Tom Lehrer - Wernher von Braun

Tom Lehrer on public domain (2020):
tomlehrersongs...
www.amazon.com...
Use the above link and get the uninterrupted Lehrer TV-performance and The Tom Lehrer Collection from Amazon.com.
- -
Want to hear Lehrer's INTRO? A HQ version was posted on the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11. Click this link:
• Tom Lehrer - Wernher v...
To make this song even more spot on, Lehrer used eight bars from the well-known German national anthem "Das Lied der Deutschen" as a song intro :-)
Check out more about the German national anthem here:
en.wikipedia.org/
Recording date: September 11th 1967
Format: Ampex Quadruplex PAL 4:3
Status: A very rare recording
Storage: Sony Digital Betacam
Von Braun on Wikipedia:
en.wikipedia.or...
Production and preservation: The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation - the NRK, Norway. More here:
www.nrk.no/info...

[@adrianainespena5654]

"Wehrner, you missed school again." "Only by a couple of yards, mommy"

[@job341kg]

Гениально. :))))

[@mr.cauliflower3536]

A german would say meters

[@adrianainespena5654]

@@mr.cauliflower3536 You are right.

[@vidar188]

AYO 😂

[@EssentialXIII]

...lmao

[@usuallycallmark]

"Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down..." That's my motto when I play Kerbal Space Program.

[@labg27]

F yeah!!!!!

[@Brewnoe]

I'm here because of a lefty pitcher

[@benbaselet2026]

Well often the idea is they won't come down at all :)

[@raysgr]

The inventor of gun powder could imagine that his invention could cause harm as the energy expended obviously had enough force, but was he to extrapilate that into the many wars that it had a devastating effect in and not pass on his invention in the hope it might have a positive effect on mankind. Politicians and generals decide on the evil use of technology.

[@touko_nanami]

Omg real life is just like my BIDEO GAME

[@dorkmax7073]

Wehrner Von Braun's autobiography was titled "I Aim for the Stars". Satirist Mort Sahl suggested he subtitle it "Only Sometimes I Hit London".

[@jonathankoan]

I know this joke from the West Wing. 😂

[@XenoghostTV]

Ungrateful little fucks.

[@katkatkatkat463]

Who else could pair such savage lyrics with such a delicate piano piece? No one.

[@randomguy-hn2ny]

Bo Burnham

[@parodyceo7061]

Tim Minchin ...was also going to mention Bo xD

[@katsrin]

In all seriousness, I believe Weird Al could. His lyrics can be as savage, and he does play keyboards.

[@FSAPOJake]

​@@randomguy-hn2ny Bo Burnham owes basically everything to Tom. Tom did this stuff before basically anyone else.

[@emperorhaya5351]

@@FSAPOJake Tom is basically a nuclear era Bo Burnham

[@王瑞涵]

i aim at the moon but sometimes i hit london.

[@elitex50]

😭😭😂😂

[@littlegamer00]

I aim at the moon but sometimes i hit Hiroshima

[@slavinia21]

@@littlegamer00 dude wernher von braun did not contribute to the manhattan project (aka the creation of the nuke)

[@littlegamer00]

@@slavinia21 Alright

[@harman1957]

​@@littlegamer00 I aim at Israel but sometimes I hit iraq

[@soupgirl1864]

"Nazi Schmazi" Fun fact, the idea of saying a word twice with schm the second time was introduced into the English language by Yiddish-speaking Jews.

[@Milkythefawn]

Irony at its finest

[@Negentropy.]

"internet Smeternet" Jeff Bezos c. 1998

[@bahamastarry3054]

no shit schlomo

[@raysgr]

Yiddish is a German dialect

[@dylanchouinard6141]

raysgr raysgr Yiddish is a hybridization of medieval high German and Hebrew, with dashes of Russian and other languages thrown in for good measure. It was developed by Ashkenazi Jews as a way to communicate with one another even if they lived in countries with totally different languages. Though you are correct in that it is a form of German, many modern German speakers can understand Yiddish quote well

[@j.o.a.tgamingnz6467]

That london pension line is savage af

[@kl6544]

I dont get it

[@andreagiovannidemarchi9386]

@@kl6544 Von Braun designed a rocket that was then used to bomb London, so the injured and widows of London "owe" their pensions to him

[@kl6544]

Wow thats brutal 😂

[@riverofblood4362]

Ikr?

