# Why is Hitler so Danged Funny? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 28, 2009, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494 "2009-10-28T19:02:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/21 "2009-10-29T06:01:55Z")
> [@snailboy](#): > > Never heard that one despite having most of their discography. However, there is a Tool song in German called Die Eier von Satan which is a dessert recipe. They really made it sound like a Hitler speech, even with cheering. Ah, that must be it then, I’ve heard it attributed to Rammstein and the (now defunct) youtube link said Rammstein and I don’t know their sound well enough to pick them out and say “hey this is/isn’t Rammstein” so I was probably just mistaken. ---
**Author:** ![Noel\_Prosequi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b19c9b/32.png) [@Noel\_Prosequi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noel_Prosequi)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/22 "2009-10-29T07:22:56Z")
To fear something gives it power; to mock it strips it of power. It seems clear that this sentiment is deliberately behind much of the Mel Brooks Hitler comedy - mock and humiliate the Devil and he is rendered impotent. Rage at him and the hatred only makes him stronger. Brooks has had enormous influence in comedy, and he represents a powerful sensibility in showbiz; hence American comedy has legitimised Hitler humour in a way Germany has not found possible. ---
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/23 "2009-10-29T08:03:26Z")
> [@Noel\_Prosequi](#): > > To fear something gives it power; to mock it strips it of power. It seems clear that this sentiment is deliberately behind much of the Mel Brooks Hitler comedy - mock and humiliate the Devil and he is rendered impotent. Rage at him and the hatred only makes him stronger. Brooks has had enormous influence in comedy, and he represents a powerful sensibility in showbiz; hence American comedy has legitimised Hitler humour in a way Germany has not found possible. I was going to say the answer to the question of the OP had to be Mel Brooks. I’m pretty sure I’ve heard him talk about what you describe, referring to _To Be or Not To Be_ and why he remade it, though of course he’s done Hitler parody even better. The best video of Tool’s _Die Eier von Satan_ has to be [this one](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pFXXqxCqvw). ---
**Author:** ![mr.jp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@mr.jp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mr.jp)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/24 "2009-10-29T08:19:45Z")
I think he’s funny because he’s clearly a doofus. All that yelling, and the moustache, etc. I mean, if you put him in a modern day social environment, I don’t think he would fare that well. And yet he became the leader of a large nation, and most people looked up to him. **kelly5078** and **Maiira** were spot on regarding Stalin and Mussolini. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/25 "2009-10-29T09:43:02Z")
> [@kelly5078](#): > > I’ve always thought Mussolini was the better comic. That folding the arms schtick with the “Yeah, look at me, yeah, I said it” face is classic. Very underrated dictator. Now I’m seeing Carlos Mencia playing Benito Mussolini. And it kinda works for me. ---
**Author:** ![\_Undecided\_Adrian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/eada6e/32.png) [@\_Undecided\_Adrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Undecided_Adrian)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/26 "2009-10-29T10:12:35Z")
> [@Lamia](#): > > A couple of years ago I met a German college student who was doing a year in the US. He told me he’d been rather surprised to see so many “humorous” references to Hitler in the US. He specifically mentioned some skit on TV (probably _Saturday Night Live_) about bad team mascots that included Hitler as a mascot. He thought this was all in really poor taste and couldn’t understand why Americans thought this sort of thing was funny, especially since we’d fought _against_ Hitler. > > I guess that’s the difference, though. When Americans or the British make fun of Hitler, we’re making fun of an enemy. But if modern German entertainment treated Hitler as a comic figure it might be perceived as minimizing the horrors of WWII and the Holocaust. Well, Hitler is mocked in modern Germany as well. Of course there’s a bit of a different perspective, and things like the downfall rants don’t work as well when it’s difficult to shut out the speech and concentrate on the subtitles, but I don’t know anyone who would be offended about foreign Hitler jokes and there are quite a few homegrown ones as well. Some of the best ones are form a parody show called switch reloaded, combining the German version of the Office (Stromberg) with Hitler parodies. Just search youtube for “Obersalzberg”, here is the [first episode](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GQTkNX-8Yc). And there’s another example of a German parody that was even translated to English - [I’m sitting in my Bonker](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3QhI586UYI&feature=PlayList&p=1FF7CAFF7E095A60&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=32) ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/27 "2009-10-29T14:22:21Z")
> [@mr.jp](#): > > I think he’s funny because he’s clearly a doofus. All that yelling, and the moustache, etc. I mean, if you put him in a modern day social environment, I don’t think he would fare that well. And yet he became the leader of a large nation, and most people looked up to him. Also, according to a German actress whom Hitler had flirted with, he had really bad body odor too. ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/28 "2009-10-29T15:07:22Z")
