Schenck and the burning of documents is a scene in Downfall which is seldom used in parodies.
In Downfall[]
In the yard of an office building, where archives are being thrown out the windows and burned in piles. Soldiers are moving various objects such as paintings, carpets, and chairs. Ernst-Günther Schenck, wearing a white coat sees the soldiers and his adjutant Max Müller throwing out files. Müller tells him that they're leaving, as Operation Clausewitz has started. Schenck then asks who's going to look after the soldiers and the people. His adjutant frankly said he doesn't know, which Schenck sees as madness.
He walks down the stairs fastening his uniform and walks outside to meet SS-Obergruppenführer Tellermann, who oversees the burning. Schenck protests, saying that the food supply will collapse, and the soldiers will take food from the civilians when the fighting will spread all over the city. Tellermann says it's an order from the Führer. Schenck then tells him that while he as a department head answers to the SS and Heinrich Himmler, as a doctor, he is part the Wehrmacht, and they've yet to leave the city. Tellermann says that the professor can stay in Berlin and orders to get him the proper papers. He then departs with his group of soldiers through the parked cars and trucks as Schenck watches.
In Downfall Parodies[]
The scene is sometimes used in parodies where the papers that are being burned usually carry a great amount of importance. In KakashiBallZ's parody Hitler and Fegelein Join Forces To Take On Constantin Films, the place where the papers are burned is the Downfall Parodies Headquarters and the papers are Downfall parody manuscripts. Similarly, Hitler Rants Parodies' The Assassination of Hitler: Episode II, the papers being burned are documents that can undermine the hopes of every person from the Reich who wants to become Führer. In Fegelein: The Lost Tapes' Return of Mama Hitler, the papers are actually the bunker's food reserves, and their destruction is so that Mama Hitler doesn't get to them, which Schenck points out that it's a stupid idea.
Due to the massive amount of papers being burned, sometimes the scene can be used to depict politicians or governments burning important documents, such as this video depicting Hillary Clinton's HQ burning all the emails involved in the email scandal.
The scene was also used in Captain Willenbrock Performs the Ultimate Antic to illustrate the "madness" that was deliberately caused by Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock tearing a hole in the space-time continuum. Meanwhile, Part 1 of The Downfall of Gaia Online used this scene to portray users of Gaia Online who are quitting, with the burning papers standing for the inventories of those users.
Transcript[]
German transcript and English translation | ||
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Speaker | German | English |
SCHENCK | Was ist denn hier los? | What is going on here? |
MÜLLER | Packen, abhauen. | Packing, getting away. |
Clausewitz ist ausgegeben. | Clausewitz has commenced. | |
Alle Ministerien und alle Wehrmachtsführungsämter rücken ab aus Berlin. | All ministries and all Wehrmacht leadership offices are moving out of Berlin. | |
SCHENCK | Und wer organisiert der Verpflegung der Bevölkerung... | And who will organize rationing for the population... |
Und der Soldaten, wenn alle weg sind? | And the soldiers, when everyone goes away? | |
MÜLLER | Fragen Sie mich etwas leichteres, Professor. | Ask me something simpler, Professor. |
SCHENCK | Aber das ist doch Wahnsinn! | But this is total madness! |
TELLERMANN | Ah, der Herr Professor! | Ah, the Professor! |
SCHENCK | Ich kann nicht zulassen, dass meine Verwaltung evakuiert wird. | I cannot allow my administration to be evacuated. |
TELLERMANN | So, so, Sie können das nicht zulassen. | So, so, you cannot allow this to happen. |
SCHENCK | Die Lebensmittelversorgung von Berlin wird zusammenbrechen! | The food supply of Berlin will get exhausted! |
TELLERMANN | Ein guter Soldat findet immer seine Verpflegung. | A good soldier always finds his rations. |
SCHENCK | Ja, und wenn in der Stadt gekämpft wird, wem nimmt der Soldat die Verpflegung dann weg? | Okay, and when they fight in the city, whom does that soldier take their rations from? |
Doch wohl der Zivilbevölkerung! | Certainly the civilians! | |
Ich werde das nicht verantworten. | I will not be responsible for this. | |
TELLERMANN | Das ist ein Führerbefehl! | This is the Führer's order! |
SCHENCK | Als Amtschef bin ich der SS und Himmler unterstellt. | As head of office, I am subordinate to the SS and Himmler. |
Aber als Arzt bin ich Angehöriger der Wehrmacht, und die marschiert noch nicht ab. | But as a physician, I am a member of the Wehrmacht, and they are not marching out yet. | |
Ich bitte dies zu beachten. | I ask you to pay attention to this. | |
TELLERMANN | Der Professor kann in Berlin bleiben. | The Professor can remain in Berlin. |
Die entsprechenden Vollmachten sind sofort auszustellen. | The relevant powers of attorney are to be issued at once. | |
Aufsitzen! | Get aboard! |
Trivia[]
- According to Schenck himself, the phrase "Ein guter Soldat findet immer seine Verpflegung" (A good soldier always finds his food) was actually credited to Wilhelm Mohnke not Tellermann.
Gallery[]
Previous Fegelein and Himmler at Hitler's birthday |
Schenck and the burning of documents View Template Page |
Next Himmler greets Hitler (aka Hitler Wants Himmler Scene) |
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