Playhouse 90: Judgement at Nuremberg (CBS, 1959)

april 16 1959 live from television city in hollywood claude rays paul lucas maximilian shell martin milner and guest star melvin douglas starring tonight on playhouse 90. playhouse 90 brought to you by camel far and away the largest selling cigarette today rich in flavor mild to smoke have a real cigarette have a camel and by kimberly clark world leader in quality products for home and industry among them wonderfully soft delsi bathroom tissue and kleenex tissues that pop up one at a time and by ansco america's first manufacturer of quality products for industry for professional use for everyone if it's from ansco you know it's a plus on playhouse90 to introduce tonight's show telford taylor formerly brigadier general and chief counsel for the prosecution at the nuremberg war crimes trials good evening much of what we now know about germany during the time of adolf hitler was first learned through the disclosures of the nuremberg war crimes trials the play you'll see tonight draws on the record of one of these trials in which the defendants were judges and judicial officials of the nazi regime the plot and characters are of course fictional but this play recreates the atmosphere of the nuremberg trials the difficult legal and moral problems they involved and the terrible events with which they were concerned judgment at nuremberg is written by abby mann and the distinguished cast includes claude raines paul lucas max million shell martin milner and guest star melvin douglas and in just one minute judgment at nuremberg today's shopper has a choice of so many brands especially in bathroom tissues so many brands yet most of them are so much alike but one brand is outstandingly different wonderfully soft delsi yes delsi is different different in its easy to carry four roll package for instance that assures you of having extra rolls on hand see how each of these new larger rolls is wrapped to stay clean on your shelf and delsi comes in lovely colors to match your bathroom pink yellow aqua and white delcy is made differently too it tears evenly every time there's no waste no unsightly shredding but the most important difference is delsi's luxurious softness the kind of softness you find in kleenex tissues why not discover for yourself the definite difference in delsi hermann gehring reich's marshall charged with conspiracy crimes against peace war crimes crimes against humanity the verdict guilty on all counts sentence death by hanging rudolf hess deputy fearer verdict guilty on two counts sentence life imprisonment your kingdom ribbon trump verdict guilty on all counts sentence death by hanging nuremberg germany october 1 1946 the conclusion of the trial of 22 top nazis accused of war crimes 12 were sentenced to death three were acquitted seven received prison sentences ranging from 10 years to life of whom three rudolf hess albert spare and baldervan shirak are still in prison october 16 1946 the sentences of death by hanging were carried out julius striker army von ribentrop keitel carlton bruner all except hermon garin who cheated the hangman by taking his own life the first of the nuremberg trials was over still to come were 12 more trials of 177 diplomats generals ss officers and other high nazi officials and of doctors judges directors of ig farben the leading german business and professional men whose cooperation was essential to the success of the nazi conspiracy early in 1947 the nuremberg trials were still in process well here it's one of the few buildings left standing a little bit of old germany this will be your staff mr and mrs halberstadt your gardener mr bike judge and mrs hayward the garden's back here should be very convenient next spring i will get the luggage oh it's beautiful [Music] captain we don't need all this the us government likes to do things right sir what's your capacity here captain imagine to the court that includes being clerk general guide liaison any place you want to use me i see well if you need me i'll be at the palace of justice my office is right next door to yours thank you captain america hi mrs haywood it's lovely isn't it what is it dan mary i'm a new england country judge i had been out of the states just once before in my life when i was a doughboy i know little about international law i feel so unqualified the war department didn't think so they wouldn't have sent you would they portal is now in session god save the united states of america and this honorable tribunal the tribunal will array in the defendants the microphone will be placed in front of the defendant are you represented by council before this tribunal this is not guilty the question is are you represented by council before this tribunal i am represented how do you plead to the charges and specifications set forth in the indictment against you guilty or not guilty not guilty in all accounts you may be seated friedrich hofstede not do you plead to the charges and specifications that forth in the indictment against you guilty or not guilty not guilty you may be seated ernst yawning are you represented by council before this tribunal ernst johnny are you represented by council before this tribunal how do you plead to the charges and specifications that forth in the indictment against guilty or not guilty you may be seated is the prosecution ready to proceed your honor this case is unusual [Music] judges of this tribunal will be sitting in judgment on judges in the dark these defendants are the embodiment of what passed for justice in the third right the defendant yanning was are charged with constructing the legal framework for crimes of execution enslavement and extermination they share with all the leaders of the third reich industrialists generals diplomats and others responsibility for the most malignant calculated devastating crimes in all recorded history they are perhaps more guilty than some others they had attained maturity long before hitler came to power their minds had not been warped at an early age by nazi teachings they most of all should have valued justice but here they will receive justice the justice they denied to others they will be judged according to the evidence presented in this courtroom the prosecution asks nothing more about little party mrs ives and i've been here long enough to know our way around there's a very interesting nightclub that we often go to not this weekend thank you i'm going to be away i'm going to lie well there's nothing there i've been there my son was at the 101st he's buried at the american cemetery outside the asia i'm sorry perhaps the next weekend of course heywood you think you can find your way around oh yes i think sounds good i'll see you tomorrow yes goodbye goodbye here's the report you asked for sir can i show you