[@MushiePuppet17]

My jaw literally dropped lol

[@shaider1982]

On another note, Von Braun was still alive when this was recorded. I wonder if it reached him🤣

[@shaider1982]

@Ellie Frato-Sweeney hahaha🤣👍👍 well, I guess everyone's sense of humor has its limits.

[@number3Ihatetoontown]

I guess this song made him frown, although Tom said he wouldn't.

[@davyoooo]

@Ellie Frato-Sweeney Brilliant! Thanks.

[@grahamtroy9381]

Well, Lehrer deliberately (and probably righteousnessly) portrays him as cruel, disloyal, untalented, And unamerican. I don’t see how anyone would find that funny if someone did that to them. The rest of us can laugh.

[@pdubbzloves6205]

@@grahamtroy9381 aww poor Von Braun

[@jenaauerstedt7650]

Mort Sahl is also credited, perhaps erroneously, with the line that von Braun wrote an autobiography entitled, "I Aim at the Stars" -- to which Sahl added, "but sometimes I hit London."

[@RandyMoe]

I saw Mort perform in Old Town, maybe 20 years ago, I was the youngest by far in the crowd. I admired Mort in the 60's and still do.

[@andmicbro1]

NASA kept having issues with their rockets going off coarse. But they solved the problem, all they had to do was calibrate their rockets in relation to their distance from London and that fixed it!

[@EvanSiegel54]

There is some truth to this. Eisenhower famously distrusted the Germans and would not employ von Braun in the US missile program. The result: the test missiles all crashed and burned. von Braun was able to shoot straight. So the Yanks swallowed hard and put him on the job. He was a committed Nazi, but he sure knew how to fire a working missile.

[@MKAinMIA]

@@EvanSiegel54 yup! And, really, that's what's most important. So he was involved in a little mixup that got a few .. uh.. million.. Jews rounded up and murdered but we have important business to attend to here! And I mean, come on, are we really going to sacrifice our bottom line for Jews?? Don't be a putz! Or a schmuck. Or the nearly endless Yiddish words for penis! Lol it's a fun tongue

[@UnshavenStatue]

"und I'm learning Chinese, says Werner von Braun!" Man, not only was he funny, but he has a remarkable ability to see into the future it would seem.

[@riotpkz]

I’ve listed to this song a few times before, but somehow only just noticed the end of the song, absolutely the Chinese part blew my mind too, although I didn’t feel it as much as when you posted 9 years ago.

[@Merennulli]

China became perceived as a threat in the US with the Communist revolution. The logic here was likely that the Russians already had rockets capable of threatening the US 10 years before this was recorded, but the Chinese were still working towards it at that point. Add to that, Qian Xuesen had interviewed Werner von Braun before being deported to China and then helping China with its program, so there was an actual connection already.

[@lisamatthews890]

Prophetic. Is he still alive? He may be a prophet.

[@Merennulli]

@@lisamatthews890 He's been retired for over 20 years, but he is still alive.

[@lisamatthews890]

@@Merennulli That’s almost amazing after all Werner Von Braun 1912-1977 died at 65. Now I wonder what Wernher Von Braun died of.

[@USMCJew]

TOM LEHRER lives!!!! If you decide to attend the University of California, Santa Cruz, you can hear him LIVE, and IN CONCERT!!!!! Although an emeritus faculty member there, he is now in his early 80s, he still wanders over and gives free recitals with previously unheard material, like he rips the Governator, Arnold Schwartzenegger, and on the serious side, guest lectures once in awhile too.

[@GasPipeJimmy]

Man! Tom Lehrer is still alive in 2023! He’s 95 now, probably not still wandering UC Santa Cruz, but he’s still with us.

[@cthulhudreams]

@@GasPipeJimmy thats amazing!

