Hitler – Dead or Alive

Hitler - Dead or Alive
Hitler - Dead or Alive
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Nick Grinde
Written by	Karl Brown
Screenplay by	Sam Neuman
Produced by	Ben Judell
Starring	Ward Bond; Dorothy Tree; Warren Hymer;
Cinematography	Paul Ivano
Edited by	Jack Dennis
Music by	Leo Erdody
Production; company	Ben Judell Productions
Distributed by	Charles House
Release date	November 12, 1942;
Running time	70 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Hitler – Dead or Alive is a 1942 American propaganda war film directed by Nick Grinde. The plot of Hitler – Dead or Alive was inspired by true events but takes a quasi-comic tone.^[1]^{[Note 1]}

Plot

In 1939, during the early days of World War II, Samuel Thornton, a prominent American businessman, offers a reward of one million dollars to bring Adolf Hitler to justice, dead or alive. He hires three gangster ex-convicts released from Alcatraz prison, Steve Maschick, Hans "Dutch" Havermann and Joe "The Book" Conway.

The three join the Royal Canadian Air Force and hijack an aircraft flown by Johnny Stevens (Bruce Edwards) to enter German 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 as Steve Maschick
Dorothy Tree as Else von Brandt
Warren Hymer as Hans "Dutch" Havermann
Paul Fix as Joe "The Book" Conway
Russell Hicks as Samuel Thornton
Bruce Edwards as Johnny Stevens
Felix Basch as Col. Hecht
Bobby Watson as Adolf Hitler (credited as Bob Watson)
Frederick Giermann as Meyer
Kenneth Harlan as Cutler
Fee Malten as Greta

Production

Principal photography on Hitler – Dead or Alive began on August 6, 1942 at Fine Arts Studios.^[3]

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, (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 ..."^[4]

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."^[5]

In other media

In November 2012, while being interviewed by Playboy magazine, filmmaker Quentin Tarantino admitted the inspiration for his film Inglourious Basterds came from Hitler – Dead or Alive.^[6]

References

Notes

^ A news item appearing in the Film Daily noted that Hitler – Dead or Alive was based on an actual offer made by an American businessman, in which he promised a reward of one million dollars to anyone who "would either kill or kidnap Adolf Hitler."^[2]