around are there any books you need tell me captain what do the german people think about these trials i don't know sir well they must think something about them i've long since given up trying to figure out what the german people are thinking oh your regular army aren't you yes sir west point you don't care much for this court job do you i've been in nuremberg two years i've had it i asked why it's ancient history we should have held a military trial and shot them if they were found guilty after they were found guilty and we could start getting ready for the next war what war might that be the war were the russians i see well that'd be awesome uh captain i think i'd like to see something of the town something of the people nuremberg is yours sir what there is left of it [Music] during the last part of the war nuremberg was almost completely destroyed by the raf the germans believe it was in reprisal for coventry anyway it's mostly rubble now this is their main street i remember being here once as a child nuremberg was a great toy center it was also the anti-semitism center stormtroopers used to ride down the street on trucks shouting putting up signs on the shops oh uh i guess for the nurembergers they were the good old age well would you like to see some more yeah go ahead there it is zeppelin field each september they'd meet here for the part-time talk the annual nazi party rally those were good shows hundreds of thousands of young boys packed in the stadium it started with the pageantry the horns the drums hey [Music] the mission is if you'd like to see the opera house now sir yeah thank you i i think that's enough for one day [Applause] get the big soft towel that's built like a sponge brand new [Music] built like a sponge so different from ordinary paper towels just squeeze the kleenex towel package feel the sponge-like softness and see how this wonderful new kleenex towel shapes itself right to your hands making it easy to get deep into the curves of pots and pans and grab up grease quickly they're so much easier to work with than stiff ordinary towels you'll notice too new kleenex towels tear evenly every time and they come in white or pretty pastel colors so remember next time you're shopping for your convenience new kleenex towels come in the handy twin pack defense will make its opening statement of this tribunal is greater than to visit retribution on a few men is dedicated to finding a code of justice that the whole world will be responsible to this code will be established in a clear and honest evaluation the responsibility for the crimes in this indictment where will this responsibility be found it will not only be found in documents it will be found most of all in the character of the men foremost among the defendants of the former rights minister of justice ernst yaning after world war one he became one of the leaders of the weimar republic in subsequent years he achieved international fame not only for his work as a great jurist for his democratic principles but at the order of legal textbooks which are still used in universities all over the world during the nazi regime he remained in office for one reason only to attempt to save the german judiciary from complete domination by hitler finally naristak's speech of april 26 1942 hitler brutally attacked yanning for resisting national socialist measures as a result ernst jennings was forced to resign throughout this trial we must keep one point clearly in mind judges do not make laws the laws are made by the state whether it be a dictatorship or democracy a judge is sworn by his oath of office to uphold the laws of the constitution of the country the sentiment my country right or wrong was expressed by a great american patriot it is no less true for a german patriot judges regardless of their nationality cannot be held guilty by an international tribunal for upholding the laws of the country will you state your name to the tribunal please carl vickert did you know the defendant urged janine yes i know enzionning will you tell us in what capacity we served in the ministry of justice together until 1935. now dr vikker would you tell us from your own experience the position of the judge in germany prior to the advent of hitler the position of the judge was one of complete independence and did this system change after the nazis came to power oh yes judges became subject to what was necessary for the protection of the country what was the result of this change the result was to hand over the entire judicial system of the country into the hands of the dictator doctor i would like to ask you a question did the judges protest these laws abridging that independence some of them did it first those of us who did soon resigned or we're forced to resign others i just adapted themselves to the new situation thank you and dr vega would you discuss for us the changes in criminal law that took place under the third reich special courts were established of which lampe and hofstede were members these courts imposed the death penalty or heavy sentences whether the accused was guilty or not only because they were jews opposed or politically unreliable also novel national socialist measures were introduced among them sexual sterilization of those categorized as a social all these things were done under the authority of ernst yenning as minister of justice thank you dr pickett that's all defence council may cross-examine dr wicket you use the phrase what was necessary for the protection of the country would you explain for the tribunal the conditions in germany at the time national socialism came to power what conditions would you say there was widespread hunger in 1933 yes would you say there was internal disunity yes was their communist party yes was it the third largest party in germany yes it was would you say that national socialism helped to cure some of these conditions yes but at a terrible price dr wicket please confine yourself to answering the questions only you're fair to novel national socialist measures introduced among them sterilization are you aware that civilization was not invented by national socialism that has been advanced for years before as a weapon in dealing with the mentally incompetent and the criminal yes i'm aware of that are you aware that it has advocates among leading citizens in many other countries i am not an expert on sterilization laws then permit me to read one to you this is a high court opinion upholding a sterilization law in existence in another country and i quote we have seen more than once that the public welfare may call upon the best citizens for their lives it would be strange indeed if it could not call upon those who already sapped the strength of the state for these lesser sacrifices in order to prevent our being swamped by incompetence