I Can't Hold Back Any Longer - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

FanMan · 02-26-2001, 10:32 PM

I know I'm in the minority here---but I think a TV show about Allied POW's in German "Stalag" camps is in horribly bad taste. It's a fact that the friendly Germans routinely withheld food, medical care, and even the scarcest bit of human compassion from Allied flyers. Many American POW's were executed by the Germans for escape attempts. Talk to any American ex-POW (if you can find one---they're vanishing pretty quickly)--- and ask him how many "fun times" he had in German camps. Sorry, I know I should ease up, but this whole concept is the un-funniest thing I've ever seen. What's next? A comedy about Auschwitz?

LouAnn Poovie · 05-02-2001, 10:07 PM

Jeez...
Lighten up. It was a comedy sitcom! It was made to poke fun at the Germans. It's TELEVISION!!!!!!!!

------------------
Jenny

dawsongirl · 05-03-2001, 01:48 PM

Hey Jenny, I'm with you! I mean, Gomer Pyle wasn't exactly the ideal member of the USMC, but that show still succeeded. The reason we like TV is because it's great escape because of it's unbelieveability!

Besides, a show with that many guys in it can't be half bad

05-04-2001, 02:28 PM

I wonder if Hogan's Heroes could have been set during the Civil War with Hogan and the gang being Union soldiers in a Confederate prison camp. Perhaps there would not have been as much objection as I'm sure there must have been when the series first aired. Or possibly the Revolutionary War with Hogan based in a British prison camp.

dawsongirl · 05-04-2001, 02:45 PM

Interesting thought. I wonder what kind of uproar would have occured had they set it in the Vietnam War being that that was current. They had POW's in Vietnam didn't they?

05-06-2001, 04:07 PM

I think there would be a major controversy if Hogan's Heroes were made today and it was set in a prison camp in North Vietnam. It would be too painful for the people living during that time. Some of the humor in the show requires technology like intercepting phone calls and imitating voices over the telephone. They would not be able to do this if it were set in the 1800s or the 1700s. They use the radio but I'm not sure how important that was for generating comedy. I think they could do the show without the radio.

FanMan · 05-22-2001, 10:37 PM

Well, I knew there would be people telling me to lighten up, and perhaps they are right in saying so. It just seems odd to me that, with all the "creative" minds in the television industry, that someone would have to stoop to making a comedy out of Allied POW's in German camps. I wish the folks who tell me to lighten up would read a few pages of history and learn about the horrible conditions which existed in those prison camps. I just feel someone needs to stand up for the Allied troops that had to endure starvation and deprivation beyond belief, sometimes for years on end. Many of those men died with Nazi bullets in them. Just because it's 50 years later doesn't mean it's somehow become "funny". Well, I just hope someone shares my views, if not, so be it.

07-04-2001, 12:56 AM

I appreciate your views on the great sacrifices our soldiers made during World
War II. We should never forget the cruelty
that the Germans inflicted on our soldiers.
Having said this, I do believe comedy
comes out of some horrible and depressing
situations. References, however vague, were
made in the show to some horrible things
that went on during this period. I don't
believe that a sitcom trivializes in any
way the Allied soldiers' bravery. It wasn't
meant to be anything but escapist fare. Remember, John Banner (Schulz) lost much
of his family to the Nazis. Other cast members had personal connections to this horrible time in our history and I think they
realize that the show was just a funny sitcom
with a wild premise.

dawsongirl · 07-04-2001, 10:50 PM

Robert Clary was actually in a concentration camp, and he put that past him for this show.

Rory Michelle · 02-28-2004, 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by FanMan
I know I'm in the minority here---but I think a TV show about Allied POW's in German "Stalag" camps is in horribly bad taste. It's a fact that the friendly Germans routinely withheld food, medical care, and even the scarcest bit of human compassion from Allied flyers. Many American POW's were executed by the Germans for escape attempts. Talk to any American ex-POW (if you can find one---they're vanishing pretty quickly)--- and ask him how many "fun times" he had in German camps. Sorry, I know I should ease up, but this whole concept is the un-funniest thing I've ever seen. What's next? A comedy about Auschwitz?

ya u need 2 lighten up yer ruinin television 4 everybody!

