MovieChat Forums > October Sky (1999) Discussion > Wasn't Von Braun a Nazi?

Wasn't Von Braun a Nazi?

posted 15 years ago by mrsengk
18 replies | jump to latest

I mean, he was.

[–] estella2 8 years ago

yep he was a nazi and ss. I just discovered this. I knew he was German.... and had been in Germany at the time of the Nazis.... but didn't realize he was an actual Nazi.

Apparently this was covered up in operation paperclip and not released to public for some time......

[–] Batty67 (358) 6 years ago

Yep. He held rank in the SS and clearly knew he was building weapons of intended mass destruction for the Nazis. But he was undeniably a brilliant rocket scientist devoted to his work and likely just was trying to make the best of a terrible situation, such as horrific slave labor used to build the rockets. Undoubtedly, he could have done more to resist, but like most folks in life, they focus on one day at a time. Note, none of this is to apologize or forgive him for his role in the Nazi war effort, but it DOES mean he should not be worshipped as a wonderful human being...but the reality is, to some in the 50s and 60s, he was. But hindsight blew that crap up. But in the context of the movie, he was still semi-worshipped in a way over the top providential light.

[–] ncdwbmk6 8 years ago

There's an amusing trivia item for the biographical film about Von Braun, "I Aim at the Stars" (1960):

Upon the movie's release in the United Kingdom, satirists began appending the film's title on advertising posters to: I Aim for the Stars (But Sometimes I Hit London). An ironic joke highlighting Von Braun's role in the Nazi V-Weapon program.

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