it is better for all the world if instead of waiting to execute degenerate offspring for crime or to let them starve for their imbecility society can through sterilization prevent those who are manifestly unfit from continuing their kind three generations of imbeciles are enough and good do you recognize it now dr vickert no sir i do not actually there's no particular reason you should since the opinion opposed a sterilization law in the state of virginia of the united states and was written and delivered by that great american jurist supreme court justice oliver wendell holmes now dr wicket in view of what you have just learned can you still say that sexual sterilization was a novel national socialist measure well i can say it because never before has it been used as a weapon against political enemies do you personally know of a case in which someone was sterilized for political reasons i know such things were done that's the question i am asking you if you have any first hand personal knowledge of such a case no sir i have no such personal knowledge thank you that's all you call rudolph peterson mr peterson what is your name uh rudolph peterson and what is your occupation uh i am a baker baker's helper mr peterson to what political party did your parents belong in 1933 the communist party and how old were you at the time about 17. now mr peterson do you remember anything unusual that happened in 1933 before the nazis came to power yes sir some uh some s men broke into our house they they smashed all the doors and the windows and and called us our traitors and beat up my father me and my brother drove the assignment out of the house and turned them over to the police and how will you tell the tribunal what happened after 1933 when the nazis had come to power i i i went to the city hall to apply for a driver's license and what happened they took me to an official he was one of the men who broke into our house he he told me that an examination will be necessary where was this examination to take place in in the district court of stuttgart and who was the presiding judge of this court justice uh frederick hofstechter what happened in the courtroom they asked me when adolf hitler and dr gubbels were born and what was your reply i told them that i didn't know and i didn't care either mr peterson do you recognize this piece of paper yes sir yes sir i do will you read it to the tribunal district court of stuttgart you are requested to present yourself within two weeks at one of the hospitals mentioned below to be sterilized if you do not be take yourself voluntarily you will be taken by force now mr peterson will you read what's written below justice hofstetter's signature at the bottom by the authority of ernst youning ministry of justice mr peterson what did you do after you received this letter i i ran away but the police came and got me and took me to a hospital and what happened at the hospital they kept me there by force a nurse nurse came in who was supposed to uh prepare me for the operation and she told me that the whole thing was terrible then the doctor came in who was supposed to operate on me and he told me that that the whole thing was a shame a disgrace and were you in fact sterilized yes sir that's wrong defense counsel request examined mr peterson how long did you attend school mr peterson six years six years why not longer i didn't want to attend longer i wanted to go to work would you consider yourself a very bright fella at school i don't remember what happened at school johanna offers evidence the decision that came from the court in stuttgart i would like to refer to the efficiency report made at the school about mr peterson he failed to be promoted and was placed in a class of backward children conjecture your honor the witness's school record has nothing to do with the sterilization it was a task of the health court to honor the sterilization of the mentally incompetent objection of rules did your parents die of natural causes yes would you describe the illness your mother died of she died of a heart disease during the last stages of her illness did your mother show any mental particularities no and the decision that came from the court in stuttgart it is stated that your mother suffered from hereditary feeble mindedness that's a lie mr peterson you said the court in stuttgart asked you two questions the birth dates of hitler and dr gabbas yes what else did they ask you nothing else are you sure yes i am sure mr peterson there was a simple test that the court used to ask in all cases of possible mental incompetence since you say they did not ask it then perhaps you can answer it now form a sentence out of the words hair hunter and fields objecting your honor mr peterson was the court at stuttgart constituted like this was that an audience yes sir yes sir there was an audience objection overruled air hand turned field mr peterson take your time hair hunter and field hair hunter failed they they all made up their minds before i entered the courtroom they all made up their minds and they took me to that hospital and then kept me there just like a criminal and i i couldn't say anything i just had to lay there my mother was a hard-working servant from all her life it's not fair to say things about her i have a picture i would like to show it to you i would i would like you to judge whether she was feeble-minded or not i would like you to judge i feel it's my duty to point out to the tribunal that the witness is not in control of his mental processes i am not i know i am not i have been have that ever since but i wasn't this way before the tribunal does not know how you were before it can never know it has only your words mr peterson there's no one in this courtroom who have the slightest doubt that what was done to you would unseat the strongest mind oh oh come here my husband is expecting he has some things to talk about yes come right this way please dan yes my dear george naras is here oh you better get ready if you're going out yeah i will hello hello doing some reading i say yep come on sit down please how's your objectivity holding out that's yours the profession of law by ernst yamming how do you find it all the books by janing are interesting in fact they're more than that now the picture of an air rides helps its aspirations they weren't so different from ours really you sound impressed i am now you listen to this on the signing of the weimar constitution now we can look forward to a germany without guns and without bloodshed the germany of justice where men can live instead of die the germany of purpose of freedom of humanity a germany that will call for the best in man now how could a man who wrote words like these be a part of what happened here how could he be a part of sterilization communists