8/4/2019 Three Years With the Nazi Beast (Sept. 23, 1987)

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/three-years-with-the-nazi-beast-sept-23-1987 1/2

Three Years Withthe Nazi BeastB y K E I T H EASTHOUSE

For the past th ree years Pecos s u m m e r res iden t JohnFr iedma n ha s gazed deeply i n t o th e face of e v i l — s o m e ofth e darkes t ev i l th e world h as ever k n o w n . U n d e r th ed i rec t io n o f reno wned French -Amer ica n f i lm m a k e rMarcel Ophu]p, he ha s served as producer of a new docu-men ta ry mo vie a bo ut Na z i w ar c r i m i n a l K l a u s B a r b i e ,who was k n o w n in World War II as 'The B u t c h e r ofLyo ns . "

T he f i lm is t i t l ed "Ho te l Terminus : T he L i f e an d T i m e so f K la us Barb i e ." a f t e r th e h o te l in Lyons , France , t h a tserved as Gestapo h ea dqua r te rs an d pro v ided Gestapoch ie f Ba rb ie w i th h is t o r t u r e chambers . From 1942-4'!Ba rb ie led a reign of t e r ro r in Nazi-occupied Lyons an dit s env i ro ns , o rd er ing th e k i l l i ng o f th o usa nds o f - Jewsand French Res is tance f igh te rs . Then a f t e r t i n ? w ar hef led to South Amer ica .

Now a fra i l and i l l man of 7:3. Barbie was co nv ic ted of" c r i m e s a g a i n s t h u m a n i t y " in an i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y pub l ic -ized tria l that took place t h i s s u m m e r in Lyons , wh ere in1983 he was r e t u r n e d as a prisoner a f t e r l i v i n g for morethan 30 years u n p u n i s h e d an d f r e e — a n d u n r e p e n t a n t —i n So uth Amer ica . He has been sentenced to spend th erest of his l i fe in pr i so n .

A s F r i e d m an tries to e x p l a i n why he has t h r o w n hi shear t an d soul i n to p ro duc ing th e u p c o m i n g d o c u m e n -tary f i l m, w h i c h is expected to be rea dy fo r release i n t ot heat e rs a ro und th e co un t ry l a te th i s year or early in1988, he says he did it for the v i c t i m s of the B u t c h e r ofLyons. As Fr iedma n puts it : "1 feel a lmos t a d u l y t o w a r dth em to have the story to l d . "

T he project. F r i e d m an ' s f i r s t i n vo l vemen t in f i l m , ha sturned i n to a th ree -yea r obsession f o r h i m . " M a n y h a v easked m e, ' W h y d o th i s f i lm?"

1Fr iedma n sa id recen t ly a t

Santa Fe's Temple Beth Shalom Synagogue , w h e r e h ew as i n v i t e d to speak a b o u t th e project. 'They say. 'Bar-bie 's an old man n ow . why n ot leave him alone? Whyspend th ree years of your l i fe on such a project? Why notdo co medy , so me th in g mo re p l ea sa n t ? ' The a nsw er i s Ica n ' t . There is no issue more i m p o r t a n t ( b a n th e Holo-caust an d i t . s a f t e r m a t h . "

C o m m i t m e n t to a cause he d e e m s w o r t h y is n o t h i n gnew for 44-year-old F r i e d m an , a n a t i v e N ew Y o r k e r w hoa s spend hi s s u m m e r s at a fa mi ly re t rea t in Pecos sinceoyhood. H is i n v o l v e m e n t in "Ho te l T e r m i n u s " o bv io us lyt t es t s to his sense of loyal ty to his Jewi sh h er i t a ge . Sooes hi s s t i n l as a war cor re spondent for the B a l t i m o r eu n d u r i n g Israel's smash ing v ic to ry o ver Fgypt in thei x -Da y War of 1967. A n d w h e n [h e Arabs a t t a c k e d

