franz weber ww2 franz weber ww2

The Gestapo agent that had mercilessly beaten him was taken to the very cell where he had tortured Mayer. One recruit summed up the band of desperadoes: The whole bunch were the craziest people I ever met in my entire life.. Fortunately, Hofer realized that Germany would lose and wanted to save his skin, so he ordered Mayer brought to him. Hofer could see the end coming and had little desire to be tried as a war criminal. When telling this story to The Los Angeles Times in 2009, Roth also noted that the part where the giant swastika falls in the theater was an accident, resulting from the unexpectedly powerful fires burning the steel cables holding it up. Contributor. I'd have a 100-page script and no end in sight. Sally Menke edited every one of QuentinTarantino's movies from "Reservoir Dogs" in 1992 all the way up until "Inglourious Basterds" in 2009. Headquartered in Reno, Nevada, Franz Weber, Inc. is a sports management and consulting company founded in 1984 by Franz Weber and his wife Janett. Speaking German, he admitted to being an American but said he was working alone. It brought profound and permanent social, governmental and cultural changes in the United States, and has had a great impact on how Americans regard themselves and . You must become a subscriber or login to view or post comments on this article. WORLD WAR II; Nov 27, 2015 Shahan Russell, Guest Author. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 8 daughters. It was hard to find a pilot to volunteer to fly in the difficult winter conditions over the glacier, but eventually, Billings stepped up, saying,If they are crazy enough to jump there, I will be crazy enough to take them there.. Cowering in the corner, the agent was terrified to see his former captive. Friedrich Fred Mayers father was a decorated war veteran for his distinguished service to the German Empire in WWI. And when youre done with all of those hundreds of books, you can turn to film. Both programmetitles are somewhat misleading, since the members of Operation Greenup were tasked withgathering intelligence rather than directly killing Nazis, and the only connection with the filmInglorious Basterds is that they were American Jews operating behind enemy lines. It was difficult to find a suitable drop point, as the obvious places were all occupied by the enemy. Any intel they can glean here will give the Allies hints about how the German Army intends to fight in the wars endgame, whether it will try to circle the wagons in some sort of Allied redoubt for a last-ditch fight. Weber, a Catholic, had deserted, convinced . He described these men: A more eclectic group of desperados could not be found: former Luftwaffe pilots, Jewish escapees from German death camps, Polish deserters, world-class athletes, and even a former convict. One recruit referred to the group as the craziest people he ever met. Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting. Frederick Mayer (28 October 1921, Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden, Germany - 15 April 2016, Charles Town, Jefferson County, West Virginia) was a German-born Jew who became an American spy as an OSS agent for the United States during World War II.He negotiated the surrender of the German Army in Innsbruck, Austria, in 1945 after he was captured in "Operation Greenup". An Olympian, six-time consecutive World Speed Skiing Champion and former world record-holder, Franz Weber still holds the North American record, at 129.303 mph/208.092 kph which he set in 1983 in Silverton, Colorado. Hofer was later judged in absentia and sentenced to death in Austria in 1949. Franz E. Weber N, N-Dimethylacetamide is an FDA approved solvent widely used in pharmaceutical industry to facilitate the solubility of lipophilic, high molecular weight drugs with poor water . Jason Dawsey, PhD. Now, a new History Channel film, The Real Inglorious Bastards, returns to the true story chronicled in the book and captures Mayers amazing exploits in historically accurate detail. Birth, Baptism & Christening. Finally, an intrepid American Air Corps pilot, Lt. John Billings, and his crew stepped forward and volunteered. He, therefore, transformed himself into a French electrician. The "Inglourious Basterds" screenplay was a particular challenge both to write and to edit down into a workable feature. It's aged well, winning IndieWire's critics' poll for the best Tarantino movie a decade after its release. Fred Raskin, Menke's assistant editor on "KillBill," would become Tarantino's go-to editor following her death, starting with "Django Unchained" in 2012. Uncoiling a rawhide whip, the tall one put his full weight behind each swing, mercilessly thrashing the agents body like a side of beef. All three landed safely with most of their equipment, but the canister containing their skis was lost. Mayer convinced Hofer the war was over. The scene was filmed on a controlled "fire stage" set, but the flames ended up burning far hotter than anyone anticipated. They found that Germans were using movable bridges on the Brenner railway that they hid in tunnels by day and used only at night. It was feared that the Nazis would establish an Alpine redoubtin order tomake a last stand there. Fred Mayer and his five Jewish cohorts, who had become best friends during the training, had had enough. 