Hitler is an iconic embodiment of someone who gets their way by getting pissed off. This is something we see frequently in everyday life. A small dog can bully a big dog simply by having a foul temper. An idiot can decide what plays on the TV or what restaurant a group goes to by being more assertive than those around him. Children can dominate indecisive adults by throwing a fit. This was not the only trick in Hitler’s repertoire, but it’s a big reason he’s become an archetype. It’s a tactic that is more obvious and inherently absurd than gaining power through quiet plotting and political manipulation. It’s ridiculous, obvious, effective, and in Hitler’s case unspeakably horrible. It all adds up to “danged funny.” ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/29 "2009-10-29T15:11:45Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > Also, according to a German actress whom Hitler had flirted with, he had really bad body odor too. Allegedly he had horrible table manners and his diet gave him uncontrollable chronic flatulence. [http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?Hitlers\_flatulence\_revealed\_in\_new\_papers&in\_article\_id=544020&in\_page\_id=34](http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?Hitlers_flatulence_revealed_in_new_papers&in_article_id=544020&in_page_id=34) ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/30 "2009-10-29T15:25:56Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > Allegedly he had horrible table manners and his diet gave him uncontrollable chronic flatulence. > > [http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?Hitlers\_flatulence\_revealed\_in\_new\_papers&in\_article\_id=544020&in\_page\_id=34](http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?Hitlers_flatulence_revealed_in_new_papers&in_article_id=544020&in_page_id=34) But at least he got to eat “prodigious amounts of cake.” If I were dictator, I would do no less. Flatulence be damned. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/31 "2009-10-29T16:02:27Z")
In Hitler’s younger days he studied some theatre. It was in vogue at the time for actors to exaggerate hand gestures and other body movements. This way they could be read from the back of an audience. Watch some silent films and you can see this. Big gestures, almost over-acted. Hitler figured that if he could mimic these motions, he’d have a dramatic when speaking in front of large crowds. Today it just looks dumb. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/32 "2009-10-29T17:41:46Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > Allegedly he had horrible table manners and his diet gave him uncontrollable chronic flatulence. How did he smell? Awful! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/33 "2009-10-29T21:41:14Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > How did he smell? Awful! And of course nobody told Hitler about this if they liked breathing. Herr Flunky(entering Hitler’s office): Ach! Vat’s zat schmell? It schmells like… Hitler(evenly): Like vat? Herr Flunky: Like un Gentle mountain stream, Mit lots of pretty flowers. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/34 "2009-10-29T21:58:57Z")
Heh, I must admit that the thought of Hitler ranting and raving with his fists waving in the air - all while farting loudly - makes me snicker a bit. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/35 "2009-10-29T22:23:04Z")
Hitler is funnier because he is the greatest danger we had in the 20th Century. Oh sure there were people just as evil, Stalin for one, but Hitler was PRO-evil, not reactionary. We used to have all sorts of dictators, from Franco, Tito, Catstro, Mussolini to the African’s Gadaffi, Bokassa and Idi Amin but they were all small compared to Hitler All those guys took over a country and pretty much stuck to killing off their own people. Stalin was only able to take advantage of Hitler’s defeat to expand. He didn’t do nothing till he was safe behind Hitler. Hitler was the dictator that reached beyond his borders to spread terror. This made him the devil that could actually get you. Sure Japan reached into China, but outside of Tojo, there really was no one identified with Japanese militarism as much. Heck more people today probably remember “Tokyo Rose,” than “Tojo” Hitler = Evil = Funny ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/36 "2009-10-30T04:01:53Z")
Hitler was a gas - the mustache, the staring eyes, the screaming and raving, the fits…the farting (I believe he was more the silent but deadly sort). And he was a strict vegetarian. I especially liked Hitler in the role of Hillary Clinton during the '08 campaign. _“Ze people haff stolen my ELECTION!!!”_ ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/37 "2009-10-30T04:12:59Z")
Hitler’s [actually a better rapper](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRt4cgk1ppM). ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/38 "2009-10-30T04:19:12Z")
[W for Wermacht](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U56-ze-SuEI) ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/39 "2009-10-30T05:05:08Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > Heh, I must admit that the thought of Hitler ranting and raving with his fists waving in the air - all while farting loudly - makes me snicker a bit. Hey – someone could do that with the video – use the original subtitles, but just add a lot of fart noises! ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494/40 "2009-10-30T23:21:13Z")
A related question: did Hitler ever actually have any public speeches where he \*wasn’t \*ranting, raving and yelling? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-hitler-so-danged-funny/515494.md?page=3)