The Circle dramatized the life of Röbi Rapp and Der Kreis

Röbi Rapp, a gay rights campaigner who became a household name in Switzerland, has died at the age of 88. Rapp and his partner Ernst Ostertag were the first in the country to register a same-sex partnership.

After a long illness, Rapp chose to end his life with assisted suicide, and passed away on Sunday, August 26 2018. His death was confirmed on Thursday by Contrastfilm, the company that made a recent film about Rapp and his partner.

A life in the limelight

Röbi Rapp, a gay rights campaigner who became a household name in Switzerland, has died at the age of 88. Rapp and his partner Ernst Ostertag were the first in the country to register a same-sex partnership.

*Röbi Rapp (left) and Ernst Ostertag here in 1957 at a masked ball from "Der Kreis".*

After a long illness, Rapp chose to end his life with assisted suicide, and passed away on Sunday, August 26 2018. His death was confirmed on Thursday by Contrastfilm, the company that made a recent film about Rapp and his partner.

A life in the limelight

Rapp was a child actor, starring in the lead role of the film "Das Menschlein Matthiasexternal link" (The little fellow Matthias) in 1941.

He continued his life on the stage as an adult, performing often in a female role or in drag in theatre productions. Rapp and Ostertag were part of the gay cultural group “Der Kreis” (the Circle), in Zurich in the 1950s. This is where the couple met.

The pioneering organisation hosted legendary balls attended by gay men from all over Europe. It also curated and distributed a magazine with some adult content and a worldwide readership. Read more via Swissinfo

Aktivist und «Der Kreis»-Mitglied Röbi Rapp gestorben

Röbi Rapp durfte am Sonntagabend friedlich im Beisein seiner Liebsten einschlafen. Er gilt als Pionier der LGBTIQ-Rechte und als Verfechter der Eheöffnung in der Schweiz.

Wie der Produzent Ivan Madeo heute morgen in einer Mitteilung berichtete, ist Röbi Rapp im Alter von 88 Jahren verstorben. Der Aktivist sei am Sonntagabend nach einer Phase schwerer Krankheit mit Hilfe einer Freitodbegleitung im Beisein seiner Liebsten friedlich zu Hause eingeschlafen.

Röbi Rapp, 1930 geboren, war seit 1949 eine schillernde Figur im Zürcher Nachtleben. Als Frauendarsteller trat er oft an den geselligen Abenden von «Der Kreis» auf, eine Organisation homosexueller Männer mit Sitz in Zürich. Von 1943 bis 1967 publizierte sie die gleichnamige Zeitschrift, die in drei Sprachen gedruckt wurde und international viel Beachtung erhielt. Read more via Mannschaft Magazin