Israel on the Yom Kippur h o l ida y in 1973, Fr iedma n i m -

media te ly lef t th e U n i t e d Stat es to h e lp de fend 1h eewish h o m e l a n d .Fr iedma n a l so h a s deep p ol i t i ca l c o n v i c t i o n s , a nd a t

v a r y i n g t i m e s h as mo lded h is career a ro und hi s a d m i t -

tedly loft-of-cemer l ea n ings . I n 197G, i'or exa mple , wh enJ i m m y C a r t e r was on the road to the W h i t e H o u s e .Fr iedma n jo ined hi s ca mpa ign as New M exico co o r-d i n a t o r . A n d l a t e r , a f t e r Ca r te r ' s t r i u m p h . F r i e d m a n w as

c t i n g d i recto r of pub l ic a f fa i rs fo r I lie U.S . Of f ic e ofEco no mic Oppo r tun i ty {now ca ll ed (h e Co mm uni ty Ser -v ices Admin i s t ra t io n ) , a n a gency t h a t pro v ided eco no micassistance to t h e poor.

Throughout h is professional l i f e . Fr iedman has switchedback and forth from the detachment of a journal ist to theadvocacy of a teacher or a c t iv i s t . W i th f i l m ma king , he mayhave found a medium t h a t will sat is fy his need to both in-form and influence.

'To Influence People'

"I miss wr i t i ng , " F r iedm a n co n fessed , "h u t w i t h f i l m

t h e r e is a wh o le other area of p o s s i b i l i t i e s . ' H e describedi t a s " fa s te r" th a n p r i n t j o u r n a l i s m a n d p o t e n t i a l l y moresa t i s fy i n g because of i t s w i d e r a u d i e n c e a n d a b i l i t y toma ke th i ngs co me a l i ve . " I l i ke g i v i n g people i n f o r m a -

t i on an d k n o w l e d g e . " he s a i d . " A n d w i t h f i lm 1 ran co m-b i n e t h a t des i re w i t l i a m e d i u m t h a t moves people andm a k e s t h e m respo nd . I 've rea l i zed t h a t t h e m a i n w a y t oi n f l uen ce people is t h r o u g h f i lm. "

"Ho te l T e r m i n u s " f i g u r e s to lx ' i n f l u e n t i a l a n d m o v i n g .H o w e v e r , it w i l l b e solely t h e c rea t io n of t h e b r i l l i a n t

d i r e c t o r Oph ul s . reno wned f or po l i t i c a l ly co n t ro vers ia ld o c u m e n t a r i e s t h a i special ize in psychological r e v e l a t i o nan d u n s e t t l i n g mo ra l ques t io ns , such a s t h r o n e s ra isedby his 1970s classic "The Sorrow an d th e I ' i l y . " a sear inge x a m i n a t i o n of t he French co l l a bo ra t io n w i t h t h e Na/ . i

conque ror s o f W o rld W ar I I . In t h e u p c o m i n g f i l m a b o u tBa rb ie . Uph i l l s ha s "co r t ip l e tea r l i s l i c co n t ro l . " F r iedma nsa id .

N o n e t h e l e s s , " H o t e l T e r m i n u s " i s t h e k i n d o f " impo r-t a n t " f i l m F r i e d m a n asp i res t o m a k e h i m s e l f some-d a y — t h o u g h lie said h < > is l e a n i n g t o w a r d f i c t i o n f i lm s

w i t h po l i t i c a l messages r a t h e r t h a n d o c u m e n t a r i e s .

'Butcher of Lyons': Barbie in Gestapo days

F r i e d m a n : ' I w i l l n e v e r be the same'

because they ar e easier to make and f i n a n c e ."1 l ike fi lms that are not j u s t tw o hours of ente r ta in-

ment th a t yo u fo rge t as soon as you w a l k out of thet heat e r . " he sa id. "I want a f i lm t h a t i s re l eva n t o n th ebroad h um a n scal e of t h i n g s , an d chang es people's l ives."

