Schichlegruber Doing the Lambeth Walk

Schichlegruber Doing the Lambeth Walk is a 1942 short propaganda film by Charles A. Ridley of the UK Ministry of Information.[1] It consists of edited existing footage taken from Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will to make it appear as if they were dancing to the dance style "The Lambeth Walk".[1]

Schichlegruber Doing the Lambeth Walk

The film was distributed uncredited to newsreel companies.[1]

Alternative titles edit

The film has many alternative titles:

  • Hoch der Lambeth Valk[2]
  • Germany Calling[2]
  • Hitler Assumes Command[2]
  • Lambeth Walk[2]
  • Hoch Der Lambeth Walk[2]
  • Hoch der Lambeth Valk: A Laugh-Time Interlude[2]
  • Lambeth Walk – Nazi Style[2]
  • Hitler Doing the Lambeth Walk[2]
  • Schichlegruber – Doing the Lambeth Walk[2]
  • Gen. Adolf Takes Over[3]
  • Panzer Ballet[4]

Background edit

"The Lambeth Walk" was becoming popular in Berlin.[1] In a speech that achieved attention in 1939, a speech about "revolution of private life" (one of the next big tasks of National Socialism in Germany), a member of the Nazi Party declared it "Jewish mischief and animalistic hopping".[1]

The name "Schichlegruber" derives from Adolf Hitler's father Alois Hitler, who was illegitimate and originally named Alois Schicklgruber after his mother, Maria Schicklgruber.

Reception edit

The film reportedly enraged Joseph Goebbels to the degree that he ran out of the screening room kicking chairs and screaming profanities.[1][clarification needed] Members of the Danish resistance would raid theatres and force the projectionists to show the film, among others.[5]

As a humorous mashup that satirizes its original footage, the film shares similarities to 21st-century remix culture, particularly that of the post-2006 YouTube poop.[6]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f Adam Green. "Lambeth Walk – Nazi Style (1942)", Open Knowledge Foundation, 20 June 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Schichlegruber - Doing the Lambeth Walk (1941) Release Info", imdb.com. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  3. ^ The short film Gen. Adolf Takes Over is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.
  4. ^ "Germany Calling [Main Title]". IWM Film. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  5. ^ Barnouw, Erik (1993). Documentary: A History of the Non-fiction Film. Oxford University Press. pp. 149–151. ISBN 978-0-19-507898-5.
  6. ^ Coppa, Francesca (2022), "Introduction: Vidding and the Rise of Remix Culture", Vidding, A History, University of Michigan Press, pp. 1–22, doi:10.3998/mpub.10069132, ISBN 978-0-472-03852-7, JSTOR 10.3998/mpub.10069132, retrieved 2022-12-16

External links edit