1 was here. In 1996, Franz was The Germans,wanting to surrender to the Americans passed it on. World War I, also called First World War or Great War, an international conflict that in 1914-18 embroiled most of the nations of Europe along with Russia, the United States, the Middle East, and other regions. Bis current project is . He acted as the breadwinner while working as a mechanic at companies such as General Motors and Ford. Franz Weber. RecPak is a meal replacement for the outdoors that saves you weight, space and time in the most challenging environments, just add water. Operation Greenup brought the Allies real material benefits, transmitting dozens of radio messages with detailed accounts of Brenner traffic to the OSS listening station in the city of Bari in the heel of Italy. Fortunately for Webers fiance and her family, Mayer had found other lodgings before being captured. He penetrated a secret underground factory producing jet engines for the Third Reich. For the next three days, he was mercilessly beaten, tortured, and hung upside down. Trembling, he stammered, Do anything you want to me, but dont hurt my family.. But after several weeks behind enemy lines that provided reams of actionable intelligence, a knock on the door of Mayers safe house changed his life. The Messerschmitt design team were on to something . The leader of the mission was Fred "Freddy" Mayer, who settled in Brooklyn in 1938 after escaping Nazi Germany with his family, having to leave the love of his life Hannah behind, who was . World War II was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. - Narrative histories highlighting organization, combat experiences, and casualties of each division - Lists of constituent units and division commanders - Sources for further reading on each division This is the first of 3 definitive volumes that cover the German ground forces that swept across Europe with such ruthless efficiency in 1939 and 1940 and battled the Allies around the globe until . Bursting through the door and into the room, a dozen Gestapo agents, armed with MP-40 machine pistols, quickly surrounded and apprehended Mayer. OSS was the forerunner to both the Special Operations Command of the military, OSS Jedburgh and Operation Groups were the units that became the US Army Special Forces and Navy SEALs owe part of their legacy to OSS Maritime Group operatives, where one of them invented the US version of SCUBA. However, he was never caught and lived a relatively peaceful life until his death in 1964. Rising to power in an unstable Germany, Adolf Hitler and his National Socialist (Nazi Party) rearmed the nation and signed treaties . And 15 Other Iconic Lines From Tarantino's FilmsThe Real-Life Django Who Rebelled Against Slavery And No One Talks About Enough10 Lessons We Learned From The Bad-Ass Women In Tarantino's Universe. . As reported in The New York Times, Tarantino had intended his follow-up to "Jackie Brown" to be a World War II epic then titled "Inglorious Bastards" (with proper spelling). Webers sister was a nurse who helped Mayer disguise himself as a German officer in uniform and bandaged up from a head wound. Tarantino's movies, "Inglourious Basterds" included, generally have such excellent casting that it's often weird to read about who almost played their iconic characters instead. According to The Playlist, the theatrical cut of "Inglourious Basterds" runs one minute longer than the Cannes version. We use our own and third-party cookies to personalize and improve the use and experience of our users on our website. Then good fortune stepped in. All rights reserved. Representing a variety of world class athletes, the company specializes in client hospitality and luxury adventure travel notably . Tarantino worked on the script for years, made tough decisions in casting the film, and took time to get the final cut just right. By Mark Weber. He says Waltz was also instructed to not show up to rehearsals with any of his co-stars, with the one exception ofDenis Mnochet (who played the dairy farmer Perrier LaPadite and shares the film's suspenseful opening scene with Waltz). STIWOT, 1999-2023. Tune in for a conversation about the men of X Troop, who were the realInglorious Basterds: a secret commando unit of young Jewish refugees who were trained in counterintelligence and advanced combat to deliver decisive blows against the Nazis. Exhausted, they finally sledded their way down, something Mayer later claimed was the scariest part of the mission. The war pitted the Central Powersmainly Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkeyagainst the Alliesmainly France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, and, from 1917, the United . By then it was April of 1945 and the Germans knew they were done. In an era of fake heroes who vie for their own reality television shows, Fred Mayer shies away from publicity. Webers sister, Louise, was a nurse who gave Mayer the uniform and documents of a recently-deceased German officer. In the summer of 1944 after extensive training, the OGs received the call to duty. Both men joined the US Army, and were then approached to join the OSS, the US intelligence service,because of their language skills. That mans a bigshot in the US Military. . As much as he packs