On this day in history, April 30, 1945, the big, bad Adolf Hitler took the easy way out. I mean, he blew his own brains out.
After that day, it was only a matter of time before World War II would begin to come to an end. Even before paving the way for others to off themselves, (think Kurt Cobain), Hitler was parodied, mainly in the States.
One of the first clips spoofing Hitler was The Stooges’ “You Nazty Spy” in 1940.
A year later, in 1941, a sequel entitled “I’ll Never Heil Again” was released.
During the same time, in 1940 to be exact, Charlie Chaplin famously mocked Hitler as well with the classic “The Great Dictator”.
Even kid’s cartoons parodied Hitler and The Nazis in the 1940′s, such as Walt Disney’s banned educational clip.
Then there was Warner Brothers’ “Der Fuhrer’s Face” in 1943.
Followed by Bugs Bunny’s “Herr Meets Hare” in 1945.
It wasn’t until after Hitler’s suicide that the world realized the he wasn’t your run of the mill, eccentric, megalomaniac, dictator. This was a guy that committed numerous acts of bastardy deeds.
In short, it wasn’t really the time or place, to mock someone who would become the personification of evil.
Thankfully, comedic legend Mel Brooks, went out on a limb and released “The Producers” in 1968, which earned Brooks an Academy Award for the screenplay, and showed us all that it was alright to laugh at Hitler.
In 2001, Brooks modified the film into a Broadway musical starring Matthew Brodrick and Nathan Lane. By 2005, this version made it to the big screen as well.
Shortly after Brooks released “The Producers,” a British comedic troop unleashed a little something called “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” in the fall of 1969. Of course, Hitler would be an easy target. The first being in the legendary sketch “The Funniest Joke in the World,” which could be argued as the influence for the future YouTube parodies.
A year later, Hitler made another appearance in “The Naked Ant”.
For almost the last decade, South Park has had their own fun at Hitler’s expense, beginning with the 1999 Christmas special “Mr. Hankey’s Christmas Classics“.
In 2007, The Whitest Kids U’ Know created a Hitler rap, that not only dropped some history, but also, gave a glimpse of Hitler in the 21st Century.
But, it wasn’t until 2004 that the German-Austrian drama “Der Untergang”, “Downfall” in English if your German is rusty, was released and made Hitler funny again.
The film depicts Hitler’s final 10 days in his bunker, with the overboard antics that make it your typical drama.
Eventually, people started making their own parodies of “Downfall”. They used the most over-the-top scene in the flick, and added new subtitles about things that Hitler would have no interest in because he’s a) dead b) a douche, which means, that they’re hilarious.
Suffice to say, the YouTube parodies became such a phenomenon, so much so, that there was a forum devoted to laying out some do’s and don’ts when making your own “Downfall” parody.
There were well more than a hundred of these on YouTube, and, as long as, people had something new for Hitler to rant about, I don’t think that they would have stopped anytime soon.
With so many memes, they were many that considered “classics”, look those found here and here.
Unfortunately, the production company behind the film, Constantin, didn’t think the memes were that funny, and, subsequently, YouTube began blocking the parodies.
Of course, there’s a now a debate on whether or not the parodies are legally protected.
Here’s what we’ll be missing, which by the way, are NSFW, because Hitler has one foul mouth.
Favre Doesn’t Return To The Packers
Hitler Gets a Girl Pregnant
Hitler Reacts To Parodies Being Removed
Since people are sneaky, the different clips from the film, seem to be untouched for now.
Hitler Reacts to iPad
Hitler Can’t Find Wally/Waldo
Hitler Calls an Indian Call Center
Hitler is Asked “Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?”
If all else fails, we’ll always have Funny or Die, and, their reaction to the Hitler parodies being removed.
Albert Costill
Latest posts by Albert Costill (see all)
- National Transportation Safety Board Wants to Lower Alcohol Limits for Drivers - May 21, 2013
- The 10 Best Movies Based Off Video Games - May 21, 2013
- Finally! Home Brewing Will Be Allowed in All 50 States - May 16, 2013
Subscribe to SoJones RSS feed