Heinz Heineman came to Berkeley in 1978 and stayed there for 15 years. This was the time of the energy crisis and we did not have anybody like him who had such a tremendous industrial experience with oil and coal conversion technology and science. He was interested in the conversion of coal to gaseous molecules and our studies with model catalysts appealed to him and attracted him. In a way, Heinz Heineman was bigger than life, since he played such a seminal role in the history of American catalysis science.