Dieter Thomas Heck (Carl-Dieter Heckscher, 29 December 1937 – 23 August 201… Read Full Bio ↴Dieter Thomas Heck (Carl-Dieter Heckscher, 29 December 1937 – 23 August 2018) was a German television presenter, singer and actor. He is known as the presenter of the TV program ZDF-Hitparade, featuring German Schlager music, in the 1970s and 1980s. As an actor, he starred in the TV play Das Millionenspiel in 1970.

Heck was born in Flensburg, Germany and grew up in Hamburg. In April 1943, when he was five years old, he developed a stutter after being trapped under a staircase after a nighttime British bombing raid during World War II. The stutter went away after he received training in classical singing at age 16. After completing "Mittelschule" (middle school) and a technical "Oberschule" (high school) he was trained as a "Technischer Kaufmann" (technical salesman) by Borgward in Hamburg and worked afterwards as a salesman. He left the company before it went bankrupt in 1961.

In 1959, Heck appeared on Peter Frankenfelds talent show Toi – Toi – Toi, singing Hippe-di-hipp, mein Mädchen. In 1961, he participated in the preliminary round of the Grand Prix Eurovision de la Chanson (now Eurovision Song Contest). After employment as a car salesman, Heck worked for a record company. He visited the radio station Südwestfunk (SWF) in Baden-Baden on 23 November 1963 and was asked to be interviewed because a scheduled guest did not show up. The moderator asked clumsy questions so Heck took over conducting the interview himself. As a result, Herbert Falk offered him the job of hosting a 90-minute "Sendung" (broadcast) every Saturday. Heck then worked for Radio Luxemburg from 1965 to September 1966. It was customary there to use only a first name, and as "Dieter" was already taken, Heck asked readers of the youth magazine Bravo for an alternative name. The readers chose "Thomas", and he has used it since. He collaborated with Frank Elstner and they became friends.

He then worked for SR 1 Europawelle of the Saarländischer Rundfunk. He concentrated on German Schlager music, a topic not favored by other moderators. His series Die Deutsche Schlagerparade was so successful that it was partly recorded. In 1967, he was a co-founder of the award Goldene Europa for German singers, which was first awarded in 1968.

Heck's breakthrough came with ZDF-Hitparade, a TV series for the ZDF in Mainz, based on the model of the Schlagerparade and staged by Truck Branss. It was considered an influential music feature of the 1970s and 1980s. He presented it 183 times between 1969 and 1984. Heck initiated the award Goldene Stimmgabel. From 1982 to 1989, he was also moderator for the Südwestfunk in the series Gute Laune aus Südwest and Vom Telefon zum Mikrofon. For the ZDF, he moderated 4 gegen 4 (1973), Die Pyramide (1978), Schwarz auf Weiß, Ihr Einsatz bitte – Made in Germany, Das ist ihr Leben (1994), Das große Los, Showpalast, Das Sommer-Hitfestival, Das Silvester-Hitfestival and finally Melodien für Millionen (Melodies for Millions), a gala for the benefit of the German Cancer Aid. He retired from the ZDF in 2007.[2] Heck published his biography in 2011.

As an actor, in 1970 he starred in the role of the showmaster in the TV play Das Millionenspiel. He played supporting roles in TV crime series, such as Tatort in 1981, Rosenheim-Cops, Praxis Bülowbogen, and SOKO Stuttgart in 2009.

Heck married in 1962 and again in 1976. He had two sons and one daughter.

Awards
1971: Goldene Kamera in the category Beste Sendung für junge Leute (best feature for young people) for ZDF-Hitparade
1984: Verdienstkreuz am Bande, the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
1999: Saarländischer Verdienstorden, the Order of Merit of the State of Saarland
2000: Verdienstmedaille of Baden-Württemberg, the Order of Merit of the State of Baden-Württemberg
2001: The Goldene Feder, a special prize for charitable work
2003: Verdienstorden des Landes Rheinland-Pfalz, the Order of Merit of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate
2008: Echo Music Prize for exceptional merits for music in German
2009: Verdienstkreuz 1. Klasse of the Federal Republic of Germany
2012: Deutscher Musikpreis
2017: Goldene Kamera lifetime achievement award

Tom Dooley
Dieter Thomas Heck Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Gestern noch war'n wir Freunde
Für alle Zeit verschwor'n
Doch du zogst falsche Karten
Und hast dein Glück verlor'n!

Auf deinen Kopf, Tom Dooley
Setzt keiner mehr ein Stück
Dein Spiel ist aus, Tom Dooley

Du kommst nie mehr zurück!

Morgen, da zieh'n wir weiter
Beim ersten Sonnenschein
Einer von uns wir fehlen
Du wirst nicht bei uns sein!

Auf deinen Kopf, Tom Dooley
Setzt keiner mehr ein Stück
Dein Spiel ist aus, Tom Dooley
Du kommst nie mehr zurück!

Du hast dein Wort gebrochen
Brachtest uns in Gefahr
Und bald wird jeder wissen
Dass das dein Ende war!

Auf deinen Kopf, Tom Dooley
Setzt keiner mehr ein Stück
Dein Spiel ist aus, Tom Dooley
Du kommst nie mehr zurück!

Auf deinen Kopf, Tom Dooley
Setzt keiner mehr ein Stück
Dein Spiel ist aus, Tom Dooley
Du kommst nie mehr zurück!

Du kommst nie mehr zurück!

Du kommst nie mehr zurück!
Du kommst nie mehr zurück!

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Dieter Thomas Heck's song Tom Dooley are a warning to Tom Dooley himself, that his time is up and he will never return. The first verse explains that the two were friends who had promised to be friends forever, but Tom has now lost his fortune by drawing the wrong cards. The chorus emphasizes the end of Tom's time, as no one will ever bet on him again and his game is over. The second verse talks about the future and how they will continue their journey without Tom, as he will not be with them. It again emphasizes the finality of his fate.

The final two verses explain why Tom's fate is sealed. He broke his word, putting them all in danger, and now everyone will know that this was his final mistake. Overall, the song is a cautionary tale, warning listeners not to betray their friends and to always remember that their actions have consequences.

Line by Line Meaning

Gestern noch war'n wir Freunde
Yesterday we were still friends

Für alle Zeit verschwor'n
Bound for all time

Doch du zogst falsche Karten
But you drew the wrong cards

Und hast dein Glück verlor'n!
And lost your luck!

Auf deinen Kopf, Tom Dooley
On your head, Tom Dooley

Setzt keiner mehr ein Stück
No one will bet again

Dein Spiel ist aus, Tom Dooley
Your game is over, Tom Dooley

Du kommst nie mehr zurück!
You will never come back!

Morgen, da zieh'n wir weiter
Tomorrow we will move on

Beim ersten Sonnenschein
At the first sunbeam

Einer von uns wir fehlen
One of us will be missing