published in different magazines; already before 1850 he had published poems under the pseudonym Carl Frey in the Berliner Figaro and in 1848 he participated in the Freischärler of Louise Aston. In 1853 he turned to his idol Karl Gutzkow, whom he admired as a versatile writer and first-class critic, and became one of the most important contributors to Gutzkow's conversations at the domestic hearth. In 1863 he took over the direction of this journal and also published the last volume in 1864. In 1861 he joined the editorial staff of the liberal Berlin National-Zeitung, of which he was head of the feuilleton and theatre critic until 1908. Along with Theodor Fontane, who became a theatre critic for the Vossische Zeitung in 1870, Frenzel was regarded by his contemporaries as Berlin's authoritative theatre critic. His influential position was unchallenged for a long time and only weakened when Gerhart Hauptmann and others were joined by Naturalism, whom Frenzel, in contrast to Fontane, condemned and fought against. His stage reviews were published under the title: Berliner Dramaturgie collected.

On Frenzel's 70th birthday in 1897 the Prussian state awarded him the title of professor. Frenzel died on 10 June 1914 at 86 in his Berlin apartment at Dessauer Straße 19 and was buried in the Invalids' Cemetery on Scharnhorststraße. The burial site no longer exists.