[@ccmarcum]

let's hope he sees this and knows he is still appreciated. @@cthulhudreams

[@triksters24]

​​@@GasPipeJimmy But not the Von Braun

[@mgnzmn9362]

Update December 18th 2024: Tom Lehrer is still alive. Your comment from 15 years ago brought me to look it up and i am stunned. In this crazy world this just makes my day🤗 Greetings from the Black Forest, Germany🙋‍♂️

[@luger666666]

"Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down ? That's not my department says Wernher von Braun" haha nice one

[@kerryoke68]

my favorite line :)

[@luger666666]

By the way, I came here thanks to the BBC "Space Race" miniserie about Korolev/Von Braun. If you never watched it, you definately should.

[@mckavitt]

luger666666 Thanks for the tip.

[@tschadschi1010]

@sentinel scourge maybe because he was a war criminal who did not faced consequences for what he did?

[@mariobarcelon3247]

Tschadschi Yet he brought the US to the moon.

[@peterpluim7912]

I’ve never witnessed a public execution by song.

[@karenina56]

That's clever!

[@DieFlabbergast]

You can't REALLY execute a man's reputation :)

[@danielgertler5976]

For All Man Kind sent me here. I was actually kind of surprised to find it was a real song and wasn't made for the show but I'm glad someone back then was willing to speak out against operation paperclip

[@zonkerdoodle1912]

SAME, i am currently rewatching this show, i love it

[@insulini]

When I studied aeronautics Von Braun was my idol and I listened to this song. My English was not good so I thought it was an hymn to his life and achievements. I learned the lyrics and sing it proudly everyday. Then I look for the meaning of the words widow and cripple and the truth hit me right in the nuts. I felt like a compete idiot. Nevermind, I still listen to it to have a casual laugh.

[@MKAinMIA]

He was your idol and you didn't know he was a Nazi??? How is that possible? You don't need to know English to know the very least of the basics of WWII.. Or take a look at the Nuremberg trials transcripts. He was there (if I recall correctly) and testified to his role, of course it's largely him doing his best to minimize his involvement or even KNOWLEDGE of what was going on! And of course after all, he was "just following orders."

[@TheNavalAviator]

@@MKAinMIA It was probably before the Internet.

[@MKAinMIA]

@@TheNavalAviator oh yeah. that's a very good suggestion... one that, i'm embarrassed to admit, didn't even occur to me

[@ajdowney]

My Dad was `Manager: Materials & Fabrication Development' on von Braun's Pegasus Project (1962-65). Growing up, my Mom could infrequently be heard telling family friends that my Dad "refused to shake von Braun's hand." I never heard my Dad say it, it was always Mom.

[@edisontrent618]

@@ajdowney Typical women moment, really.

[@JONNOG88]

There's no denying that Werner Von Braun was a genius. And was way ahead of his time. But the words Mercenary and self-Interest spring to mind

[@solaraspect5255]

Let me call Archimedes or Leonardo Da Vinci for 500 and ask if they agree with your assement. When other people do a racism and a funny against one another, they at least have the guts to say it out loud... that's how it stays funny, over the top and can be easily satirized by both sides in a spirit of light banter. Lehrer's people prefer the cloak of false objectivity, which leads to animosity and hatred.

[@MKAinMIA]

@@solaraspect5255 lol wow.

[@allthenewsordeath5772]

@@solaraspect5255 Let me see if I got this right, your joke was that when you said Lehrers people you meant lefties, but the reader is supposed to interpret it as you meaning Jewish people, hence the joke being in the misunderstanding of the joke which reflects onto the interpreter rather than the shyster in question correct?

[@weareallbornmad410]

​@@solaraspect5255 Sorry, what racism did Lehrer do in this song? I'm assuming that's what you are implying? If not then which "racism" paired together with "funny" are we refering to, here?

[@YOSSARIAN313]

​@@solaraspect5255archimedes was fighting a defensive war not a war of conquest and extermination and da vinci was not creating weapons of mass murder. They arent comparable. His crimes were on par with those on trial at nuremburg he should have hanged. He never accepted accountability for his actions and died making excuses and lying. He was an unrepentant nazi to his core.

