There is a funny but true story about Reinhold Messner and a kiosk at 4000 meters on Matterhorn. A video is available about this but it is in German, so perhaps some people did not know about it.
This is a true story from 80s, some people have decided to make a joke with Messner and used a helicopter to place a kiosk very close to the summit of Matterhorn. They prepared everything specially for him as they also arranged that he guides a person to the summit that morning.
The kiosk was full of crazy stuff (I mean for such an environment) like newspapers, refreshments, firecrackers to celebrate the summit attempt. Even Messner’s books were available to buy.
A few climbers passed the kiosk, you will see them in the video, before Reinhold Messner arrived with his client who was taking a part in this conspiracy.
Here is the video first, and below I shall give a translation of the most important part prepared by my daughter Jelena:
Messner (comments): A friend of mine came to me who had a high position in a German industrial company and he said: do me a favor. For my sake. We would like to hold a competition and the winner should go with you to the Matterhorn.
The evening before, the climbers are still in the valley, they fly to the Matterhorn from the back side. A helicopter is in a place that you can’t see from the valley. So no one can see how the kiosk is established and roped down and tied down. A difficult operation performed by three experienced mountaineers. Up there under the summit at 4000 meters the film team of ‘Verstehen Sie Spass’ will spend a night. Roped up in the icy cold.
This is a part where Messner comes to the kiosk:
[4:00] And now comes the moment we’ve been waiting for: there he is, Reinhold Messner. Secured with a rope, a female climber who accompanies him. From this rock he can see our kiosk for the first time.
Messner: Melinda, what is this?
Melinda: ???? last time there was nothing there.
Messner (comment): So spontaneously it occurs to me that I really stood in front of this kiosk with open eyes and open mouth, not believing it existed….
Messner: Good morning.
Salesman: Good morning.
Messner: What are you doing there?
Salesman: So, you’re a little late for the mountain stop, yes?
Messner: The late ones will not be the last!
Salesman: I’ve set up a new service here: the Matterhorn Kiosk service. And I will build such a kiosk on every mountain in the future.
Messner: Do you have a telephone?
Salesman: We don’t have a telephone, but we do have a radio connection.
Messner: Everything. Then, here, I will finally have peace from the newspapers, finally peace from the telephone. I have everything there again. I mean, …
Salesman: So the kiosk is a success. I have a great offer here, from the world press, to magazines, to confectionery, all kinds of things.
Messner: They don’t belong on it [the mountain] at all.
Salesman: I think they belong on it, and…
Messner: No, no, you don’t either. They don’t belong on it, the kiosk doesn’t belong on it, these sweets don’t belong on it.
Salesman: To the Japanese, I sell cuckoo clocks, 20 a day, then I have here, for example, so Bambis: small gifts to take home, for the children, for example, or for the spouse. I have beautiful souvenirs…I even, here I even have a firecracker.
Messner: But you can’t tell me that you have the new “Bunte” up today, I don’t believe that.
Salesman: Yes, just look.
Messner: What are we supposed to do with all these here? We can’t carry them up and down again. Who is so stupid as to buy all this that you are offering here?
Woman: I’m buying a bomb for the summit, a fizz bomb.
Messner: Nee nee, then we make the summit dirty too.
Woman: Nee nee, there we have.
Messner: The summit is filthy anyway, if we leave another garbage like that up there, then I won’t go up there anymore!
Woman: ….
Messner: I don’t go to summits with people who throw firecracker bombs.
Seller: At least the book…
Messner: I won’t go on Matterhorn either, if there are still these kiosks standing there
Salesman: Yes, but this is a service, this is the future.
Messner: I will complain to the mayor in Zermatt, because there can’t be a building permit for such a hut. If on Matterhorn these huts are, if you have built there three huts, these McDonalds huts, then Matterhorn is over. Then Matterhorn is kaput. Once and for all.
Salesman: Yes, but I carry these newspapers up every morning with two suitcases.
Messner: That is certainly a great achievement, but your money you can certainly somewhere else, not the Matterhorn. Then you are destroying our mountains. I do not own them. But I’m not coming anymore. I’m not coming anymore. And Linda, now let’s go and let’s not stay in this hut anymore.
Seller: There’s something I would like to sell. One item that is going great is R. Messner’s books.
Messner: No no no, I don’t think so.
Salesman: Indeed!
Messner: Now that is an insult to me that these books are sold here.
Salesman: Och!
Messner: In a bookstore, at the airport, but not here! At the Matterhorn, in a kiosk. That’s an insult for me! I don’t write books anymore. Now I’ve had enough. I’ll never go on Matterhorn again, now I’ve had enough!
[7:21] Messner (comment) : We then did not continue climbing, we then, yes I would say, toasted this strange encounter on the Matterhorn.
Messner: Well, that my books are sold on the Matterhorn I have not taken quite seriously!
Messner (comment) : So I don’t get asked about any movie that’s been aired in conjunction with me as much as I get asked about this Matterhorn story. All people ask ‘Was that real?’ Yes, in so far as it was real I really wasn’t sensitive enough until the end to experience this story as a completely different one than I then had to perceive it
So, I hope you enjoyed it, thank you for reading and watching. Bookmark this site and come again.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the story about Reinhold Messner and the kiosk on the Matterhorn?
In the 1980s, a group played a prank on Reinhold Messner by using a helicopter to place a kiosk near the Matterhorn’s summit at 4000 meters. Stocked with items like newspapers, refreshments, firecrackers, and even Messner’s books, the kiosk was set up as a surprise for Messner, who was guiding a client to the summit as part of a staged competition.
Was the kiosk on the Matterhorn real?
Yes, the kiosk was real, but it was a temporary setup for a prank organized by the German TV show Verstehen Sie Spass. It was placed near the Matterhorn summit by helicopter and manned by a salesman, with the operation kept secret from Messner until he encountered it during his climb.
How did Reinhold Messner react to the kiosk?
Messner was shocked and frustrated upon discovering the kiosk. He expressed disbelief and disapproval, arguing that such commercial elements did not belong on the mountain. He even threatened to stop climbing the Matterhorn if such kiosks persisted, feeling insulted by the presence of his books for sale in such a setting.
Is there a video of the Messner kiosk incident?
Yes, a video exists, originally in German, produced by the TV show Verstehen Sie Spass. It captures the setup of the kiosk and Messner’s reaction upon encountering it. A translated transcript of key parts is provided in the post.
Why was the kiosk placed on the Matterhorn?
The kiosk was placed as part of an elaborate prank by the German TV show Verstehen Sie Spass to surprise Reinhold Messner. The setup was orchestrated with the help of a client he was guiding, who was in on the joke, to create a humorous and unexpected encounter at 4000 meters.
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