Last night the cable channel Ovation showed a documentary titled Imaginary Witness. It was about how Hollywood & TV portrayed the Germans prior to WW2 and how they treated the Holocaust after the war. During the program there was a short interview with Robert Clary who played Le Beau on Hogans Heros. While many of you may know, I was astounded to find out that Clary had been a guest at Mr. Hitler's luxury resort known as Buchenwald! I was amazed by this, and I went on to wonder how he could have played that part on Hogan without it giving him terrible memories of his time as a concentration camp prisoner. When I first started in radio we had a chief engineer who had been a guest at Auschwitz. He still had his crudely tattooed number on his arm. I remember, that while he was a decent guy, he went to great lengths to stay away from people in general. The program in general was very educational, and I was surprised to learn that prior to the war, the studios, which were for the most part controlled by jewish men, were very careful to NOT annoy Mr. Hitler, because they feared losing german film bookings, which brought in a lot of money to the movie studios. Your opinion??
-
Get involved.
We want your input!
Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.
After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.
After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/
Thanks in advance and have fun!
RadioDiscussions Administrators
Robert Clary From Hogan's Heros
- Thread starter BrigThomson
- Start date
Werner Klemperer, John Banner, and Leon Askin were also Hogan's Heroes cast members who had fled Nazi Germany, but before the war started. All were Jewish, as was Howard Caine (Caine was from Nashville TN). None had a problem playing Nazis as long as they were portrayed as incompetent.
Banner had also spent some time in the Hotel Adolf, but it was earlier in the '30s when it wasn't an automatic death sentence. He also played Nazis on film during the war, early in his career.
Banner had also spent some time in the Hotel Adolf, but it was earlier in the '30s when it wasn't an automatic death sentence. He also played Nazis on film during the war, early in his career.
I remember that Klemperer and Banner played in a number of German-Themed movies and TV productions. I also remember in one Hogan episode where it was mentioned that Sgt. Schultz was actually the president of a toy company before he was drafted into the Wehrmacht.
I'm a big WWII buff and one thing most people don't realize is the Germans were not overall savage to everyone. The POWs and the artists from the West were given "adequate" treatment by the Germans. In fact American Jews in POW camps were not subject to the treatment given the other Jews.
The camps were not universally horrible. You could be in one section of a camp and treated within reason, while other people were treated horribly across the camp.
The Western POWs were generally treated with in the bounds of the Geneva Convention, while the Russian and other POWS were treated as slaves and animals.
Obviously no one in a POW camp or a concentration camp was treated well, but the Germans were not universally horrible to all prisoners. The holocaust tends to override this and it was possible to be treated humanly in a camp even while others in the same camp were gassed, starved and worked to death.
Your treatment depended on your classification and what country you came from.
This is one of the reason the Germans surrendered quickly to the Ameicans and British, while fighting on to the bitter end against the Russians
The camps were not universally horrible. You could be in one section of a camp and treated within reason, while other people were treated horribly across the camp.
The Western POWs were generally treated with in the bounds of the Geneva Convention, while the Russian and other POWS were treated as slaves and animals.
Obviously no one in a POW camp or a concentration camp was treated well, but the Germans were not universally horrible to all prisoners. The holocaust tends to override this and it was possible to be treated humanly in a camp even while others in the same camp were gassed, starved and worked to death.
Your treatment depended on your classification and what country you came from.
This is one of the reason the Germans surrendered quickly to the Ameicans and British, while fighting on to the bitter end against the Russians
Towards the end of the war, Heinrich Himmler wanted to surrender German forces to the Western Allies. The Allies said no, and demanded unconditional surrender to all of the Allied forces. Himmler's action caused Hitler to have a massive hissy fit, and he ordered the expulsion and execution of Himmler, which was never carried out. Himmler wound up killing himself when he was captured by the British. Even though Himmler had shaved his mustache, and was wearing an enlisted man's uniform, he bit on a cyanide capsule as soon as he was recognized.
The Japanese treated POWs far worse than the Germans ever did. If I had been a soldier back then, and I knew that I was going to be captured, and I had a choice, no contest, I'd have chosen the Germans as my captors.