Burford Lives!! · 02-29-2004, 09:03 PM

The show was a light-hearted look at a German POW camp. As was stated above, the real life stories of some of these actors are more grim. Both Banner and Klemperer were Jews who had escaped the Nazis by coming to the U.S. Banner, an Austrian Jew, had his entire family wiped out by the Nazis. Robert Clary (LeBeau) had actually been interned in a Nazi concentration camp when he was child.

Klemperer only agreed to play Col. Klink after he was assured that Klink would never succeed and would always look foolish.

These were individuals that were DIRECTLY affected by WWII and the Nazi's and the concentration camps, and they felt it was okay to be IN the show.

That's good enough for me.

vedastone · 03-01-2004, 07:31 AM

Hogans Heros is currently broadcast on German TV dubbed in German. I'd say that could teach us something about taking the show lightly.

LindaY · 06-26-2005, 09:25 PM

My father fought in World War II and loved Hogan's Heroes; so did his contemporaries. He used to watch the show and say, "Boy, we wished the Germans were that stupid!" Prisoner of war camps were not funny, and many men were punished and tortured. However, they were not concentration camps where people were deliberately chosen to be exterminated. Hogan's Heroes portrayed the war as we wished it could have been, with no one ever getting hurt.

sarastiles · 12-02-2005, 12:21 AM

yeah lol just a sitcom!!!

TV Knowledge Fan · 07-05-2006, 03:08 PM

...intended to have "HOGAN'S HEROES" as a parody of those great World War II "gang caper" movies, "Stalag 17" and "The Great Escape"....only the missions that Colonel Hogan and his men were assigned to were "realistic"; the rest was pure farce! Real German officers NEVER acted the way Klink, Schultz, Burkhalter and the others did! And whoever heard of a small group of POW's "controlling" their own prison camp through elaborate deception and split-second timing? No, this was a COMEDY, through and through. I know most people feel uncomfortable and object to the whole idea behind the series, but then, "F TROOP" was never a true representation of the military in the "Wild West", either!

02-26-2001, 10:32 PM	#1
FanMan Member Occasional Poster Join Date: May 22, 2001 Posts: 6	I Can't Hold Back Any Longer I know I'm in the minority here---but I think a TV show about Allied POW's in German "Stalag" camps is in horribly bad taste. It's a fact that the friendly Germans routinely withheld food, medical care, and even the scarcest bit of human compassion from Allied flyers. Many American POW's were executed by the Germans for escape attempts. Talk to any American ex-POW (if you can find one---they're vanishing pretty quickly)--- and ask him how many "fun times" he had in German camps. Sorry, I know I should ease up, but this whole concept is the un-funniest thing I've ever seen. What's next? A comedy about Auschwitz?

05-04-2001, 02:28 PM	#4
Bill S. Guest Posts: n/a	I wonder if Hogan's Heroes could have been set during the Civil War with Hogan and the gang being Union soldiers in a Confederate prison camp. Perhaps there would not have been as much objection as I'm sure there must have been when the series first aired. Or possibly the Revolutionary War with Hogan based in a British prison camp.
Bill S. Guest Posts: n/a

05-06-2001, 04:07 PM	#6
D. Ternowski Guest Posts: n/a	I think there would be a major controversy if Hogan's Heroes were made today and it was set in a prison camp in North Vietnam. It would be too painful for the people living during that time. Some of the humor in the show requires technology like intercepting phone calls and imitating voices over the telephone. They would not be able to do this if it were set in the 1800s or the 1700s. They use the radio but I'm not sure how important that was for generating comedy. I think they could do the show without the radio.
D. Ternowski Guest Posts: n/a

07-04-2001, 12:56 AM	#8
Wright Guest Posts: n/a	I appreciate your views on the great sacrifices our soldiers made during World War II. We should never forget the cruelty that the Germans inflicted on our soldiers. Having said this, I do believe comedy comes out of some horrible and depressing situations. References, however vague, were made in the show to some horrible things that went on during this period. I don't believe that a sitcom trivializes in any way the Allied soldiers' bravery. It wasn't meant to be anything but escapist fare. Remember, John Banner (Schulz) lost much of his family to the Nazis. Other cast members had personal connections to this horrible time in our history and I think they realize that the show was just a funny sitcom with a wild premise.
Wright Guest Posts: n/a

