It’s interesting to look at the casting & wardrobe choices in this show. Obviously they wanted skilled actors, and got them, but their appearance I think also had something to do with it. Some of it is the close cut of the jacket, very nipped in at the waist, but Klemperer (and thus Klink) was I think in reality somewhat the thinner of the two leads. He’s as broad-shouldered as Crane, but the wardrobe accentuates a wasp-waisted appearance to the point of almost lending him an hourglass figure, compared to Bob Crane’s trim but more sturdy/rectangular build (again, accentuated by the bomber jacket he habitually wore).
Same theme in their faces - Crane is the conventionally rugged male lead type with a square face, while Klemperer has much softer features, and frankly would have looked somewhat feminine with those big doe eyes of his if he hadn’t been bald. Of course queer-coding villains was pretty stock-in-trade in those days, and giving Klink that element of fussiness and vanity that is usually read as a female trait to undercut the character’s masculinity, and thus mark him as Not Quite Right, isn’t exactly exceptional. The old-fashioned monocle & riding crop also drive home the pretentiousness.
Schultz (not featured in this particular photoset but nevertheless) of course dwarfs them both but in a fluffy way, and while there’s an element of common fatphobia in that sense, he’s also supposed to be disarming and even cuddly, a bit deliberately dense but A Buddy to the rest of the cast. His size is also exaggerated by the wardrobe, his heavy full-length greatcoat expanding his silhouette even further. He’s a total teddy bear at first appearance.
“The Cutest Colonels” is a Klogan-themed Discord, but you’re also welcome to talk about other things from “Hogan’s Heroes” there too. It’s a place we can do fun things together, including but not limited to:
- Work on fics and art together.
- Create round robins specifically for the Klogan ship.
- Create more (small) content.
- Confidentially share pieces without judgement, even if they’re not so great.
- Do a Secret Santa each year, starting in November 1st and ending December 24th.
- Give each other birthday gifts in the form of content, assuming you feel comfortable enough to share the month and day of it.
My girlfriend @carriagelamp fell back in love with Hogan’s Heroes over the pandemic, and we found out that there was a company in Germany making 28mm figures! I’ve finally had the time to paint them and finish up the diorama- they’re held in place with magnets, so they can be played individually and stored for safe keeping on the base.
I learnt a lot with this one! She could twist my arm for an entire M*A*S*H scene next ;)