"Hole ! Terminus" cer ta in ly seems to q ua l i fy . It s h is to r -ic va lue f igures to l ie in i ts a d d i n g on e more a p p a l l i n gth rea t ! to th e inh um a n ta pes t ry o f th e Na z i Ho lo ca us ta nd i t s a f t e r m a t h . A n d i t s a r t i s t i c v a l u e seems cer ta in .

given Ophu ls ' i n v o l v e m e n t . It w i l l i n e v i t a b l y b e co m-pared to C l a u d e L a n z m a n n ' s n in e -hou r - l on g "Shoah," th e" d e f i n i t i v e f i lm o n th e Ho lo ca us t . " a cco rd ing to Fr ied -m a n . T h a i f i lm , wh ich wa s sh o wn t h i s year , i n t e r v i e w e dseveral su rv ivor s o f and p a r t i c i p a n t s in the Ho lo ca us t .B ut t h e c o n t r i b u t i o n o f " H o t e l T e r m i n u s " w i l l be it sfocus on the career of one pa r t i cu l a r ly sadist ic an df a n a t i c a l N a / . i d u r i n g an d a f t e r t h e w a r .

'The Archetypal Nazi'

"Ba rb ie w as un l i ke some of th e o th er Nazis . " F r i e d m a nsaid. "Because he r e m a i n s u n r e p e n t a n t and tacause hek e p t c o m m i t t i n g s i m i l a r c r i m e s f o r decades a f t e r H i t l e r ' sGerma ny h a d . been c rush ed . And he d id it t h r o u g h o u tw i t h n o mo ra l c o m p u n c t i o n s or remorse." A s such . Fr ied -ma n ca l l ed Ba rb ie " t h e a rch e t ypa l symbo l o f Na z i sm."

T h i s ev i l f igur e , ho wever , t h o u g h t seriously of b e i n g n

priest as n y o u n g m a n . F r i e d m a n s ai d . A n d ma n y peo plew ho k n o w hi m foun d h im ch a rming a nd p l ea sa n t a nd

co uldn ' t be l ieve t h a i he wa s a murderer a nd a to r tu re r .F r iedma n sa id it is th i s co mplex i ty o f charac te r a nd th ev a r y i n g r e a c t i o n s to i i i l i a t O p h u l s ' co ns idera b l ec inem a t ic sk i l l s p ro mise to b r i n g o u t .

O p h u l s wi l l -have t o d o w i t h o u t a f i l med i n t e rv i ew o fB a r b i e h i m se l f , h o w e v e r . B a r b i e g r a n t e d pe rmis s ion f oron e from hi s prison cel l in Lyons , but the French go vern -m e n t refused to a l lo w i t f o r s ecu r i t y reasons. A s a r e s u l t .th e f i l m mu st depend o n footage from an early i n t e r v i e wof B a r b i e d o n e by a French j o u n r a l i s t . as w e l l as a 19H3Bol i v i an t e l ev i s ion i n t e r v i e w of B a r b i e on bo a rd th ea i r p l a n e ( h a t co mple ted hi s e x t r a d i t i o n f r o m B o l i v i a t oFrance .

O p h u l s d i d m a n a g e l < > i n t e r v i e w 5 0 o t h e r people , h o w -ever . Dur ing seven weeks o f sh o o t ing , h e t ra ve l ed o n al ea n budge t w i t h a ske l e to n crew to f i ve co un t r i es Ba rb ieha d l i v ed in : P eru , Bo l i v i a , th o U n i t e d S t al e s , F r a n c ea n d G e r m a n y . F r i e d m a n w a s w i t h h i m i n L a t i n A m e r i c a .wh ere th ey spen t two j i t t e r y weeks . "W e w e r e very ner -vo us in L a t i n Am er ica , " F r iedm a n said . "W e d id n ' t kno ww ho Ba rb ie ' s f r i ends were."

" H o t e l T e r m i n u s " w i l l d e m o n s t r a t e t h a t Ba rb ie , d e-sp i t e h i s c r i m e s , ha d m a n y f r i en d s i n m a n y places , F r i e d -m an sa id . Fo r exa mple , th e f i l m w i l l ra i se d i f f i c u l t q ues -t i o n s ab ou t French co l l ab ora t i on w i t h N'a/.is d u r i n g th ew a r . There ' s also t h e m u r k y m a t t e r of Barbie ' s fou r -y earsti nl as a spy for I he U . S . g o v e r n m e n t in the l ; i ! c

1 9 - 1 ( ) s — n ot : < > m e n t i o n t h e d e e p l y d i s t u r b i n g f a c t t h a iI ' .S . i n t e l l i gen ce m a d e possible Barbie 's escape (o S m i t hA m e r i c a at a t i m e w h e n he was b e i n g h u n t e d by t h eF t v n c h g o v e r n m e n t lo r h i s wa r c r imes .