have taken over the government in a coup in czechoslovakia refugees are pouring across the border at hof and some of our units are being moved in there don't you get this news just a few minutes ago on the radio my god now this is at the beginning of world war three now let's wait and see one thing for certain it's going to affect us here carl let's not fool ourselves these trials are becoming more unpopular every day than the tap took another blast of this last week a lot of people go wrong with them now that the communists are in czechoslovakia the real fight for germany has begun the nuremberg trials have become a political liability how much support do you think we're going to get for them now an hour from our alternate sponsor of act one your gas company today more people than ever are cooking with gas here's julia need to show you why hello you know one reason gas cooking has become more exciting is this shining gold star award the world's newest emblem of excellence the gold star assures you of at least 28 up-to-date improvements which make gas cooking even faster cleaner and cooler than ever before for example everything lights automatically and the amazing gas burner with the brain regulates itself so food can't scorch or burn there are other features like a rotisserie in the waste high broiler and an automatic meat thermometer in the oven and every inch is a cinch to clean another gold star must this stunning magic chef gas range is a perfect example of gold star quality visit your gas company or appliance dealer and you'll see why today more people than ever are cooking with gas [Music] and once again telford taylor after station identification we shall return to act two of judgement at nuremberg written especially for playhouse 90 by abby mann this is the cbs television network playhouse 90 act two of judgement at nuremberg brought to you by ansco films cameras projectors beautiful red roses gleaming sunlight on golden hair a pair of laughing blue eyes pretty as a picture and you're sure to get that picture in all its sparkling color when you take it on ensco chrome the a plus color film from ensco here's why the ansco a plus is a big plus for you if you're like me you're often in doubt about the right conditions for taking pictures this can be a real problem but not with ensco chrome film ansco chrome has a big extra margin of sensitivity so that even when conditions are not ideal you can still get true to life color slides from which beautiful print on color prints can be made so why take chances ensco chrome in the red box gives you this big plus and costs no more whether it's color films black and white films cameras or projectors if it's from antsco you know it's a plus i offer an evidence a series of letters from the ministry of justice under oath yanning to judges and prosecutors all over germany instructing them how to decide cases and calling for heavier sentences the first letter concerns three polish farm laborers charged with high treason punishable by death in this letter the defendant hofstetter explains that the three poles had refused to work because they were weak from hunger that it was necessary to make an example of them so that other polish workers would know what they faced if they refused to work the next letter concerns the defendant han may i read to the court the following document originating in the ministry of justice and signed and forwarded by the defendant werner lambe to the right minister of justice after the birth of her child a full brother jewish sold her mother's milk to a pediatrician and concealed the fact that she was a jewish with this milk babies of german blood were fed in a nursing home for children the buyers of the milk have suffered damage for mother's milk from a juice cannot be regarded as food for german children criminal charges were brought against the accused do you recognize this headline yes sir will you read it to the tribunal death to the race defiler in what newspaper did this appear in julia's strikers der sturmer in connection with the feldsenstein case what was the feldenstein case the case of a man here in nuremberg charged with racial pollution will you explain to the tribunal what is meant by racial pollution it is referred to in the nuremberg laws it says that any non-aryan having sexual relations with an aryan may be punished by death mr gordon when did you first become acquainted with the feldenstein case the police contacted me in september nineteen thirty five they said that layman felsenstein was being held and that he had asked for me to represent him as counsel had you known him before yes he was a well-known merchant and one of the heads of the jewish congregation of nuremberg and what was the nature of the charge against him he was accused of having intimate relations with the 16 year old girl maria walner and what did mr frostenstein say when you told him about the charge he said it was false he said he had known the girl and her family a long time and had visited her since they died but there had never been anything of that kind between them thank you mr gardener that's all defense counsel may cross examine thank you no questions what is your name maria valner miss varner when did you first know layman ferdenstein it was in 1925 or 1926 i'm not sure exactly and how old was he at the time of his arrest he was 65. miss walner what was the nature of your relationship we were old family friends and did you continue to see him after your parents died yes why we were friends he owned the building i lived in his business took in there quite often miss warner what did you say to the police when they questioned you about having intimate relations with him i told him it was a lie was amelhan the public prosecutor at the time yes did he question you yes what did he say to you he took me into a separate room where we were alone he told me there was no use repeating my story because no one would believe me they had been race defilement and the only pardon for this was in killing the violator he told me if i protected mr feldenstein i would be held under arrest for perjury and what was your reply to him i told him what that said again and again i told him i could not say anything else i could not lie about someone who had been so kind to me who was the presiding judge of the court ernst yaning how long did the trial last two days and was the verdict passed at the end of the second day yes by the presiding judge ernst yaning yes what was the verdict guilty and what was the sentence mr felsenstein was sentenced to be executed i was sentenced to be imprisoned for two years for perjury and were the sentences carried out yes thank you miss baldwin that's all defense counsel might cross-examine your honor i would like to request that the witness be kept