into these movies, however, their scripts often run even longer. Weve already been checked, Weber asserted with great chutzpah. Or are you interested in war medals . For his bravery, Mayer received the Legion of Merit and a Purple Heart. Theres no doubt that Operation Greenup saved many thousands of lives, Austrian and American, civilian and military. This enabled him to pick upinformation from other German officers, which Wijnberg relayed back to the OSS. He was finally arrested when a black marketeer was caught by Nazi authorities and fingered Mayer as a spy. The award was presented to him by the Austrian ski resorts for his contributions to the sport of skiing. A couple of excellent books on the subject are : This Grim And Savage Game: The Oss And U.s. Covert Operations In World War II by Tom Moon and. He found and recruited deserter-volunteer, Franz Weber. Then they boarded a Gestapo-infested train bound for Innsbruck (a major rail hub) where they were asked for their papers. . Find your friends on Facebook. Privacy statement, cookies, disclaimer and copyright, On a journey of discovery to historical sites? The Real Inglorious Bastards. When Georg Weber was born about 1506, in Mollis, Glarus, Switzerland, his father, Franz Weber, was 33 and his mother, Weber, was 33. One of the mainsprings of the group spoke eight different languages, had fought and escaped from the French Legion, and had previously worked as a matre d at the Copacabana nightclub. Channel 5s website describes the programme as follows: Documentary exploring one of the hundreds of undercover missions launched by the US governments Office of Strategic Services during World War II. Stealing a Jeep (now they sound like SF), they drive to OSS HQs and went to see the head of the SI (Special Intelligence) Section to volunteer. I don't want you to be bad at the script reading, but I want you to hold a lot back. The threewere to be dropped byparachutednear Innsbruckin February 1945. His parents and younger brotherwere all murdered in the Holocaust. The two men are Brooklyn to the core, and they even overlay a map of their New York borough onto that of Tyrol, to have a whole set of code names for various Tyrolean locales that would utterly baffle the Nazis. Consider an Allied espionage operation code-named GREENUP, which in some ways is even more improbable than a Hollywood pot-boiler. Operation Greenups purpose was intelligence gathering. In February, 1945, an odd trio parachuted onto a vast Austrian glacier and kicked-off one of the most spectacular clandestine missions of World War II. These are the untold truths of the making of "Inglourious Basterds.". He retired as World Champion in 1985 but returned to the sport of speed skiing seven years later to compete in the 1992 Winter Olympics at Albertville, France where he clocked his fastest personal time of 138.112 mph/222.222 kph (average speed). Over 16.5 million men and women served in the armed forces during World War II, of whom 291,557 died in battle, 113,842 died from other causes, and 670,846 were wounded. Its Like the First World WarIf We kill them, theyre just replaced, The Russo-Ukraine war: Implications for UK Defence, SMS Seeadler: A First World War Sailing Warship, Rishi Sunak to end asylum claims from small boat arrivals, Prince Harry: I always felt different to rest of family, Ocean treaty: Historic agreement reached after decade of talks, Kuenssberg: Sunak can't escape past Tory horrors, Chris Rock talks about Will Smith's Oscars slap in a live Netflix show, Rail fares go up in England and Wales by 5.9%, Everything Everywhere sweeps Independent Spirit Awards, King's Coronation: Pubs to stay open longer in England and Wales, UK Weather: Snow and ice expected in Scotland and north of England, Ukraine war: The Moldovan enclave surrounded by pro-Russian forces. As if offended, Weber haughtily replied, Weve already been checked!. Dulles cabled OSS HQs in Italy, Fred Mayer reports he is in Gestapo hands but cabled Dont worry about me, Im really not bad off a remarkable message considering that it was coming from a Jew. Inform us! And what a cast of characters: emigr Jews like Mayer and Wijnberg, bent on destroying the regime that had persecuted them and their families and, in Wijnbergs case, had even killed his parents; Lieutenant Weber, a German soldier currently on the run from a death sentence for desertion, then being handed out in the thousands by Nazi officials; not to mention Anna Niederkircher, the mother of Webers fiance. Mr. Mayer died at his home in Charles Town, West Virginia, on April 15 this year. Historian K. ODonnell published a volume called They Dared Return: The True Story of Jewish Spies Behind the Lines in Nazi Germany. Sadly, "Inglourious Basterds" was to be Menke's last film with Tarantino (the last film she edited was"Peacock" in 2010, directed by Michael Lander) because she died while hiking in the heat on September 27, 2010 (via The Los Angeles Times). They had to walk down the glacier, sometimes waist deep in snow. Feigning the role of a captured German POW, Fred entered a camp and networked within its gates. The other objective was to identify rail traffic travelling from Innsbruck to Italy through the Brenner Pass. In this operation, OSS used former German nationals who were forced to flee for