# Where did Colonel Bogey's March come from? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 1, 2007, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296 "2007-04-01T14:21:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/1 "2007-04-01T14:21:32Z")
You know, the whistling tune from WWII, that’s featured in the soundtrack for _Bridge Over the River Kwai_. It sounds rather like an English music hall thing. Then there’s the words to the tune, which you can easily imagine British soldiers singing in a pub. Or was it just made up for the movie? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/2 "2007-04-01T14:36:03Z")
[Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonel_Bogey) claims it was written in 1914. Michael Redgrave whislted it in \*The Lady Vanishes \* (1937), but IMDB lists it in movies before that. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/3 "2007-04-01T14:49:39Z")
[QUOTE=Dr. Rieux] [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonel_Bogey) claims it was written in 1914. Michael Redgrave whislted it in \*The Lady Vanishes \* (1937), but IMDB lists it in movies before that. [/QUOTE] Upon further review, IMDB no longer supports that last part. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/4 "2007-04-01T14:58:34Z")
so the words must have been a WWII development? are there any earlier words from the WWI period? ---
**Author:** ![MissTake](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misstake/32/3189_2.png) [@MissTake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissTake)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/5 "2007-04-01T15:17:38Z")
Wow, there’s a real name for the Comet song? Who knew? _“Comet, it makes your mouth turn green, Comet, it tastes like gas-o-line. Comet, it makes you vomit So buy some Comet And vomit With me.”_ ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/6 "2007-04-01T15:21:40Z")
Never heard those words before! The WWII version I’ve heard is: _“Hitler, only has one ball, Goering’s, are both extremely small Himmler, is somewhat similar, While Goebbels Has no balls At all!”_ ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/7 "2007-04-01T17:39:18Z")
[QUOTE=Northern Piper] _“Hitler, only has one ball, Goering’s, are both extremely small Himmler, is somewhat similar, While Goebbels Has no balls At all!”_ [/QUOTE] This is, of course, why the song is only whistled in _Bridge on the River Kwai_. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Lucky\_13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucky_13/32/13209_2.png) [@Lucky\_13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_13)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/8 "2007-04-01T18:15:41Z")
I read some alternate lyrics for it in a book somewhere, can’t be bothered to look for the name at the moment: > [@](#): > > Herman, look what you’ve done to me! > Herman, I think it’s pregnancy > Herman, you put your sperm in > And now it’s Herman > And Sherman > And me! Oh, yeah, now I remember - I think this was quoted in the book One Potato, Two Potato. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/9 "2007-04-01T21:07:37Z")
[QUOTE=Northern Piper] so the words must have been a WWII development? are there any earlier words from the WWI period? [/QUOTE] It probably didn’t originally have lyrics. Marches don’t tend to. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/10 "2007-04-01T22:32:47Z")
There’s a book titled Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts-the subversive literature of childhood. It has almost two full pages of the changes kids have rung on the “Comet” song. I learned it slightly different than **MissTake** above. _Comet, it makes your teeth turn green! Comet, it tastes like Listerine! Comet, it makes you vomit, So buy some Comet, and vomit, today!_ ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Purl_McKnittington)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2007, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/11 "2007-04-01T23:06:43Z")
I play in a city concert band in the summers sometimes, and “Colonel Bogey’s March” is very, very popular, and not just because it was in “The Bridge over the River Kwai.” It’s a great, light march – not as sturm and drang as most military marches are. (I vastly prefer European marches to Sousa-esque ones.) “Colonel Bogey” has been played for decades by community bands. Not only is light and fun and perfect for summer, it really conjures up images of a small group of players in a bandshell for a community performance. Great addition to any community band’s repertoire. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2007, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/12 "2007-04-02T17:25:54Z")
It should be noted that another Kenneth Alford march, _The Voice of the Guns_, played a prominent role in David Lean’s next film **Lawrence of Arabia**. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2007, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/13 "2007-04-02T17:42:14Z")
[QUOTE=Northern Piper] Never heard those words before! The WWII version I’ve heard is: _“Hitler, only has one ball, Goering’s, are both extremely small Himmler, is somewhat similar, While Goebbels Has no balls At all!”_ [/QUOTE] The Master speaks. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2007, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/14 "2007-04-02T17:46:43Z")
Our high school marching band did a killer rendition of the “Hogan’s Heroes” march. ---
**Author:** ![MissTake](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misstake/32/3189_2.png) [@MissTake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissTake)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2007, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-colonel-bogeys-march-come-from/398296/15 "2007-04-02T19:40:04Z")
[QUOTE=Baker] There’s a book titled Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts-the subversive literature of childhood. It has almost two full pages of the changes kids have rung on the “Comet” song. [/QUOTE] May I just say that the Greasy Grimy book is one of the best books ever! We bought it a few years ago for the jump rope limericks and it has become a favorite in our home for giggles and snerks.