Ing. Dr. Otakar Webr: The Third and Final Time

Abstract

Abstract

This article presents a biographical study of Ing. Dr. Otakar Webr, the second editor-in-chief of the journal Chemické Listy. Webr was born in 1901 in Prague and died, presumably, after 1974 in Argentina. A doctoral student of Prof. Emil Votoček, he defended his dissertation both at the University of Toulouse and the Institute of the Chemical Technology Engineering (VŠCHTI) in Prague. He served as editor-in-chief from 1927 to 1945. In addition, he was a skilled businessman and industrial manager. Over the years, he worked successively for the Mining and Metallurgical Company, the Continental Iron Trading Company Kern & Co., and the Czechoslovak Steelworks (a state-owned enterprise), specifically in the Ferromet division. In 1947, he divorced, left his family including his two sons, remarried, and emigrated to Argentina with his new wife. There, he eventually established himself among the managerial elite and worked for companies such as Casa Iturrat S.A.C., Mecana S.R.L., and Pesquera Argentina del Sur S.A.C.I. In many respects, however, Otakar Webr remains a somewhat enigmatic and not fully understood figure, an impression reinforced by the fact that even the U.S. intelligence agency, the CIA, took an interest in his activities in Argentina.