F i n a l l y . F r i e d m a n sa id , th e f i l m w i l l look a! th e -V 2

years Ba rb ie spen t i n Bo l i v i a an d Peru , wh ere h e t r a n s -

p l a n t e d h i s t o r t u r e , t e r r o r a n d i n t e r r o g a t i o n m e t h o d s .s e r v i n g as an a d v i s e r to top m i l i t a r y o f f i c i a l s , as w el l asd r u g an d wea po ns dea l e rs .

As fo r F r i e d m a n h imse l f , he beca me i n v o l v e d in " H o t e lT e r m i n u s " t h r o u g h a f i l m project of his o w n . "I wasw o r k i n g o n a n o t h e r f i l m , on e a b o u t D j a n g o K e i n h a r d l . am a r v e l o u s j a / . x . gypsy gu i l a r i s ! wh o l i ved in P a r i s in the" ; i ( ) s an d ' 4 ( )s . and a f r iend sugges ted I show i t to Marcel

Oplu i l s . " F r i e d m a n s a i d . " A l l we had was a rough, rough

scr ip t an d he c o m m e n t e d on i t . Bu t t h e n h e m e n t i o n e dI hat he w a n t e d in do a f i l m on K l a u s Barbie . "

O n e t h i n g l e d t o a n o t h e r , a c c o r d i n g to F r i e d m a n , an dsoon he cast h is own project a s ide a nd of fe red to p ro duceO p h u l s ' . H e jo ined forces w i t h H a m i l t o n F i s h I I I . f o r m e rp u b l i s h e r ol T he N a i i « u i m a g i r / i n e . as an e x e c u t i v e pro-d u c e r . A s such , h e a ssumed th e t w i n b u r d e n s of h i r i n gan d s u p e r v i s i n g s t a f f an d c a m e r a c r e \ \ s M S w e l l as f i n a n c -

i n g t h e f i l m .

$1 Mill ion So Far

P l a y i n g f u n d - m i s e r \\ a s ye t ar .o i .h i - r n. ' \v ro le lor F r i e d -

m a n - ,md n n e i l > , - i ! p r o v e d a i l i . i l l e n g f . " I V e ha d t o l e a r r .

t h i s as I g o a l o n g , h e - a i d . "The se cre t ! 'v e d i s c o v e r e d is

i l ' . a l yo u h a v e t o g o a l t e r : ! i < - r i g h t p e o p l e a n d y o u h . - i \ e

I" li e p r e p a r e d a n d k n o w uha! you're t a l k i n g a h o s r l : ' s

n o t e n o u g h t o s a y l l n s i- a good cause. U'causc t h e r e ar e

! o l < o ! good causes Y ou a l s o h a v e I n s a y wh y t h i s p a r

( C o n t i n u e d on 1'nge 8 )

8/4/2019 Three Years With the Nazi Beast (Sept. 23, 1987)

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/three-years-with-the-nazi-beast-sept-23-1987 2/2

^̂Dolls • Toys • Furniture • Paper

Glass • China • Linens • Primitives

SILENT CHIMESANTIQUESand Collectibles

liv i_aa-€,

(S > iL

OPEN WED THRU WON 10a.m.-5:30p.m.

(505) 988-9287

217% McKenz ie St., Santa Fe, NM87501X3tXXXXX̂ ^

. \

double takeQUALITYRISALICLOTHING

infants to young adults

Jewelry OAccessories

Open Tue. thru Sat. • 11 am-5 pm319SOUTH GUADALUPE • 989-8886

<C)

FRESHFO R F A L L

• Sleeping Bags• German Cotton Steepshirts• Camp Blankets• G l Sno Pacs• Dutch Military Berets

A L T E R N A T I V E SURPLUS C OBehind Burger King

(Calls del Dielo at Cerrillos) 473-0968

Does your home

need paint ing?