[@DoctorCarlMortner]

Tom Lehrer is 95 now and is still alive. Amazing!

[@JZsBFF]

He may outlive us all. Comedy is eternal life!

[@DoctorCarlMortner]

@@JZsBFFUPDATE: He is 96 years old now and still alive!

[@skeletonbuyingpealts7134]

Still kickin

[@Crocunt]

Gather 'round while I sing you of Wernher von Braun, A man whose allegiance Is ruled by expedience. Call him a Nazi, he won't even frown, "Ha, Nazi, Schmazi, " says Wernher von Braun. Don't say that he's hypocritical, Say rather that he's apolitical. "Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department, " says Wernher von Braun. Some have harsh words for this man of renown, But some think our attitude Should be one of gratitude, Like the widows and cripples in old London town, Who owe their large pensions to Wernher von Braun. You too may be a big hero, Once you've learned to count backwards to zero. "In German oder English I know how to count down, Und I'm learning Chinese!" says Wernher von Braun.

[@stdollarssc8013]

As a German history student I can say, this is a masterpiece! 😉

[@BigShaneGillis]

Remain amongst the official narrative you will. Revealing reality you shan’t. Pray for thee I must.

[@dizzylilthing]

​@@BigShaneGillis Okay Holocaust denier, go to Israel and spread your truth in Jerusalem

[@johnpaulvalentin5819]

@@BigShaneGillisYoda? Is that you?

[@eamari87]

History is also my department… 📚 > 🚀

[@henryseidel5469]

@@BigShaneGillis You should better pray for historical truth ! It is not a 'narrative' but a picture of real history. Pray for yourself you should !

[@weatherschultz8281]

I woke up with this song in my head.....thanks For All Mankind !

[@dalethelander3781]

Boy, that series fucked with flight rotations. And Thomas Paine as NASA administrator for, like, 15 years? Geeze.

[@jimmy2k4o]

@@dalethelander3781 only during republican administrations Nixon and Reagan he’s wasn’t administrator during Kennedy

[@dalethelander3781]

@@jimmy2k4o Right. James Webb was administrator under Kennedy and Johnson IRL. But on For All Mankind, Von Braun was the second NASA administrator and Paine was administrator for years until he died on September 1, 1983 when KAL Airlines flight 007 was shot down by a Russian fighter. Paine was kept on by President Theodore Kennedy after Nixon's resignation. Are you unfamiliar with the tv series For All Mankind?

[@jimmy2k4o]

@@dalethelander3781 I mean in the show when Kennedy is president nasa is run by a different guy. Harold weisner. Then Reagan becomes president and Thomas Paine comes back then dies. Maybe YOU need to watch it again.

[@dalethelander3781]

@@jimmy2k4o Right. NASA is being run by Von Braun under Kennedy.

[@dianarestifo8624]

Every song is a gem - three minutes of brilliant music, satire, unrivaled lyrics and rhyming. Not to mention pitch-perfect performance. Lehrer's music holds up astoundingly well over the decades, especially considering the topical nature of much of it.

[@Rollin558]

Wow, it's been since the sixties when I heard Lehrer's songs. I remember them well, especially this one. I remember the ending especially. Thanks for the post. Happy 80th Birthday to you, Mr. Lehrer.

[@number3Ihatetoontown]

I had to look at the upload date when I read this comment! He's past 90 now.

[@jiajiajiaism]

In April of this year he turned 93. Last October he released all his music into public domain. What a great guy.

[@culfycavy]

"This song is in no way critical of vo Braun or his work, it's just funny :)" You have listened to it haven't you?

[@0x777]

I'd guess it's also a bit of a side blow to the US government that quietly turns a blind eye to people with "questionable" past if it can benefit from it.

[@anonymousmobster2444]

@@0x777 To be fair Von Braun wasn't exactly a nazi by choice. Most of the horrors of nazi germany were hidden from his view, like with most germans in general.

[@0x777]

@@anonymousmobster2444 Erh... no. Von Braun knew who built his V2.