available we present further evidence on the feldenstein case when it comes time for the defense to present its case the witness will remain available prosecution will continue [Music] i offer an evidence a decree signed by adolf hitler directing that all persons accused or suspected of disloyalty or resistance of any sort might be arrested secretly with no notice to friends or relatives without any trial whatsoever and put into concentration camps i also offer a group of orders issued under that decree each one signed by one of the defendants by which hundreds of persons were arrested and placed in concentration camps the prosecution will conclude its case with the evidence which i'm about to offer the defendants on trial here today did not personally administer the concentration camps they never had to beat victims or pull the levers but as the documents we have introduced into this case have shown these defendants issued the orders and rendered judgments which sent millions of victims their terrible destinations there are no words to put these horrors into words your honor however we have a mute but eloquent witness to call the camera's eye i now respectfully request the tribunal to view what the camera saw these are official films taken by the allied army upon entering germany they were taken by the united states signal corps this map shows the number and location of concentration camps under the third reich buchenwald concentration camp was founded in nineteen thirty three the inmates of the camp numbered about eighty thousand there was a motto at buchenwald break the body break the spirit break the heart the ovens at book involved the evidence of last minute efforts to dispose of bodies the stoves were manufactured by a well-known company which also specializes in baking ovens name of the firm is clearly inscribed an exhibit of the byproducts of buchenwald was displayed for the local townspeople a lampshade made of human skin made at the request of the wife of one of the operators of the camp skin being used for paintings many having an obscene nature the heads of two polish laborers shrunken to one-fifth their normal size a human pelvis used as an ashtray is displayed children who had been tattooed to mark them for eventual extermination the bodies of those who had come in box cars without food and without air and who didn't survive the journey to dachau hundreds of inmates were used as human guinea pigs for atrocious medical experiments a witness of one of the executions of dachau gave the following description inmates were made to leave their clothing on iraq the inmates were made to believe they were going to take baths the doors were locked old cyclone b were released through the specially constructed apertures this is what was found when british troops liberated the belzen concentration camp women guards at belzon were forced to bury some of the dead inmates for sanitary reasons the british bulldozer is forced to bury the bodies as quickly as possible who were the bodies members of every occupied country of europe two-thirds of the jews of europe exterminated more than six million according to reports compiled from the nazi's own figures but the real figures no one knows [Music] a brand new outboard motor adventure ahead only seconds to take this wonderful picture but that's time enough for mom and her new ansco cadet the a-plus snapshot camera from ansco that's always ready when you are hasn't this happened to you you see a great picture like this but it's gone before you can focus your camera but not with a cadet you just set this pointer look through the picture window viewfinder and it's yours in color or black and white no focusing no dials no nonsense no need to pass up those night shots either just clip on the cadet flash unit and you've got it just as you saw it the complete cadet camera outfit everything you need for easy picture taking is yours for only 10.75 whether it's color films black and white films cameras or projectors if it's from ansco you know it's a plus mate please the tribunal yesterday the tribunal witnessed some films there were shocking films terrible films as a german i'm ashamed that such things could have taken place in my country it is inexcusable but it is terribly unfair of the prosecution to present such evidence in this court in this case against these defendants and i cannot protest too strongly against such tactics what had these pictures to do with these defendants they were not even aware of them the defense will present letters and documents from political refugees all over the world telling how janine saved them from execution the prosecution in fact has presented in the case of unscanning only one tangible piece of evidence the phaser shine case and the defense is obliged to review this case now the defense calls mrs salim now mrs lint now what is your occupation i am a cleaning woman did you know mr layman faizenstein yes i knew him in what capacity he was my employer in 1935. do you know miss maria walner yes in what capacity she was a tenant in the building did you ever see miss van ander and mr falcon time together yes how did this happen mr felsenstein came to see miss walnut at her apartment often quite often mrs lint now were there any occasions in which you noticed anything unusual yes i saw miss wilder kissing mr felsenstein at the door of her apartment was there any other occasion yes there was one what was it i came into miss walnut's apartment i wanted to clean up i thought it was empty i saw miss walnut sitting on mr felsenstein's lab miss walner were you aware in 1935 of the nuremberg laws yes did you know that not only a sexual relationship with jews was viewed with disdain but any social contact at all yes i was aware of it but how could a friendship you have heard the witnesses yes i've heard them yeah do you know the witness mrs elzar lint now yes i know her was your cleaning woman in the apartment you lived in yes did mr feldenstein come to see you at your apartment yes he came to see me how many times i don't remember several times yes many times many times you remember it was brought out at the trial that mr feldenstein bought you things candy and cigarettes yes he bought me things but it was because he was kind he was the kindest did you kiss him yes i kissed him was there more than one kiss yes but not the way you're making it sound he was like a father to me he was more than my father did you sit on his lap objection your honor council is persecuting the witness under the pretext of obtaining evidence objection overall did you sit on his lap yes but there was nothing wrong on him you sit on his lap yes you sat on his lap what else did he do what else did you admit to stop it again what else are you going to do this again your honor the defendant has