C A L L THE PAINTER WITH

THE M O N E Y - B A C KG U A R A N T E E

PA/MTMASTERS

L i e . No . 26483

302 Catron Street, Sanla Fc 988-7409

Santa Fe 's Car Audio and Electronic Specialists

The Nazi Beast( C o n t i n u e d from Fage 5 )

t i c u h i r cause i s p a r t i c u l a r l y i m p o r t i m l . "

'l\i d a t e . F r i e d m a n h a s r a i s e d $ 1 m i l l i o n f o r I h e fc o m i n g p r i m a r i l y f r o m fo u r m a i n s ou r c e s . O r i o n t u r e s , t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l d i s t r i b u t o r : H a m u a l G o l d wth e A m e r i c a n d i s t r i b u t o r : f o u n d a t i o n s : an d p r i v a td i v i d u a l s . Tha t l eaves h im s o m e $ 25U ,00 ( ) below ' . h i . -

b u d g e t . "We ' r e s t i l l l o o k i n g f o r m o n e y , " h e s a i d .Th e f i l m , w h i c h i s s c h e d u l e d f o r r e l eas e by t h e en

i h e y e a r , l ias e n d e d u p c o s t i n g t w i c e w h a t F r i e d m a na n t i c i p a t e d . He b l a m e d th e f a i l i n g v a l u e o f t h e d oa n d t h e t i m e - c o n s u m i n g p r o c e s s o f e d i t i n g f o o t a gG e r m a n . F r e n c h . S p a n i s h a n d E n g l i s h , as w e l l as d eb y t h e F r e n c h c o u r t s i n b r i n g i n g B a r b i e t o t r i a l .

W h e n th e t r i a l f ina l ly b egan o n May 11 o f t h i s yF r i e d m a n w a s t h e r e . B a r b i e , h o w e v e r w a s g o ne a l mbef o r e th e p r o c e e d i n g s g o t u n d e r w a y . F r e n c h l a wm i t s t h e a c cu sed to b e ab sen t f r om t r i a l , and Ba rb i ea d v a n t a g e o f t h i s p r o v i s i o n , c l a i m i n g t h a t h e h a d b e el e g a l l y k i d n a p p e d b y t h e F r e n c h g o v e r n m e n t . S o m oth e t e s t i m o n y w as g i v e n w i t h o u t h i m t h e r e t o h e aN o n e t h e l e s s . F r i e d m a n sa i d " y o u c o u l d f e e l B ar b i e 'sp r e s e n c e . "

Horror and Heroism

F r i e d m a n a n d h i s w i f e , K a t h l e e n M c C a f f r e y , c o v e r e d t h e t r i a l f o r C o m m o n w e a l m a g a z i n e a n d wa b o u t i t i n th e N e w Y o r k T i m e s , sat day a f t e r d a y i n

c o u r t r o o m n e a r th e v i c t i m s w h o s u r v i v e d and t h et i v e s a n d f r i e n d s o f t h o s e w h o d i d n ' t , h e a r i n g t a leh o r r o r a n d h e r o i s m .

" W e sa t nea r th e w i tn e s s e s , an d a f t e r a w h i lw a n t e d t o sp e a k t o p e o p l e , " F r i e d m a n s ai d . " W e f e ln e e d f o r c o m p a n i o n s h i p w i t h e a c h o t h e r b e c a u s e s h a r e d e x p e r i e n c e . It w a s l i k e b e i n g i n a w a r , h a vsense o f 'Yes . w e w e r e t h e r e t o g e t h e r . ' "

O ne wi tness saw an 11-year-o ld J e w i s h bo y d raggeof o ne o f B a r b i e ' s p r i s o n c e l ls l a t e at n i g h t b y d r uNaz i g u a r d s an d k i c k e d to d e a t h , F r i e d m a n s a i d .o t h e r w a s b r u t a l l y t o r t u r e d a s a te e n - a g e r b y B a r b i et h e n b r o u g h t b lo o d ie d b e fo r e h e r m o t h e r , w h o m Bb l a m e d f o r h e r a g o n y b e c a u s e h e r d a u g h t e r w o ut a l k . P e r h a p s m o s t m e m o r a b le , ac c o r d i n g t o F r i e dw a s L e a h F e l d h l u m . a P o l i sh - b o r n J e w . w h o r i s k e dO W H l i f e i n a c o u r a g e o u s b ut f u t i l e a t t e m p t to savl i v e s o f 4 4 Je w i s h c h i l d r e n w h o m B a r b i e s h i p p e d to v e n s o f A u s c h w i t z .

