I admit there's nothing topical about a post on Hogan's Heroes, but any day is a good day to sit and wonder how this show got on the air.Don't get me wrong. It's not bad. It boasts its share of laughs and memorable characters. And, it's back on the radar recently because of the comprehensive DVD set, Hogan's Heroes: The Komplete Series, Kommandant's Kollection.
But I'd give a month's pay from TV Squad (so, like $6.50) if I could build a time machine, change myself into a fly, stick myself to a wall in the network offices of CBS, and hear the pitch meeting for this show. I know it's not likely to happen, but there's no harm in dreaming.
Can you imagine how that meeting would play out in our politically correct era of tightly-clenched buttocks these days? I think it would go just a little something like this:
A comedy producer sits down over two sparkling waters to pitch his new show: "OK. I have an idea for you. Go with me on this. It's a sitcom -- but a spy sitcom set during a war. No -- it doesn't take place in a suburban house. No -- it takes place in a Nazi prisoner of war camp ... What? Why are you calling security?"
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. on 'Faces of America' and the Beer Summit
Six Reasons Why '24' Has Jumped the You-Know-What
The Super Bowl Commercials: The Best
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-18-2009 @ 5:29PM
wulfn1 said...
That's funny!
imagine the original pitch though, for the movie that inspired it, set in today's world.
Reply
11-18-2009 @ 8:21PM
nick said...
Remember though, that this was still within 20 years of WWII, and two amazing movies (The Great Escape and Stalag 17 - both obvious influences on HH) about German POW camps were still in the public conscience.
Reply
11-18-2009 @ 6:14PM
Aml said...
I already have the original full series set. I am kind of hoping these new features replace the old ones, which is not unheard of. Either way I am sure they will find their way up on Youtube.
Reply
11-20-2009 @ 5:54PM
KK said...
I feel the same way about MASH (one of my all-time favorites). I don't think that idea would go over well today.
Reply
11-18-2009 @ 6:52PM
mickey said...
Hogan's Heroes was based on the famous play and movie Stalag 17 which featured many of the same character. Stalag is a wonderful film and still holds up... Hogan's was the TV sitcom version of the play and movie.
Reply
11-18-2009 @ 9:05PM
M-D said...
Another factor: Werner Klemperer (a Jew who escaped from the Nazis in 1935) only agreed to play Col. Klink on the condition that Klink HAD to be portrayed as a fool whose plans were never successful. I imagine that might have had something to do with the series pickup.
Reply
11-19-2009 @ 5:19AM
RobynM said...
I've often wondered how so many of the cast found the strength to be on the show.
Along with Werner Klemperer, both John Banner (Schultz) and Leon Askin (Burkhalter) were Viennese nationals who managed to escape, while Robert Clary (LeBeau) was actually held in Buchenwald.
If I'd been through what they had, I don't think I could've done it.
11-18-2009 @ 10:02PM
Tom said...
I've watched the series off and on through the years (even saw several first run). Have been watching re-runs on TV Land lately (in fact I've got one running on the TiVo as I am typing this). I'm really enjoying it now more than I did before. To me, this is not a sit-com. This is a half hour adventure show where the Allies are doing their best to sabotage the German regime every chance they get. It is played for laughs, but I wish I could hear this without the laugh track. I think it would play better without it.
Reply
11-18-2009 @ 11:19PM
Tom_SF said...
If you're really serious about how Hogan's got on the air, get "Hogan's Heroes - Behind the Scenes at Stalag 13" by Brenda Scott Royce.
And yeah, it's "not bad", only the standard by which all other comedies are judged. I have the whole series and still get a laugh every time I see an episode. I've seen them all since the show started.
Reply
11-19-2009 @ 8:18AM
Galley said...
I would want to know why the episodes always take place in the winter.
Reply
12-09-2009 @ 8:56PM
blair said...
Hogan's Heroes
Nice post. I don’t know If I said it already but …Excellent site, keep up the good work. I read a lot of blogs on a daily basis and for the most part, people lack substance but, I just wanted to make a quick comment to say I'm glad I found your blog. Thanks.
Reply
1-16-2010 @ 11:53AM
Jake said...
The film 'Auto Focus' is a worth a watch if you're a budding Hogans Heroes fan. It's more about Bob Cranes life but touches briefly on how the show got to air.
Reply