Long vice-president of the SPA, Michel Klein is also at the origin of the creation of the School of guide dogs for the blind and visually impaired in Paris.
France Télévisions – Culture Editorial
Published on 19/10/2024 18:09
Reading time: 2min
On the small screen, he was known as the white wolf: an apostle of animal protection, Michel Klein was for several decades the most famous veterinarian on television. He died on Saturday at the age of 103 in Rueil-Malmaison (Hauts-de-Seine), his wife said.
Born in 1921 in the northwest of Romania and sent to France by his parents to study in the 1930s, this former Resistance fighter was one of the first to open a veterinary practice in Paris in the 1950s.
In the 1960s, he became a media figure thanks to television programs raising awareness of animal rights such as I am looking for a master, Animals of the world, 30 million friends and, for ten years, Earth, be careful, dangera column he presented on TF1 with host Dorothée.
“Michel will always remain in my heart. 103 years old is a magnificent age. He was surprised himself… His departure is a huge shock. He did so much for animals and animal protection. He knew everything about everything. He wore his heart on his sleeve. We have made magnificent broadcasts for years“, reacted Dorothée to AFP.
Close to Brigitte Bardot, Michel Klein is the author of the book The Beasts That Made Me Man and was also the vice-president of the Society for the Protection of Animals (SPA) for a long time.
He co-founded the National Council for Animal Protection and was at the origin, with the support of Jacques Chirac, of the creation of the School of Guide Dogs for the Blind and Visually Impaired in Paris.
Producer Jean Luc Azoulay, founder and director of AB Productions which produced Dorothée’s shows, praised onan extraordinary man, a great gentleman”expressing his “great sadness“and by addressing his thoughts”to his wife and family“.
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