Th e s e t t i n g f o r t h e t r i a l w as a p p r o p r i a t e l y s U i rc o r d i n g l o F r i e d m a n . " L y o ns i s an a t y p i c a l F r e n c h tI t

i s no t P a r i s . I t i s a d e p r e s s i n g , g r i m c i t y . D u r i nt r i a l , t h e r e was a f i r e at an oil storage f a c i l i t yp o l l u t e d th e t o w n . A c l o u d h u n g o v e r i t fo r d a y s . Is y m b o l i c . "

W h e n t h e t r i a l e n d e d o n J u l y 4 w i t h a s e n t e n c e oi m p r i s o n m e n t f o r B ar b i e ( F r a n c e h a s n o d e a t h p e nF r i e d m a n f e l t t h a t " j us t ic e h a d b e e n s e r v e d . " H e alst h a t h e h ad b een " c h anged f o r e ve r . " " I was exposeds id e o f h u m a n e x p e r ie n c e t h a t I r e a l l y had no t c o m ec o n t a c t w i t h b e f o r e . It o p e n e d m y e y e s t o t h e w a y par e b e f o r e th e c o n f u s i o n an d c a m o u f l a g e o f e v i l , td e p t h s a n d h e i g h t s t o w h i c h one c an s ink and r i se . n e v e r b e t h e s a me . "

The end o f th e t r i a l a lso m eant th e e nd o f f i l m i n" H o t e l T e r m i n u s . " a l t h o u g h n o t m u c h o f t h a t h adposs ib le in L yon s , s i n c e o n l y a g o v e r n m e n t c a m e r aa l lowed ins id e th e c o u r t r o o m ( t h e f i l m f r o m w h i cno t b e r e l ea sed f o r 20 y e a r s ) . W h a t r e m a i n s now m o n u m e n t a l t a sk o f r e d u c i n g 1 0 0 h o u r s o f f o o t a g e to 2 V . i h o u r s o f f ina l p r i n t — a H e r c u l e a n p r o j e c t tb e i n g u n d e r t a k e n b y O p h u l s al o n e .

F r i e d m a n , f o r h i s p a r t , v o w e d t h a t h e w o u l d w o r k o n a d o c u m e n t a r y a g a i n b e ca us e o f th e d i f f i c uo b t a i n i n g m o n e y . " D o c u m e n t a r i e s t e n d t o n o t b ec i a l successes . " h e e x p l a i n e d , " s o m o n e y i s a c o nh e a d a c h e . "

A l so a h e a d a c h e , a p p a r e n t l y , w a s O p h u l s h i m sn o t o r i o us l y t e m p e r a m e n t a l m a n t o w o r k w i t h . F r i ed esc r ib ed Op hu ls a s " ab so lu te ly b r i l l i a n t , h i g h l y o r ian d i m p o s s i b l y d i f f i c u l t . " He a d d e d t h a t th e f i l m mw as " o b s t i n a t e , p a r a n o i d an d h o s t i l e . " as w e l l as " ci n g " i n h i s o w n w a y . M o st o f a l l , t h o u g h , O p h u l s ir i b l y i n v o l v e d i n h i s su b j e c t , " a c c o r d i n g to F r i e d m

W h a t e v e r t r o u b l e s t h e r e h a v e b e e n . F r i e d m a n hd o u b t t h a t i t h a s a l l b e e n w o r t h i t . "The me s s a g eHo lo caus t and o f B a r b i e i s t h a t n o n e o f I h i s s h o uf o r g o t t e n , " F r i e d m a n sa id . "We h o p e i h e f i l m e d up e o p l e an d s e r v es m e m o r y w e l l . T h e r e i s s t i l lS e m i t i sm i n t h e w o r l d t o d a y , i n F r a n c e , a m o n gN a z i s i n ( h e U . S ., a m o n g o ld N a z i s s t i l l l i v i n g i nm a n y t o d ay . W e h a v e t o r e m a i n v i g i l a n t , and voww i l l n e v e r h a p p e n a g a i n . "