Würzburg 'barber to the stars'
Rudi Held dies at 74
By Rick Emert, Bamberg
bureau
Courtesy photo from the Crusader
Rudi Held was a barber in Wurzburg for more than 50 years. His shop was in the basement of
a military police barracks building there. |
WÜRZBURG, Germany — The self-proclaimed barber to the stars — generals, that
is — started shaving G.I.’s heads in Germany when Dwight D. Eisenhower still
worked in Europe.
But after battling cancer and circulatory problems for more than a year, Rudi the
Barber died Oct. 29. He was 74.
Rudi Held, who called himself "the barber to the stars," worked out of
several locations, most recently the basement of a military police barracks building in
Würzburg, said Roger Teel, the public affairs officer for U.S. Army Medical Department
Activity in Würzburg.
For more than 50 years, Held was barber to everyone. It didn’t matter if a soldier
had one stripe or four stars, every soldier had Held’s complete attention. His
customer list often included many of the 1st Infantry Division and former 3rd Infantry
Division commanding generals in Würzburg, Teel said.
Letters and photos still line the walls of Held’s basement barbershop from
customers, serving as testament to his dedication and skills. Held’s family will
donate the letters and photos to a museum in the area, said Harry S. Spaulding Jr., chief
of allergy at U.S. Army Medical Department and former commander of the medical unit from
1981 to 1984.
Anyone who sat before Held may have heard him tell the story of how he was in the
German army during World War II. His new career began after he turned himself in to U.S.
Army military police, where he became the military police "company barber." When
the war ended, he continued cutting hair, according to Teel and Spaulding.
"He was very dedicated to his work," said Spaulding, who was making plans to
visit Held’s basement barber shop just days before hearing the news of his death.
"He really touched a lot of people. He will be missed by many."
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