Germany had a gifted, but dreadful filmmaker named Leni Riefenstahl (sp), who was a Hitler sycophant, and a Nazi apologist who somehow escaped punishment after the war, and lived to be 101, and made it into the early 21st century before finally dying. At Hitler's behest, she planned a visit to Hollywood shortly before the war, and she had an assistant send out notices to major studio heads, instructing them on how she was to be greeted, where photographers were to be positioned, actors, directors, and producers she wanted to meet, and so on. Only one studio head bothered to greet her: Walt Disney. The others basically told her to get lost.
This is not to imply that Disney was a Nazi supporter or anti-Semetic. If anything, his studio was as patriotic as anybody's during the war. One of Disney's animators, Ward Kimball, one of Disney's legendary Nine Old Men, who died in 2002, said that Walt Disney hated nobody, and he knew Disney about as well as any non-family member.
Last add Riefenstahl: supposedly, her visit was a trial balloon for a possible visit to Hollywood by Hitler and Eva Braun. Hitler wanted a movie made about Braun's life, and for whatever reason wanted it done by a Hollywood studio. After Riefenstahl's not-so-warm reception in Hollywood, he abandoned the idea.
The Japanese treated POWs far worse than the Germans ever did. If I had been a soldier back then, and I knew that I was going to be captured, and I had a choice, no contest, I'd have chosen the Germans as my captors.
Germany had a gifted, but dreadful filmmaker named Leni Riefenstahl (sp), who was a Hitler sycophant, and a Nazi apologist who somehow escaped punishment after the war, and lived to be 101, and made it into the early 21st century before finally dying. At Hitler's behest, she planned a visit to Hollywood shortly before the war, and she had an assistant send out notices to major studio heads, instructing them on how she was to be greeted, where photographers were to be positioned, actors, directors, and producers she wanted to meet, and so on. Only one studio head bothered to greet her: Walt Disney. The others basically told her to get lost.
This is not to imply that Disney was a Nazi supporter or anti-Semetic. If anything, his studio was as patriotic as anybody's during the war. One of Disney's animators, Ward Kimball, one of Disney's legendary Nine Old Men, who died in 2002, said that Walt Disney hated nobody, and he knew Disney about as well as any non-family member.
Last add Riefenstahl: supposedly, her visit was a trial balloon for a possible visit to Hollywood by Hitler and Eva Braun. Hitler wanted a movie made about Braun's life, and for whatever reason wanted it done by a Hollywood studio. After Riefenstahl's not-so-warm reception in Hollywood, he abandoned the idea.
This argument about Hogan's Heroes is an old one. It went on before the series even premiered. The point is the show was about a P.O.W.
camp not a concentration camp. They were certainly not the same thing. The Germans for the most part did honor the Geneva Convention. The German Military was worried about how captured German soldiers would be treated. The fact is, in the movie The Great Escape (and in real life) the commandant of that real P.O.W. camp broke into tears when he heard the Gestapo had executed his prisoners. So I guess in even the most horrid of times there is a sliver of decency.
Hogan's Heroes was loosely based on the movie Stalag 17. I don't think that movie got the criticism that Hogan Heroes got. If you watch Hogan's you will see it is actually about the Allies behind the lines fighting the Nazis. And, if you watch the credits I think you'll see what appears to be Jewish names as producers, directors, crew, etc. besides the actors mentioned above.
camp not a concentration camp. They were certainly not the same thing. The Germans for the most part did honor the Geneva Convention. The German Military was worried about how captured German soldiers would be treated. The fact is, in the movie The Great Escape (and in real life) the commandant of that real P.O.W. camp broke into tears when he heard the Gestapo had executed his prisoners. So I guess in even the most horrid of times there is a sliver of decency.
Hogan's Heroes was loosely based on the movie Stalag 17. I don't think that movie got the criticism that Hogan Heroes got. If you watch Hogan's you will see it is actually about the Allies behind the lines fighting the Nazis. And, if you watch the credits I think you'll see what appears to be Jewish names as producers, directors, crew, etc. besides the actors mentioned above.
