Max Teichmann
Max Edwin Teichmann (20 August 1924 – 29 November 2008) was an Australian academic and political commentator. Early years Born in Melbourne to a German-born father, also Max, and an Adelaide-born mother, Kathleen, Teichmann grew up in the working-class suburb of Carlton during the Great Depression. After leaving school, he worked as a junior journalist, then in 1942 joined the Australian army and saw action in Papua New Guinea. Education After the war, as an ex-serviceman, he enrolled in the University of Melbourne where he embarked on an academic career. He won a scholarship to Balliol College, Oxford, United Kingdom where he was taught by Isaiah Berlin, Max Beloff and John Plamenatz. While in the United Kingdom, Teichmann became involved in left-wing politics, joining Britain's Labour Party and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. He married the philosopher Jenny Teichman. Political commentary In 1964, he returned to Australia and took up a post in the department of politics at Monash University. He became active in the anti-Vietnam War movement in Australia and counted among his friends leading Australian Labor Party identities such as Jim Cairns and Bill Hayden. Teichmann later adopted more conservative views and he became a fierce critic of the