their lives just because they were Jewish. Download the TracesOfWar app directly on, Australia (1901-present, Federal Monarchy), Belgium (1830-present, Constitutional Monarchy), Canada (1931-present, Constitutional Monarchy), Soviet Union (1922-1991, People's Republic), FELLGIEBEL, W.P., Elite of theThird Reich, Helion & Company Limited, Solihull, 2003, HU, JRGEN & SONDERMANN, HEINZ-WERNER, Ritterkreuztrger im Mannschaftsstand 1941-1945, VDM Heinz Nickel, Zweibrcken, 2009, Privacy statement, cookies, disclaimer and copyright. The revelations about Weinstein and Thurman's car accident placed an extra dark light on one anecdote about filming the scene in "Inglourious Basterds" where Hans Landa chokes Bridget Von Hammersmark to death. One of the most popular genres of WWII literature is espionage, the spy novel, the thriller. Books abound on the topic, dealing with undercover operatives, double agents, and breathless derring-do. Later, Mayer changed his disguise and donned the clothing of a French electrician. But this ninety-somethings life hasnt always been so simple. They said if we were in there another 15 seconds, the stage we were on would have collapsed and we all would have been killed." October 28th, 1944. Edit Search New Search Jump to Filters. Waltz had only acted in German films before, and "Inglourious Basterds" was a huge breakout for his international career. Since 2013, Fondation Franz Weber is working closely with the World Heritage Centre to support the conservation and safeguard of natural World Heritage sites.This partnership intends to strengthen the Rapid Response Facility (RRF), a programme jointly managed by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and Fauna & Flora International aimed at protecting natural World Heritage sites in emergency . There was only one problemthey got dropped off at the wrong port. Though they managed to retrieve most of their supplies, their skis were another matter entirely, forcing them to climb down in waist-deep snow. Looking for reliable information or news facts about WW2? Over 40.000 pages on the officers, the boats, technology and the Allied efforts to counter the U-boat threat. We invite you to share some of Franz Webers career. Part of the reason Tarantino decided to make "Kill Bill" first was due to the fact the story for his epic was growing so large in scale that he was having trouble cutting it down. Mayer was motivated by a powerful combination of hate and lovehate toward the Nazis and love for America. Greenup also discovered Hitlers location, as well as that of Mussolini. There are a few different reasons people have speculated on. As the company approached along the relatively featureless terrain, it came under violent MG . The only area to infiltrate was a small lake frozen over in the winter between the mountains. By this time Hofer, like many Nazis, realised that the war was lost and was interested only in surrendering to the Western Allies rather than the Soviets. With a military background, he thought his former service would protect his family from persecution. And that was after they had tortured him. He can see the reality of Hitlers plans, which, as Weber puts it, aims to transform the continent into Concentration Camp Europe. Weber deserts to the Allies, makes contact with the OSS, and agrees to join the team. An Olympian, six-time consecutive World Speed Skiing Champion and former world record-holder, Franz Weber still holds the North American record, at Born in Rohleder (Raskaty) Russia to Heinrich Weber (1799 - 1848) and Susanna Fritz (1807-after 1861). He was 94 years old. They were joined by Franz Weber, an ex-Wehrmacht officer turned freedom fighter comparable to the Basterds' Hugo Stiglitz. Nationality: German (1933-1945, Third Reich) Biography. Mayer was then betrayed and captured. Birth of Franz Weber. As the war ended, the people of Vietnam looked to the United States to support their dreams of independence. Sign Up. He entered their German Operational Group (OG), precursors to the U.S. Army Green Berets, an elite team of commandos that would operate behind the lines in German-occupied Europe. Mayer was born in Freiburg, Germany, on Oct. 28, 1921. Kruger went on to earn aSAG Awards nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role for the performance. He is a two-time overall winner of the Tournament of Champions and four-time Rolex Legends Series Champion. Operation FORTITUDE involved a group of double agents feeding disinformation to the Germans but the group was an odd collection of criminals, playboys, party girls, and a woman obsessed with her dog. Hollywood tried to capture an actual OSS operation in a highly fictionalized film called Inglorious Basterds by Quentin Tarantino. At the start of 1945, Mayer was a highly trained agent for the Secret Intelligence division of the OSS and became the leader of the Operation Greenup. In zweiter Ehe war er mit Genovefa Brenner verheiratet; aus dieser . Log in or sign up for Facebook to connect with friends, family and people you know. In his book about the OSS Tom Moon described the torture. Do you have more information about this person? Kruger did consent to this, and she posted on Instagramin 2018 that Tarantino "treated me with utter respect and never abused his power or forced me to do anything