RicoGregg said:
...I suspect Tommy Kirk would offer a fairly strong rebuke to that idea...
Ultimajock said:
I'm familiar with the Tommy Kirk story, and maybe he would, but what needs to be remembered is that this was what, the early 60s, and things were so different then. What was shocking then is no big deal today. I'm certain that Walt Disney would say that he had a family audience to consider.
What baffles me is that while Tommy Kirk was no Oscar contender, he was far from the worst actor on Earth. His issue with Disney wasn't an issue at other studios. I'm certain we could both name names. Why couldn't he find acting gigs elsewhere? Did Disney have the power to blacklist? I highly doubt that. Annette Funicello worked for other studios as she got older. Why not Tommy Kirk? He had name recognition, and often played colorful characters very well.
My apologies for running so far off-topic.
...actually, Tommy Kirk did work for the same studio as Annette Funicello most commonly had post-Disney, American International. In fact, both Tommy and Annette were in Pajama Party and Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine; other Kirk titles for AIP included The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini, Mars Needs Women and the 1969 It's Alive!...
Werner Klemperer was an extremely intelligent and multi-talented man. In an interview a few years before he died he explained he accepted the role of Col. Klink only if he could play the character as a bumbling fool. I would say he did a perfect job and that character remains one of my TV favorites to this day.
The show, of course, was highly improbable and offended many WWII vets, including my father. They fought and suffered at the hands of the Germans and did not see anything faintly amusing about the show. Because of this opposition, Crosby (the producers) made it more of a non-animated cartoon and in that fashion it worked pretty well. It was fantasy of course and you could single out literally hundreds of situations that would never occur in real life. For instance, officers and enlisted men were never housed in the same barracks. Nor was it common for the prisoners of different countries to be housed together. And the womanizing Hogan, while true in the actor's real life, would not have been impossible in a POW camp (or at the hofbrau).
The one thing that stands out to me, even after all these years, is how great a job they did with the intro. The combination of German military music mixed with "Yankee Doodle" overtones and the two military caps were pure genius.
Of all the characters in the show the most irritating one to me was Le Beau and they could have dropped him without any loss. All in all though, about as good a production as you would think given the seriousness of the basic subject.
The show, of course, was highly improbable and offended many WWII vets, including my father. They fought and suffered at the hands of the Germans and did not see anything faintly amusing about the show. Because of this opposition, Crosby (the producers) made it more of a non-animated cartoon and in that fashion it worked pretty well. It was fantasy of course and you could single out literally hundreds of situations that would never occur in real life. For instance, officers and enlisted men were never housed in the same barracks. Nor was it common for the prisoners of different countries to be housed together. And the womanizing Hogan, while true in the actor's real life, would not have been impossible in a POW camp (or at the hofbrau).
The one thing that stands out to me, even after all these years, is how great a job they did with the intro. The combination of German military music mixed with "Yankee Doodle" overtones and the two military caps were pure genius.
Of all the characters in the show the most irritating one to me was Le Beau and they could have dropped him without any loss. All in all though, about as good a production as you would think given the seriousness of the basic subject.
I don't believe that Disney was either pro-Nazi or unpatriotic. But he was extremely conservative politically. One of the dirty little secrets of pre-war right-wing poltics is that many conservatives thought we should remain isolationist and stay neutral. Some even felt strongly that we entered the war on the wrong side - especially since Joe Stalin became our ally. But I am not implying that it was necessarily true of Walt.
My father was an animated cartoonist who worked for Disney off and on - starting in the early 1930s. His last job there was on Mary Poppins about 1964. While Disney was outwardly a nice guy, he could play hardball, and tended to hire second in command associate producers that were not so nice, and were capable of bullying cartoonists and animators.
My father was one of the people who went out on strike against Disney for better pay and conditions in the mid 30s. Uncle Walt had the Burbank PD in his pocket, and had all the strikers arrested. Those arrests often included beatings.