[@thceppur6755]

@@anonymousmobster2444 "Hmmm, I wonder were all the jews have gone... eh they're probably just all on holiday, nothing to worry about here." ~ Wernher von Braun 1944 (probably)

[@anonymousmobster2444]

@@thceppur6755 Last I checked, Von Braun didn't keep tabs on every single jew in Germany.

[@LumineVonReuental]

I'm still amazed at how most of his lyrics are still applicable to our context...

[@desigrrl08]

Yes. Even today, 12 years later from your comment.

[@kathytanner2872]

I had Tomfoolery brilliantly translated into German and performed it in Vienna. They loved it and I was happy to introduce his incredible talent and sharp observation here.

[@thebusinessgoose8939]

"Once the rockets are up, who cares where they fall down?" Best analogy for the educational system

[@jeromemckenna7102]

I'd forgotten the sentence about Chinese, how prescient.

[@SloveneAnon]

I mean I'm pretty sure this was written during the peak of the Two Bombs One Satellite program so it was very relevant at the time. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Bombs,_One_Satellite

[@Hewpie]

We owe credit to Von Braun for the character of poorly repressed Nazi, Dr Strangelove.

[@dkroll92]

Dr Strangelove is based primarily on Herman Kahn from the RAND Corporation, with some Edward Teller thrown in there (ironically, considering he was Jewish and on the allied side during the war)

[@kathyharkness3394]

@@dkroll92 Exactly right -- I used to work at the Hudson Institute (which Kahn founded after he left RAND) and even though Kahn had been dead for several years by then, the organization was still very proud of that connection and mentioned it in publicity and fundraising. The term "think tank" was actually coined in direct reference to Hudson, and we had a stack of mimeo copies of a Vietnam War era poster depicting an outsized Kahn perched on a toy-like M48 with the caption "Herman Kahn and His Little 'Think' Tank -- the Hudson Institute.'

[@DoctorCarlMortner]

And he also inspired Jürgen Voller from Indiana Jones 5: the Dial of Destiny who was also a Nazi and NASA scientist from Operation Paperclip.

[@hugmynutus]

If you're wondering, Yes this song did (probably) make it to Werner. He spent most of the 1950's trying to recoup his image in the USA. Through speaking tours and television appearances. A lot of set backs in the early space race (failure of the first US satellite) were down to US using rockets not developed by ex-Nazis in the US.

[@danielmolinar8669]

I heard he heard it play at a meeting and left shortly after. Idk if that’s true or where I heard it, but it’s too funny to not be true

[@MOONSIP2]

Happy Birthday, Tom Lehrer (April 9, 1928) Thank you for sharing your gifts with us.

[@mabas5]

I'm 15 years boy from Lithuania ( europe center, near baltic sea..) and i just love Tom's songs i'm lisining it's every day ;P THANK YOU Tom Lehrer!!!!!!!!

[@user-li8wj3lt2l]

now you are 30, congratulations

[@theresemeyn]

This is the greatest musical satirist, ever. You Americans should be proud of him. Lehrer was amazing.

[@jodishapiro9257]

Is… he’s still alive 14 years after you commented

[@6funswede]

Thank you. There are twelve super RARE Tom Lehrer songs on this channel, from a recording no-one thought existed.

[@Quasimodo1957]

Excellent satirical piece. Classic.

[@charlesmcdowell9436]

This was genius, so far ahead of it's time!

[@begobogo2583]

Especially the I'm learning Chinese line, that went way over the heads of the audience

[@hand__banana]

@@begobogo2583 my friend doesn't get it, can someone please explain it to my friend? Is it the fact that China was an emerging communist nuclear power and the joke is he was ready to hop countries? If so, why do you say it went over their heads?

[@6020e3]

this man is fantastic, shame not too many people know about him

[@ernesthill4017]

He'd never make it in today's entertainment industry

[@6funswede]

jimjimjimjim1234, thank you. No-one in the whole world thought that a whole Lehrer performance on video had survived. But it did, and thanks to Tom Lehrer it's here. Spread the word :-)

[@FourthDerivative]

The aptly named Tom Lehrer: "Lehrer" being the German for "teacher", and "Thomas" being the Biblical Greek for "doubtful".

