Colonel Erich Von Strohm
Encyclopedia
Colonel Kurt Von Strohm is a fictional character
in the BBC
sitcom 'Allo 'Allo!
, which ran from 1982 to 1992. He was played by the actor Richard Marner
.
Von Strohm is a Colonel, which is similar to the rank of the Oberst
in the Wehrmacht
.
He is the town Commandant in Nouvion, and often visits the Café René with his assistant Captain Hans Geering
and his secretary Private Helga Geerhart
. In the later series, after Hans goes missing, he mostly comes with Lieutenant Gruber.
The Colonel enjoys special treatment by the waitress Yvette Carte-Blanche
in exchange for paraffin, gasoline, sugar and butter.
He also forces René Artois to hide some silver, the first cuckoo-clock ever made, and the world famous The Fallen Madonna
by van Klomp (or "The Fallen Madonna With The Big Boobies") from Herr Flick of the Gestapo
. These valuable artifacts were found in the town's chateau
. Von Strohm wants to sell them after the war to have a good pension, but he has to share with the captain, the secretary, with René Artois the café-owner and later on with Gruber. To increase his pension, he also plans to sell the well known Vase with Twelve Sunflowers by Vincent Van Gogh
(or "The Cracked Vase With The Big Daisies"), which was found in the café. Its original owner is Madame Edith's mother Madame Fanny La Fan
. She got it as a present from the nowadays popular artist.
But the Colonel fears the Gestapo
and his superior General Von Klinkerhoffen, who is a ruthless man. He orders to make forgeries of the paintings, so Herr Flick can send them to Hitler as a birthday gift for Eva Braun
. But the Gestapo
officer also wants to get rich, so he makes more forgeries. The General is also rapacious, and wants to get his hands on the paintings too. Later Lieutenant Gruber is also involved, as he is ordered to make copies. The artifacts were hidden in various places, like in knockwursts sausages, in wardrobes, in René's cellar, in his kitchen, at the old sawmill, etc.
But the paintings were never sold. In the last episode Gruber finds The Fallen Madonna by mistake in the statue of René. By this time the Madonna has only one big boobie. But Helga possesses the other one, so the painting is complete again.
In this episode we also find out that many years after the war Gruber married Helga and hired Von Strohm as his chaffeur.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
sitcom 'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo! is a British sitcom broadcast on BBC One from 1982 to 1992 comprising eighty-five episodes. It is a parody of another BBC programme, the wartime drama Secret Army, and was created by David Croft, who also wrote the theme music, and Jeremy Lloyd. Lloyd and Croft wrote the first 6...
, which ran from 1982 to 1992. He was played by the actor Richard Marner
Richard Marner
Richard Marner, born Alexander Molchanoff was a Russian-born British actor. He was probably best known for his role as Colonel Kurt Von Strohm in the British sitcom Allo 'Allo!.-Early life:...
.
Von Strohm is a Colonel, which is similar to the rank of the Oberst
Oberst
Oberst is a military rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and Norway. The Swedish rank överste is a direct translation, as are the Finnish rank eversti...
in the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
.
He is the town Commandant in Nouvion, and often visits the Café René with his assistant Captain Hans Geering
Captain Hans Geering
Captain Hans Geering is a fictional character from the British sitcom series Allo 'Allo!. He was played by actor Sam Kelly.- First episode :Hans is Colonel Kurt Von Strohm's assistant and usually comes with him to the café...
and his secretary Private Helga Geerhart
Private Helga Geerhart
Private Helga Geerhart is a fictional character in the BBC sitcom Allo 'Allo!, which ran from 1982 to 1992. She was played by the actress Kim Hartman....
. In the later series, after Hans goes missing, he mostly comes with Lieutenant Gruber.
The Colonel enjoys special treatment by the waitress Yvette Carte-Blanche
Yvette Carte-Blanche
Yvette Carte-Blanche is a fictional character in the BBC sitcom Allo 'Allo!, which ran from 1982 to 1992. She was played by the actress Vicki Michelle....
in exchange for paraffin, gasoline, sugar and butter.
He also forces René Artois to hide some silver, the first cuckoo-clock ever made, and the world famous The Fallen Madonna
The Fallen Madonna
The Fallen Madonna, usually referred to as The Fallen Madonna with the Big Boobies by the fictional painter Van Klomp was a portrait of a bare breasted woman which provided a recurring theme of the long-running BBC One television comedy series Allo 'Allo! , written by David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd...
by van Klomp (or "The Fallen Madonna With The Big Boobies") from Herr Flick of the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
. These valuable artifacts were found in the town's chateau
Château
A château is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor or a country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally—and still most frequently—in French-speaking regions...
. Von Strohm wants to sell them after the war to have a good pension, but he has to share with the captain, the secretary, with René Artois the café-owner and later on with Gruber. To increase his pension, he also plans to sell the well known Vase with Twelve Sunflowers by Vincent Van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Willem van Gogh , and used Brabant dialect in his writing; it is therefore likely that he himself pronounced his name with a Brabant accent: , with a voiced V and palatalized G and gh. In France, where much of his work was produced, it is...
(or "The Cracked Vase With The Big Daisies"), which was found in the café. Its original owner is Madame Edith's mother Madame Fanny La Fan
Madame Fanny La Fan
Madame Fanny La Fan is a fictional character in the BBC sitcom Allo 'Allo!, which ran from 1982 to 1992. She was played by the actress Rose Hill.-Personality:...
. She got it as a present from the nowadays popular artist.
But the Colonel fears the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
and his superior General Von Klinkerhoffen, who is a ruthless man. He orders to make forgeries of the paintings, so Herr Flick can send them to Hitler as a birthday gift for Eva Braun
Eva Braun
Eva Anna Paula Hitler was the longtime companion of Adolf Hitler and, for less than 40 hours, his wife. Braun met Hitler in Munich, when she was 17 years old, while working as an assistant and model for his personal photographer and began seeing him often about two years later...
. But the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
officer also wants to get rich, so he makes more forgeries. The General is also rapacious, and wants to get his hands on the paintings too. Later Lieutenant Gruber is also involved, as he is ordered to make copies. The artifacts were hidden in various places, like in knockwursts sausages, in wardrobes, in René's cellar, in his kitchen, at the old sawmill, etc.
But the paintings were never sold. In the last episode Gruber finds The Fallen Madonna by mistake in the statue of René. By this time the Madonna has only one big boobie. But Helga possesses the other one, so the painting is complete again.
In this episode we also find out that many years after the war Gruber married Helga and hired Von Strohm as his chaffeur.