In 1964, Disney employees were strongly advised (though not forced in any way) to contribute money to Barry Goldwater's presidential campaign.
My father had great admiration for the top Disney animators like Ward Kimball, and he enjoyed his time at the studio. People like Kimball were handsomely rewarded by Walt, who could be generous. But the creative people who were lower in status - like my father - were always happy to get away from Disney Studios, where they could usually make considerably more money, and work in a less regimented atmosphere.
My father was an animated cartoonist who worked for Disney off and on - starting in the early 1930s. His last job there was on Mary Poppins about 1964. While Disney was outwardly a nice guy, he could play hardball, and tended to hire second in command associate producers that were not so nice, and were capable of bullying cartoonists and animators.
My father was one of the people who went out on strike against Disney for better pay and conditions in the mid 30s. Uncle Walt had the Burbank PD in his pocket, and had all the strikers arrested. Those arrests often included beatings.
In 1964, Disney employees were strongly advised (though not forced in any way) to contribute money to Barry Goldwater's presidential campaign.
My father had great admiration for the top Disney animators like Ward Kimball, and he enjoyed his time at the studio. People like Kimball were handsomely rewarded by Walt, who could be generous. But the creative people who were lower in status - like my father - were always happy to get away from Disney Studios, where they could usually make considerably more money, and work in a less regimented atmosphere.
D
Don62
Guest
Terrible what happened to Robert Crane, who was a popular radio host before joining Hogan's.
Interestingly, one of the last episodes of the series was titled, "Hogan's Double Life." Kind of ironic.
Also interesting was that the series was unexpectedly canceled and no "final" episode was made.
Interestingly, one of the last episodes of the series was titled, "Hogan's Double Life." Kind of ironic.
Also interesting was that the series was unexpectedly canceled and no "final" episode was made.
TexasTom said:
...besides, we know how the war turned out, it was in all the newspapers (even the Daily Worker) ;D ...
D
Don62
Guest
Interesting, in some of the other posts on radio-info, posters say Crane was a great DJ/ talk show host who could have been competitive - if not better than - Larry King during the late 70s.
I don't necessarily agree, but I haven't heard much of Crane's airchecks. They are two different personalities, as different I supposed as are Casey Kasem and Wolfman Jack and Dick Clarke. I think there would have been room on radio for both Crane and King, just like there was room for Limbaugh and King and Bruce Williams.
I don't necessarily agree, but I haven't heard much of Crane's airchecks. They are two different personalities, as different I supposed as are Casey Kasem and Wolfman Jack and Dick Clarke. I think there would have been room on radio for both Crane and King, just like there was room for Limbaugh and King and Bruce Williams.
Re: Robert Clary From Hogan's Heroes
Here, Jazz enthusiast and Retired WKYC-TV 3 Cleveland news reporter Joe Mosbrook tells a fascinating story about his former colleague Wally Kinnan, Weatherman at Channel 3..He was shot down in Germany during WWII and ended up helping form a big band consisting of POW's..
http://www.cleveland.oh.us/wmv_news/jazz33.htm
Here, Jazz enthusiast and Retired WKYC-TV 3 Cleveland news reporter Joe Mosbrook tells a fascinating story about his former colleague Wally Kinnan, Weatherman at Channel 3..He was shot down in Germany during WWII and ended up helping form a big band consisting of POW's..
http://www.cleveland.oh.us/wmv_news/jazz33.htm
Interesting, in some of the other posts on radio-info, posters say Crane was a great DJ/ talk show host who could have been competitive - if not better than - Larry King during the late 70s.
There were some pretty credible sources that claimed Crane was being courted to replace Dick Whittinghill in the morning on KMPC in the early-mid 70s, but they shied away because of all the porn rumors. (Robert W. Morgan eventually got the job.)
There were some pretty credible sources that claimed Crane was being courted to replace Dick Whittinghill in the morning on KMPC in the early-mid 70s, but they shied away because of all the porn rumors. (Robert W. Morgan eventually got the job.)
D
Don62
Guest
Here's another interesting post on Crane:
http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,102907.0.htmlmleach said:
- Status