[@janettewong9900]

He was a math professor at my college, UC Santa Cruz!

[@ZeranZeran]

I think you put more thought into his name than he did

[@FourthDerivative]

@@ZeranZeran Probably

[@Delosian]

Except it's not. Thomas means 'twin' in Hebrew.

[@FourthDerivative]

@@Delosian Oh, I know. It was just supposed to be a silly joke on "doubting Thomas"

[@خالد_الشيباني]

", and I am learning Chinese says Wernher von Braun" What a great insight from Tom Lehrer.

[@contactkeithstack]

My dad used to play me Tom Lehrer albums, still love this guys music.

[@sce2aux464]

I wonder if they ever met.

[@number3Ihatetoontown]

I read Tom got beat up.

[@matthew5386]

@@number3Ihatetoontown more context is important

[@number3Ihatetoontown]

@@matthew5386 Call him a Nazi he won't even frown. "Nazi, schmazi." "Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department." "In German or English I know how to count down, and I'm learning Chinese."

[@matthew5386]

@@number3Ihatetoontown thank you it's also und I'm learning chinease

[@number3Ihatetoontown]

If you go to my website, WWW.BERNIESANDERS.COMMUNIST you will see some very strange things.

[@malbecks316]

Holy shit. I wish burns could work their way backwards through time.

[@klobiforpresident2254]

Braun has, in fact, heard this song.

[@lisamatthews890]

I am certain he was amused, after-all he was a proud 33 degree mason.

[@andrewemerson347]

lol I love the laughs in the background. lol They know its wrong to laugh at some jokes but still do.

[@cazbert6]

its never wrong to laugh at nazis

[@podomuss]

@@cazbert6 True

[@AJiguess_]

Well this is quite relevant.

[@leemumbray-williams2440]

How I love watching the great Tom Lehrer playing the piano!

[@largelysubatomic]

Some have harsh words for this man of renown, But some think our attidude should be one of gratitude, Like the widows and cripples of old London town, Who owe their large pensions to Werner Von Braun. LOL that's the most twisted line in there, but it doesn't get much of a laugh. von Braun's V-2 rockets caused about the same number of deaths and injuries in London as 9/11 did in NYC.

[@polygondwanaland8390]

We'd probably think better of Bin Laden if he gave up terrorism and ended up leading NASA's rocket design program

[@leonfa259]

I caused even more deaths than both together in Germany.

[@thenablade858]

@@leonfa259 You mean Dresden? Numbers put Dresden deaths at 25,000-35,000 and London bombing deaths (altogether) at around 43,000 with more than 100,000 injured.

[@leonfa259]

@@thenablade858 I mean that the V2 production costed 20k lives in Germany, which is more than double the 9k it killed in England.

[@arthurharrison1345]

Tom Lehrer will be 89 in April. A lyrical genius.

[@lisamatthews890]

Now if still alive he’s 93, as you wrote that comment four years ago.

[@MKAinMIA]

@@lisamatthews890 is he??

[@eozcompany9856]

@@MKAinMIA he is

[@kugelblitz-zx9un]

He's 94 as of now

[@godfreypigott]

@@kugelblitz-zx9un And now 95, almost 96.

[@DeJach]

"It should be noted that no ethically-trained software engineer would ever consent to write a "DestroyBaghdad" procedure. Basic professional ethics would instead require him to write a "DestroyCity" procedure, to which "Baghdad" could be given as a parameter." --Nathaniel Borenstein

[@anonUK]

"City == Baghdad"

[@Angrboda30]

I just heard of this guy and started listening to his songs on Spotify. I was like “No way this man sang these in the 50’s-60’s.” And this song in particular is very clever.

[@steverogers5956]

"A man whose alligience was ruled by expedience" is timeless, and still appropriate in many cases.

[@Charliecomet82]

Greatest smart-asses in American History: Mark Twain, H. L. Mencken, and Tom Lehrer.

[@kodyeldridge5847]

and woody guthrie.

