''Hitler – Dead or Alive'' is a 1942 American

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded l ...

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

directed by

Nick Grinde Nick Grinde (January 12, 1893 – June 19, 1979) was an American film director and screenwriter. He directed 57 films between 1928 and 1945. Biography Born Harry A. Grinde in Madison, Wisconsin but nicknamed "Nick", Grinde graduated from th ...

. The plot of ''Hitler – Dead or Alive'' was inspired by true events but takes a quasi-comic tone.

Plot

In 1939, during the early days of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Samuel Thornton, a prominent American businessman, offers a reward of one million dollars to bring

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

to justice, dead or alive. He hires three gangster ex-convicts released from

Alcatraz Alcatraz Island () is a small island about 1.25 miles offshore from San Francisco in San Francisco Bay, California, near the Golden Gate Strait. The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fo ...

prison, Steve Maschick, Hans "Dutch" Havermann and Joe "The Book" Conway. The three join the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

and hijack an aircraft flown by Johnny Stevens (Bruce Edwards) to enter

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

airspace. With Johnny joining them, the group pose as musicians to gain access to Hitler. With the help of Else von Brand, the gangsters capture Hitler and quickly cut his hair and shave off his moustache as SS soldiers try to break the door in. When the SS manage to enter the room, they fail to recognize their leader and drag all the men, including Hitler, outside to be shot. A desperate Hitler makes a break for it and is shot by the SS officer in charge, who states disdainfully and ironically: "To think that Germany could produce a piece of filth like you." Steve makes a long patriotic speech while facing a firing squad.

Cast

Ward Bond Wardell Edwin Bond (April 9, 1903 – November 5, 1960) was an American character actor who appeared in more than 200 films and starred in the NBC television series ''Wagon Train'' from 1957 to 1960. Among his best-remembered roles are Bert th ...

as Steve Maschick * Dorothy Tree as Else von Brandt *

Warren Hymer Edgar Warren Hymer (February 25, 1906 – March 25, 1948) was an American theatre and film actor. Early life He was born in New York City. His father, John Bard Hymer (1875/1876 – 1953) was a playwright (with nine Broadway plays to ...

as Hans "Dutch" Havermann *

Paul Fix Peter Paul Fix (March 13, 1901 – October 14, 1983) was an American film and television character actor who was best known for his work in Westerns. Fix appeared in more than 100 movies and dozens of television shows over a 56-year career be ...

as Joe "The Book" Conway *

Russell Hicks Edward Russell Hicks (June 4, 1895 – June 1, 1957) was an American film character actor. Hicks was born in 1895 in Baltimore, Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the ...

as Samuel Thornton * Bruce Edwards as Johnny Stevens *

Felix Basch Felix Basch (1885–1944) was an American-Austrian actor, screenwriter and film director. He first acted in Vienna, and he was a producer and director for the German film production company U. F. A. Following the Nazi takeover of power in Germ ...

as Col. Hecht * Bobby Watson as

(credited as Bob Watson) * Frederick Giermann as Meyer *

Kenneth Harlan Kenneth Daniel Harlan (July 26, 1895 – March 6, 1967) was a popular American actor during the silent film era, playing mostly romantic leads or adventurer roles. His career extended into the sound film era, but during that span he rarely c ...

as Cutler * Fee Malten as Greta

Production

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

on ''Hitler – Dead or Alive'' began on August 6, 1942 at Fine Arts Studios.

Reception

Film historian Alun Evans in ''Brassey's Guide to War Films'', reviewed ''Hitler – Dead or Alive'', comparing and contrasting it to other contemporary features, ''

The Devil with Hitler ''The Devil with Hitler'' (released in Great Britain as ''The Devil Checks Up'') is a black-and-white 1942 comedy short propaganda film that was one of Hal Roach's Streamliners short film series. When the board of directors of Hell want Adolf Hitle ...

'', (1942), ''That Nazi Nuisance'' (1943) and '' The Hitler Gang'' (1944). He noted the earlier film was "... (a) Satirical farce about three ex-Alcatraz cons plotting to kill Hitler ..."Evans 2000, p. 97. Historian M.B.B. Biskupski, in his overview of the treatment of Poles in American war-time cinema, reviewed the film as possibly containing a rare war-time reference to a Polish-American character (Steve Maschik). He noted that the film "may be the worst film made in the World War II era."

In other media

In November 2012, while being interviewed by ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

'' magazine, filmmaker

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...

admitted the inspiration for his film ''

Inglourious Basterds ''Inglourious Basterds'' is a 2009 epic film, epic war film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars an ensemble cast including Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Michael Fassbender, Eli Roth, Diane Kruger, Daniel Brühl, Til Schweiger ...

'' came from ''Hitler – Dead or Alive''."Celebrity interview with Django Unchained director Quentin Tarantino'."
''Playboy'', November 16, 2012. Retrieved: April 8, 2017.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* Evans, Alun. ''Brassey's Guide to War Films''. Dulles, Virginia: Potomac Books, 2000. .

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hitler - Dead Or Alive 1942 films American aviation films American World War II propaganda films American satirical films 1940s English-language films American black-and-white films Films about Adolf Hitler War adventure films Alternate Nazi Germany films American alternate history films Films set in the 1940s 1942 comedy-drama films Films directed by Nick Grinde American comedy-drama films 1940s war films American vigilante films American exploitation films Films about assassinations English-language comedy-drama films English-language war films