been under such a tremendous stress that he is not aware of what i am i am aware your honor i does the defendant wish to make a statement yes i wish to make a statement your honor the defense had the right to request to speak with my client your honor the defendant has a right to make a statement now recess he says the tribunal will recess until 10 30 tomorrow morning you can't bring more shame on germany it's had enough they've had growing strides frank it's enough draw a line between them and people like you do you think i've enjoyed being defense counsel during this time there were things i had to do in that culture that made me cringe you know i did it because i want to leave the german people something i want to leave them ashrae of dignity i want to call a hall to do these proceedings if we allow them to discredit every german like you we lose the right to rule ourselves forever we have to look at the future we can't go back now do you want the americans stay here forever you want that i could show you a picture of hiroshima and nagasaki thousands and thousands of burnt bodies women and children is that their superior morality where do they take us do you think they know do you think they have any conception of our problems what can i say to you what can i say to you to make you see there's nothing you can say and once again telford taylor after station identification we shall return to act three of judgment of nuremberg starring claude raines paul lucas max million shell martin milner and guest star melvin douglas this is the cbs television network lighthouse 90 act three of judgement at nuremberg brought to you by camel cigarettes speaking for camels james sailing the colorado river sings a song as it twists and tumbles through boulder canyon it's a song of power electric power generated at the massive hoover dam power plant from here giant steel towers march cross country carrying the two hundred and twenty thousand volt lines westward fornia to keep these high voltage transmission lines humming is the job of joe gilbert making cable repairs from the bosun's chair is all in the day's work good way to tell the men from the boys a man like joe gilbert wants a real cigarette camel is his brand he likes that good clean taste the easy going mildness you get from camel's costly blend of top quality tobaccos that's why you get more to enjoy in camels more rich good flavor more smooth smoking comfort no wonder more people today smoke camels than any other cigarette they're so good and mild the finest taste in smoking have a real cigarette have a camel how long will you be here senator just a few days then on to berlin do you think we'll have a war i don't think so not if we stand firm it's time we took a firm stand what do you suggest that we rearm germany as quickly as possible stop these trials becoming more useless every day why well we're in a cold war with russia that's why we want to hang on to europe but the men who can help us rearm germany who have these courtrooms we're committed to these trials general yes and while we are we're getting pushed out of germany by russia they're no fools they have nazis in their zone too you know but they put them to work have them running electrical plants using their knowledge against us now i don't know whether krupp and the ig farben people the bankers are guilty or not frankly i don't give a damn we need them excuse me dan hello what are you doing over here oh we're on a tour of inspection dan i hope you don't misunderstand what the general was saying the fact is we are in a difficult situation these trials have taken on an entirely new significance we're going to need every friend we can make here we're going to need the support of the german people it's vital to the protection of our country i'm sure you can understand that yes i understand god good to see you then good to see you santa hey yawning do you wish to make a statement before the tribunal i do proceed i wish to testify about the falzenstein case because it was the most significant trial of the period it is important not only for the tribunal to understand it but the german people but to understand it one must understand the period in which it happened there was a fever over land a fever of defeat of disgrace of indignity and hunger we had a democracy yes but it was it was it was torn by elements within and that was above all fear fear of today fear of tomorrow fear of our neighbors fear of ourselves only when you understand that can you understand what hitler meant to us because he said to us lift up your heads be proud to be german your miseries are not deserved there are devils among us communists liberals jews gypsies and once the devils will be destroyed your miseries will be destroyed it was the old old story of the sacrificial land that was the case and the setting of the falzenstankies now what about those of us who knew better we who knew the words were lies and worse than lies why did we sit silent why did he participate because we loved our country what difference does it make if if a political political extremist loses his right a few racial minorities lose their right they are just a passing phase just a stage we are going through it will be discarded sooner or later the country is in danger we will march out of the shadows we will go forward and history tells you how well we succeeded the very element of hate and power about hitler that mesmerized germany mesmerized the world we found ourselves suddenly with powerful allies things that had been denied to us as democracy were open to us now the world said go ahead and take it it takes to that land take the rhineland re-militarize it take hold of austria take it we march forward the danger passed and then one day we looked around and found we were in an even more terrible danger the rituals that had begun in this courtroom had swept over our land like a raging roaring disease what was to be a passing phase became a way of life i was content to sit silent during this trial i was even content to let council try and save my name until i realized that in order to do so he would have to raise the specter again you have seen him do it he has done it in this courtroom he has suggested that the third raj did work for the benefit of people he has suggested that we sterilize men for the welfare of the country he has suggested that perhaps the old jew did have an affair with the 16 year old girl after all once more it was being done out of love of country well i'm going to give the country a moment of truth i had reached my verdict on the pheasants before i ever entered the courtroom i would have found him guilty whatever the evidence it was not a trial at all it was a sacrificial ritual in which feldenstein the jew was a helpless victim the defendant is not aware of