Lothar-Guenther Buchheim, 89; wrote the novel ‘Das Boot’

Lothar-Guenther Buchheim, 89, a German author and art collector best known for his autobiographical novel, “Das Boot,” died Thursday of heart failure, his museum and the office of the governor of Bavaria said.

The Buchheim Museum in Bernried houses his collection of art from the Bruecke group of Expressionists, including works by Emil Nolde, Max Pechstein and Otto Mueller, as well as sculpture, ceramics, textiles, glass and folk art from around the world.

Buchheim was acclaimed for his works of fiction and nonfiction, including several about his World War II patrol aboard the German submarine U-96 in the Atlantic Ocean in 1941. He crafted that experience into the 1973 novel “Das Boot” (The Boat).

In 1981, the book was turned into an acclaimed German film by Wolfgang Petersen that detailed the hopelessness of war and its effect on sailors confined to a cramped submarine.

Buchheim was born in Chemnitz, Germany, in 1918 and learned to paint from his artist mother. He studied at the academies of art in Dresden and Munich before joining the German navy as a reporter.

During World War II, he took part in submarine operations in the Atlantic and the Strait of Gibraltar.

He photographed and wrote about his experience aboard the U-96 for propaganda purposes but later wrote a short story, “Die Eichenlaubfahrt” (The Oak Leaves Patrol), as well as “Das Boot.”

Buchheim also wrote a three-volume nonfiction work, “U-Boat Krieg” (U-Boat War), that featured more than 5,000 photos he took aboard the U-96. Other works included “The Fortress” and “The Parting.”