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Nazi Architect's Son Has His Own Designs

Father's shadow hasn't kept Albert Speer from worldwide impact

By Kevin Langbaum, Newser User

Posted Dec 22, 2007 6:14 AM CST

(Newser) – It’s hard to make a name for yourself when you share a name with your father, harder when the father was a famous Nazi architect and friend of Hitler. Urban planner Albert Speer constantly battles the association, keeping a low profile, and, though he has made his mark worldwide, avoiding Berlin. Now, he has his sights on bringing the 2018 Winter Olympics to Munich.

For years, Speer avoided his father’s shadow, entering contests anonymously and barely speaking about the man. Only recently did he open up about his family, Der Spiegel reports. Though it hasn’t hurt his career, it’s something he’d prefer to avoid. "I am 73, and at that age you become tired of always being treated as the son of someone else," he said.

[Images (4)]

[Videos (1)]

A 3D rendering of Speer's planned Changchun Automotive Industry Development Area in Changchun, China (www.as-p.de)

Albert Speer, internationally renown architect and urban planner, and son of "the first architect of the Third Reich". (www.as-p.de)

Ensemble am Baseler Platz, Frankfurt am Main. An architectural achievement by Albert Speer. (www.as-p.de)

The senior Albert Speer is photographed at the Nuremberg trials. (Public Domain)

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Hitler's hidden place designed by Albert Speer senior. (edup12 (YouTube))

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Nazi Architect's Son Has His Own Designs