what he said i am aware i am aware my my defense attorneys and we were not aware of concentration camps not aware where were we where were we when hitler was reading his hate in the streisand where even our neighbors were being dragged out of the house and in the middle of the night to dhaka and when they drove down the street jewish children like cattle johanna he generalizes the situation i must object there will be order defense council will not interrupt the defendant yawning you may proceed i have spoken here only for myself i do not presume to judge the guilt of others but i have come to believe during this trial that those of us who know our guilt must acknowledge it whatever the cost in pain and humiliation that is all you run defense counsel will make his summation it is my duty to defend ernest janning and yet ernst jennings said he he was guilty there is no doubt he feels his guilt but if he is to be found guilty there are others who also went along with the nazi movement who must also be found guilty what about the rest of the world gianna did he not know the intentions of the third reich did he not hear the words of hitler's broadcast all over the world he did not read his intentions in my camp published in every corner of the world where the responsibility of the soviet union who signed in 1939 attacked with hitler and enabled him to make war are we now to find russia guilty where the responsibility of the world leader winston churchill who said in an open lander to the london times in 1939 1939 janus where england to suffer national disaster i should pray to god to send a man of the strength of mind and will of an adult hitler are we now to find winston churchill guilty worthy responsibility of the vatican who signed in 1933 the concur that with hitler giving him his first tremendous prestige are we now to find the vatican guilty where's the responsibility of those american industrialists who helped him to rebuild his armaments and profited by that rebuilding are we now to find the american industrialized guilty no jonah germany alone is not guilty it is easy to condemn one man in the dark it is easy to condemn the german people to speak of the basic flaw in the german character that allowed hitler to rise to power and at the same time comfortably ignore the basic flower of character that made the russian sign pacts with him winston churchill praise him american industries profit by him ernst jennings says he's guilty if he is aunt's yannick's guilt is the world's guilt no more and no less the defendants will make their final statements friedrich hofstede the highest thing a man can do is to do his duty to his country i have held my oath of allegiance to my fatherland and to its laws as a judge i could do no other i do not evade the responsibility for my actions germany was fighting for its life certain measures were needed to protect it from its enemies i cannot say i'm sorry we applied those measures we were a bulwark against bolshevism a bulwark the west may yet wish to retain your honors i have nothing to add to what i've already said the testimony has been received in the case final arguments been heard there remains only the task for the tribunal to render its decision the record is closed the tribunal will recess until further negotiation in the berlin crisis today has claimed it to be a violation of our right to be in berlin and of the oral agreement with marshal zhukov in which it has been specified that our personnel would be subject to neither customs nor border controls the crisis reached ahead this afternoon when all rail travel between western zones and berlin was stopped the blockade by land is these orders are only for use if it becomes necessary what about our families well general claire's advised against army personnel sending their families home he says it might create a stereo but that doesn't apply to you if you want to send your wives home i'll make the necessary arrangements thank you bob yes sir how can we pretend that we're not affected in here by what's going on outside how can we i think the first documents we received were the sterilization cases every now and then a man comes along who was born to pitch nobody has to tell you he's a big leaguer you know it just watching him admiring his style such a man is billy pierce chicago white sox one of baseball's top left-handers he's all pro on the mound a true craftsman billy pierce often stops in at his father's drug store in detroit when the white sox are playing there his cigarette is camel a real smoke the most pleasing most popular cigarette of all the flavor and mildness of camel's costly tobaccos have never been equal by any other cigarette any filter any king any regular if you find yourself smoking more these days but enjoying it less change the camel prove to your own satisfaction that the best tobacco makes the best smoke see for yourself why more people smoke camels year after year than any other cigarette of any kind have a real cigarette have a camel tribunal is in session god save the united states of america and this honorable tribunal the trial conducted before this tribunal began over eight months ago the record of evidence is over six thousand pages long and final arguments of council have been concluded the charge is that of conscious participation in a nationwide government-organized system of cruelty and injustice in violation of legal and moral principles common to all civilized nations these crimes were perpetrated in the name of the law through the ministry of justice and the courts in this case the dagger of the assassin was concealed beneath the robe of the jurist the tribunal finds that the evidence abundantly supports the charges against the defendants the defense counsel here rough in his skillful defense of his client janing asses that the ministry of justice was under pressure and attack from hitler himmler and other nazi leaders and that had yani resigned sooner than he did worse men would have taken his place as the event proved there is truth to this he says also that there are others in this world who must share the ultimate responsibility for what happened here in germany there is truth to this too but we do not think it is sufficient defense to what has been charged and proved here yawning is to be sure the tragic character we believe he loved the evil that he did but compassion for the present torture of his soul must not beget forgetfulness of the torture and death of millions wrought by the infernal machine of which he was apart his record and his fate illuminate the most shattering truth that has emerged from this trial if he and the other nazi leaders had all been degraded perverts if all the ministers of the third reich have been sadistic monsters as some of them in fact were these events would