I wasn't comfortable with." While promoting her 2022 action movie "The 355," Diane Kruger appeared on the podcast "Reign with Josh Smith" and answered questions about how she got the role of German actress and spy Bridget Von Hammersmark in "Inglourious Basterds." Matull gave fake information on Mayer, claiming he was an important general of the American Army. One of the OSS men chosen for this mission was Frederick Mayer. A former German commando and officer, Weber had fought on the Eastern Front but now was convinced that it was his duty to defeat the Third Reich for the sake of his country, Austria. Under torture, he told them about Mayer, so they broke down the latters door on 20 April 1945. She was only 56 years old when she passed away. Hofer was looking for a way to surrender to the Americans and not the Russians and saw this as his chance. Their mission: to compile reports on German rail traffic over the Brenner Pass between Italy and Austria. Mollis, Glarus, Canton of Glarus, Switzerland. The Germans had captured another American agent named Hermann Matull. Millard E. Moon, Journal of Strategic Security, Vol. It was April 1945, and Germany was finished. They purloined a Jeep, mutinied from the OGs and arrived at OSSs Secret Intelligence (SI) section, which had been dropping agents deep inside Nazi Germany. In an article about the film in The Guardian, Tarantino is quoted as refusing to explain the "u" in "Inglourious" but does explain the "e" in "Basterds": "That's just the way you say it: basterds.". In an amazing turnabout, Mayer received an opportunity for revenge. In 1944, the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) of the United States Army trained three soldiers: Frederick Mayer, Hans Wynberg, and Franz Webe. The third soldier was the Austrian Franz Weber, a Nazi officer who had deserted the army. "Say 'What' Again!" Inhibition of osteoclast differentiation and bone resorption by N-methylpyrrolidone. Few films could get away with an ending where a character turns to the camera and says, "This might just be my masterpiece," but "Inglourious Basterds" might trulybe QuentinTarantino's masterpiece. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING VETERAN JOURNALISM - JOIN SOFREP+ , Last week we posted a story on the OSS (Office of Strategic Services) and how after 73 years they were finally recognized as a group and were honored with a Congressional Gold Medal. Mayer was then ordered to investigate a nearby underground factory that was building Me 262 jet fighters. By now, those of you have seen Tarantinos film should be thinking Inglourious Basterds. Mayer, Wijnberg, and Weber are the real thing, the actual basterds, and indeed, Mayer himself is once supposed to have said that the three of them just wanted to kill Nazis.. They didnt embark on any sort of killing spree, but they did succeed in their mission. They had to walk down the glacier, sometimes waist deep in snow. Franz Anton von Weber (* 26. ?, The GIs were not so merciful with the Gestapo, however, especially as some them were Jews. A German soldier, Matull had deserted and was caught by the Allies who threw him into a POW camp. ), Austrian football player Franz Weber (soldier) (1921-2014), German soldier Franz Weber (activist) (1927-2019), Swiss environmentalist and animal welfare activist Franz Weber (skier) (born 1956), Austrian skier They were sent to enemy lines to sabotage Nazi activities. Not surprising to those who know him, Fred Mayer may not attend the Congressional reception and the screening of the movie chronicling his feats. ADVERTISING. The story of Operational Greenup deserves greater attention than it has received. She paid for her own plane ticket to Germany for the audition, which thankfully worked out for the best. Posing as a recovering German officer, Mayer befriended an Engineer Officer who worked on the Fuhrer Bunker in Berlin. But unlike other refugees, Mayer decided to return to German-occupied Europe to strike back at the very individuals who imprisoned some of his family members in concentration camps. Finally, Ulmer asked the Jewish-Americans matter-of-factly, Do you appreciate what can happen to you if youre caught?, Mayer responded, staring directly into Omers eyes, This is more our war than yours.. He found and recruited deserter-volunteer, Franz Weber. Inside was the officer responsible for his interrogation., Do what you want with me, the man pleaded. Hofer got Mayer to help him arrange the surrender. 504-528-1944. 1526 1526. Now, though Hofer had the connections and supplies to resist an invasion by the Allies, its known that it was thanks to his conversations with Mayer that he decided to surrender. Nonetheless, this story has made some people uncomfortable. Each of them spoke at least two European languages, with Mayer speaking German, French, and Spanish. Feeling he had achieved his speed skiing goals, Franz permanently retired from the sport following the 1992 Olympics. The Basel activist was responsible for over 150 campaigns but is best known for his defence of the alpine landscape, in particular . Franz Carl Weber is a lovely toy store spread across four large floors. The Germans even broke his teeth with a powerful haymaker punch while stuffing a pistol in his mouth. All rights reserved 2022 Collective Culture.