12-02-2005, 12:21 AM	#14
sarastiles Sara Bauer..Maverick Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 05, 2005 Location: TN Posts: 132	yeah lol just a sitcom!!!
	__________________ ~~ Kiefer Sutherland Rocks!~~The Lost Boys is one of the best movies of all time!~~I heart Jack Bauer!~~

05-02-2001, 10:07 PM	#2
LouAnn Poovie Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Apr 18, 2001 Location: Cincy, OH 45232 Posts: 54	Jeez... Lighten up. It was a comedy sitcom! It was made to poke fun at the Germans. It's TELEVISION!!!!!!!! ------------------ Jenny

05-03-2001, 01:48 PM	#3
dawsongirl Member Forum Icon Join Date: Jan 04, 2001 Posts: 53,128	Hey Jenny, I'm with you! I mean, Gomer Pyle wasn't exactly the ideal member of the USMC, but that show still succeeded. The reason we like TV is because it's great escape because of it's unbelieveability! Besides, a show with that many guys in it can't be half bad

05-04-2001, 02:45 PM	#5
dawsongirl Member Forum Icon Join Date: Jan 04, 2001 Posts: 53,128	Interesting thought. I wonder what kind of uproar would have occured had they set it in the Vietnam War being that that was current. They had POW's in Vietnam didn't they?

05-22-2001, 10:37 PM	#7
FanMan Member Occasional Poster Join Date: May 22, 2001 Posts: 6	Well, I knew there would be people telling me to lighten up, and perhaps they are right in saying so. It just seems odd to me that, with all the "creative" minds in the television industry, that someone would have to stoop to making a comedy out of Allied POW's in German camps. I wish the folks who tell me to lighten up would read a few pages of history and learn about the horrible conditions which existed in those prison camps. I just feel someone needs to stand up for the Allied troops that had to endure starvation and deprivation beyond belief, sometimes for years on end. Many of those men died with Nazi bullets in them. Just because it's 50 years later doesn't mean it's somehow become "funny". Well, I just hope someone shares my views, if not, so be it.

07-04-2001, 10:50 PM	#9
dawsongirl Member Forum Icon Join Date: Jan 04, 2001 Posts: 53,128	Robert Clary was actually in a concentration camp, and he put that past him for this show.

02-29-2004, 09:03 PM	#11
Burford Lives!! Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Jan 12, 2004 Location: Louisville Posts: 38	The show was a light-hearted look at a German POW camp. As was stated above, the real life stories of some of these actors are more grim. Both Banner and Klemperer were Jews who had escaped the Nazis by coming to the U.S. Banner, an Austrian Jew, had his entire family wiped out by the Nazis. Robert Clary (LeBeau) had actually been interned in a Nazi concentration camp when he was child. Klemperer only agreed to play Col. Klink after he was assured that Klink would never succeed and would always look foolish. These were individuals that were DIRECTLY affected by WWII and the Nazi's and the concentration camps, and they felt it was okay to be IN the show. That's good enough for me.

03-01-2004, 07:31 AM	#12
vedastone Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 05, 2002 Posts: 120	Hogans Heros is currently broadcast on German TV dubbed in German. I'd say that could teach us something about taking the show lightly.

06-26-2005, 09:25 PM	#13
LindaY Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Jun 26, 2005 Location: Georgia Posts: 22	My father fought in World War II and loved Hogan's Heroes; so did his contemporaries. He used to watch the show and say, "Boy, we wished the Germans were that stupid!" Prisoner of war camps were not funny, and many men were punished and tortured. However, they were not concentration camps where people were deliberately chosen to be exterminated. Hogan's Heroes portrayed the war as we wished it could have been, with no one ever getting hurt.

07-05-2006, 03:08 PM	#15
TV Knowledge Fan Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 29, 2006 Location: Long Branch, N.J. Posts: 2,577	Albert Ruddy and Bernard Fein.... ...intended to have "HOGAN'S HEROES" as a parody of those great World War II "gang caper" movies, "Stalag 17" and "The Great Escape"....only the missions that Colonel Hogan and his men were assigned to were "realistic"; the rest was pure farce! Real German officers NEVER acted the way Klink, Schultz, Burkhalter and the others did! And whoever heard of a small group of POW's "controlling" their own prison camp through elaborate deception and split-second timing? No, this was a COMEDY, through and through. I know most people feel uncomfortable and object to the whole idea behind the series, but then, "F TROOP" was never a true representation of the military in the "Wild West", either!