SoCS

SoCS – A Link to my Past

Maggie

Linda has given us an interesting word to consider for  Stream of Consciousness Saturday:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “link.” Use it as a noun or a verb; use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!

Right away I might be breaking the rules because I am not using a noun or a verb, or am I? I suppose a name is a noun, but I digress (which I have been doing a lot lately.)

Link, link, link. I write a lot of nostalgic posts — all link me to my past. This post is no different. The first think that came up for me was ‘Kommondant Klink’ from the television show “Hogan’s Heroes”. This was a comedy television series about a German prion of war camp. Kommandant  Klink was a bit of a bumbler trying unsuccessfully to move up in the ranks.

Then my mind went to Art Linkletter and his shows “Kids Say the Darndest Things” and “House Party”. I am not sure how to classify the genre of this show, but we watched it faithfully when it was on. Here is a little lesson on the story of creation.

Advertisement

23 thoughts on “SoCS – A Link to my Past”

  2. MeTV runs two episodes of “Hogan’s Heroes” every weeknight at 10 ET. Mary and I never miss it, and we must have seen each episode at least twenty times. Not only were the men who played Nazis (Werner Klemperer, John Banner, Leon Askin, and Howard Caine) all Jewish, they all fought for the US in World War II. Klemperer said that had they ever written a script where Klink actually outwitted Hogan, he’d quit. He was the perfect example of The Peter Principle, where people rise to their level of incompetence.

    The wonderful thing about Art Linkletter was his ability to fade into the background and give his guests (adults as well as children) the spotlight. He was an Everyman, the guy who lives next door or the guy at the office. He had a talent for talking with people, a talent sorely lacking in this day and age.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. There are quite a few videos out there interviewing Werner Klemperer. What a great group of actors they were.

      Art Linkletter was one of a kind. Today, glitz and glam try to take the place of talent but all the façade fades eventually.

      Like

      1. The only cast member that’s still alive is Robert Clary (LeBeau), and he still goes on lecture tours, talking about his experiences at Auschwitz. There are a few interviews with him, too.

        Don’t know if you’ve seen this: Werner Klemperer and John Banner singing “Stille Nacht” and Robert Clary singing a French Christmas carol…

        Johnny Carson was another that was good as an interviewer. Late night TV has never been the same since his departure.

        Liked by 2 people

        1. Thanks for the clip, John. I think I may have seen it years ago but so nice to see it again.
          I agree with you about late night TV. I miss Johnny Carson, especially his shows featuring visitors from the San Diego zoo. What a riot. He was a great interviewer.

          Like

          1. I usually use that clip around Christmastime. It’s especially touching when you realize all of them are Jewish.

            There will never be another Johnny Carson, just like there will never be another Art Linkletter. I doubt many people have the kind of humility they had.

            Liked by 1 person

  3. I watched every episode of Hogan’s Heroes when it was shown on TV in England. I used to think it was so funny, even though they pretty much repeated the same jokes over and over.
    Best wishes, Pete.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. What a joy it was to see the clips from Art Linketter! We always watched that as a family! And Hogan’s Heroes was another must see every week! Thanks, Maggie for the fun reminders.

    Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.