My first impression of watching this series as an adult is to question what is Robert Wagner doing opening the first episode and then carrying on through the years spent at Colditz as an important, brave, ingenious and daring son of the goldarn US of A?
As far as accurate history is concerned, and do please check this out, according to the records and the activities of the residents of Colditz, there were no Americans there until three weeks before liberation. None of whom escaped.
Why would they do this you might ask?
Well the series was financed with American studio money. No serious US production can stand a cat in hell's chance of success unless it has an American as a leading role, apparently? Ergo, the story you see is made to look like an American thriller, even though it was French, Dutch, Polish and British, Air force, Navy and Army prisoners who were the real heroes of Colditz. It is a crying shame that this European story was ransacked by Hollywood....
As far as accurate history is concerned, and do please check this out, according to the records and the activities of the residents of Colditz, there were no Americans there until three weeks before liberation. None of whom escaped.
Why would they do this you might ask?
Well the series was financed with American studio money. No serious US production can stand a cat in hell's chance of success unless it has an American as a leading role, apparently? Ergo, the story you see is made to look like an American thriller, even though it was French, Dutch, Polish and British, Air force, Navy and Army prisoners who were the real heroes of Colditz. It is a crying shame that this European story was ransacked by Hollywood....