have no more moral significance than an earthquake or other natural catastrophe we attached our moral significance to the killings of savage beasts lord of maniacs but this trial has shown that under the pressure of a national crisis ordinary men even very able can delude themselves into the commissions of crimes and atrocities so vast and heinous that they bigger the imagination such crimes and such culprits can rightly be judged only with humility and it is in that spirit that we now undertake the painful task of pronouncing judgment upon the defendants the marshal will produce before the tribunal the defendant of stata friedrich hofstetter the tribunal find you guilty you are sentenced to 20 years imprisonment amelhan the tribunal find you guilty you are sentenced to life imprisonment today you sentence me tomorrow the bolshevik sentence you honor the tribunal find you guilty you are sentenced to ten years imprisonment ernst yawning the tribunal find you guilty you are sentenced to life imprisonment judge ives continuing i wish to note my dissent from the sentence imposed by this tribunal the degree of guilt of the defendants must be examined in the light of circumstances the issue of responsibility and the guilt of the defendants who believe they were acting in the best interest of their country is an issue that cannot be decided in a court cases yeah the car is waiting already there's no more room in the trunk you can put those in the backseat church haywood here what's it about [Music] i have to deliver a message to him sorry the judge is on his way to the air force i came at the request of my client i'm stunning yes asked if you will see him i don't think there'll be time so your plane leaves in an hour he said it would mean a great deal to him mary you go ahead with buyers i'll see you at the airport all right dear don't be late i won't have you heard about the verdict in the ig farm case most of the defendants were acquitted the others received short sentences no i had not heard i make you a wager i don't make wages a gentleman's waiter in five years the men you're sentenced to life imprisonment will be free here off i have admired your work in the courtroom for many months you are particularly brilliant in your use of logic therefore i have no doubt that what you suggest may well happen it is logical in view of the times in which we live but to be logical is not to be right and nothing on god's earth can never make it right [Music] check hello hello please sit down your attorney said you wanted to see me yes there is something i want to give you it is a it is a record i have written of my most important cases it won't do much good but it is a record of what can happen and i want to give it to someone i can trust someone i feel i got to know during this trial i take good care of it i know the pressures that must have been brought in you your verdict will not be a popular one you will be criticized but if this means anything to you you have to respect the blast one man who you convicted well all that's right in this world your verdict was a just one there are laws of humanity that are above the laws of one's country thank you and there is something else i i would like to ask you the real reason i ask you to come here i want to hear from a man like you who has heard what happened i want to hear him say not that he forgives but that he understands i recognize the choice that you faced no man can say how he would have faced that choice himself unless he had actually been tested but how in the name of god can you ask me to understand the extermination of millions of men women and innocent children for the sake of a political expediency i can only feel horror at it i didn't know it would come to that you must believe it yeah yawning it came to that the first time you were sentenced to death a man you knew to be innocent goodbye it's time for your exercise better take your jacket it's cold outside huh judge heywood this is haywood's at the airport sir your car will take you around thank you buyers that's the airlift going to berlin c-47s are in the air to clock around judge i know how you feel about these trials but we're in a real bind we're fighting for survival survival is what it's not enough to survive we have to survive as something we cannot abandon our basic protection of the individual in order to fight an eternally whatever it is when we do that we become the very thing we're fighting i guard the things i've seen here i'll never forget them as long as i live the sterilization of men because of their political beliefs a mockery made out of friendship and faith the murder of children how easily it can happen goodbye buyers professor thank you for everything on april 14th 1949 judgment was rendered and the last of the nuremberg trials of 99 sentenced to prison terms not one is still serving his sentence next week playhouse 90 will present a corner of the garden a new play by tad moselle author of such highly acclaimed television drama as the play room the five dollar bill and the out of towners the world is like a garden and to spend your whole life in one corner of it is a waste this unusual love story tells of a girl who tries to explore all the garden and in doing so invites disaster appearing with me in a corner of the garden will be eileen heckert tommy kirk and an exciting new star heather sears a corner of the garden will be directed by robert stevens produced by peter courtner next week on playhouse 90. [Music] [Music] [Music] so playhouse 90 brought to you tonight by camel far and away the largest selling cigarette today rich in flavor mild to smoke have a real cigarette have a camel and by kimberly clark world leader in quality products for home and industry among them wonderfully soft delsi bathroom tissue and kleenex table napkins that cling like cloth and by ansco america's first manufacturer of photographic products if it's from ansco you know it's a plus next thursday night the distinguished english actor john gilgood will make his american television debut in the show of the months production of the browning version mr gilgood portrays a dedicated schoolmaster who earns his final moment of triumph co-starring our margaret layton as his faithless wife and cecil parker as the headmaster in the browning version by terence ratigan the author of separate tables playhouse 90 the only weekly dramatic hour and a half program in television this is dick joy speaking playhouse knight he is a cbs television network production meet keenan nguyen robert stack and walter winchell in the dramatic story of the untouchables

Channel: Free The Kinescopes!

Views: 79,426

Rating: 4.8421054 out of 5

Keywords: TV, Classic TV, Live TV, 1950s

Id: xlDoGZQPDzg

Length: 88min 10sec (5290 seconds)

Published: Tue Jul 30 2019