The latest sitcom to be sprinkled with movie pixie dust is "Hogans Heroes," reports Variety. The series, running from 1965-1971, followed the antics of WWII prisoner of war Colonel Robert Hogan (Bob Crane) and his fellow inmates. The show was built upon the premise that Hogan and his comrades had fooled their Nazi captors, led by the bumbling Colonel Klink and Sergeant Shultz, into believing that the Nazis were actually in control. The false sense of complacency allowed Hogan and his boys to build an extensive Allied resistance hub smack in the middle of a Nazi war camp. Big laughs were had by all.
A star isn't attached to the "Hogan" project, but Mel Gibson expressed an interest in taking the title role a few years ago. Gibson's smarmy sense of humor and penchant for practical jokes seems a perfect fit for the twinkle-in-the-eye title character originated by Crane.
Beyond nabbing a big-time star, the biggest obstacle for the "Hogan" filmmakers will be the treatment of the setting. Nazi war camps weren't exactly humor hot spots, and with films like "Schindler's List" bringing Nazi atrocities into startling clarity, the "Hogan" screenwriters will be hard pressed to keep the laughs rolling against this somber reference point. The characters of Klink and Shultz could also be problematic since both were portrayed as bumbling, loveable oafs in the TV series, but successfully showing a "friendly" Nazi on the big screen—even in a comedy—will be tricky.
| More on "Hogan's Heroes" |
Hogan's Heroes Episode Guide
If you're short on time but desperate to obtain a rudimentary knowledge of the TV series, this collection of episode titles and brief show descriptions will fit the bill.
Hogan's Heroes HQ
A smattering of multimedia downloads including a WAV file of Schultz' catch phrase "I know nothingkk!"
TVLand
Read general background on the show and find out when you can catch "Hogan's" reruns.
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Posted: 05/21/01