[@AlexanderRM1000]

Wow, I first head this song maybe a decade or less ago (in a discussion of the XKCD comic about him- "Space Launch System") and didn't realize that it was written in 1965, while he was not only still alive but working with NASA. That's a lot bolder of a burn than I realized!

[@klobiforpresident2254]

Not only that but von Braun actually was played this song at least once.

[@davyoooo]

yeah could you imagine him today? He'd be fried by whichever side he offended.... oh, ok, the left.

[@piotrd.4850]

Von Braun and his team, for death of few thousand of force labourers in his programme, should be burned. Quite literally.

[@TripleAlfafa]

@@piotrd.4850 t. bitter soviet engineer still salty over getting beaten to the moon

[@ГалинаФетисова-ю4м]

@@TripleAlfafa wow, really? You do know Von Braun was a nazi?

[@Xethron91]

I love the venom in his voice as he says "apolitical". Even 60 years ago this was a transparent excuse yet people still fall for it today.

[@gregoryjclark81]

I never tire of this little ditty. So good.

[@zb3495]

The last line was ahead of its time

[@QueenetBowie]

Funny it struck me that way too. Amazing

[@josesegura7001]

I didnt get it, could you explain what it means?

[@HerrMahnMahRez]

@@josesegura7001 the Chinese are predicted to be one of the newest superpower of the world by 2030 and we will all be speaking mandarin.

[@simonm1447]

@@HerrMahnMahRez ironically the main stage of a Chinese CZ-5B rocket is now coming down the next days, uncontrolled and at an yet unknown place, the last one was found in Africa a year ago

[@miladantoine4566]

@@HerrMahnMahRez yeah don't worry china won't become a superpower like America. Everything china produce is just a stolen cheap version of American and Western inventions. They can't make anything genuine of their own.

[@Kieranpokemonsisliterallyme]

Tom Lehrer is truly a genius, his gallows humour as well as taking the piss out of injustice.

[@suttonelms1]

Genius. Fantastic wordsmith and amazing musician.

[@cm1701a]

Who else is here in 2020 after watching Ep2 of "For all Mankind"?

[@npa5838]

I thought "wow that's badass if the video is synthetic". But turned out Tom really wrote this. Crazy schmazy

[@S-S-North]

I was super annoyed when they tried to kill him

[@krystalgarcia-hearn352]

Episode 8 of “Hunters“

[@aliashraf7617]

@@krystalgarcia-hearn352 What's that?

[@H1storyRemembers]

Changing the course of history but showing stuff from our history. Even though he was exposed both in our history & FAM history.

[@rachelkosbar7111]

The series Connections he did on the BBC was one ofy all time favourites as a kid. My dad had it all taped and saved on VHS, and I watched it so many times. The way he presented the interconnectivity of development got me so jazzed that I wrote a thesis paper on the effects of agriculture on technological development for a 6th or 7th grade project.

[@cosari116]

this feels relevant

[@post_obamacore]

And in 2023 the Canadian Parliament is giving standing ovations to veterans of the 14th Waffen SS. Tom's still alive so I can only imagine what he thinks of this shit

[@Agapy8888]

What a disaster. Trudeau needs to resign.

[@williet.3058]

No one seems to notice the pro n.zi tendencies in dear Ukraine..

[@stephencarter5720]

That was entirely accidental. Incompetent, but not badly intentioned.

[@guyd7924]

@@stephencarter5720 It is all the same, however what is more hillarious that Zelenskiy said nothing at that point, I guess he values western money more than memory of his people who died in camps.

[@haupper]

"Zat's not my depahtment!" Man, they do not make humor like this anymore.

[@miniciominiciominicio]

This guy is simply amazing. He's a natural performer. It's really too bad he just didn't find it entertaining anymore and quit.

[@Ulrich4800]

I heard this song in a NASA documentary back in elementary school. It suddendly popped into my head today, and in less than a minute I found this video. God I love KZbin.

[@andrewwhitbread9362]

"The White & Black Keys of History Don't NEED to Be SQUASHED When in a BOOK thanks to Tom Lehrer." - St. Tom Lehrer Fan."

[@iammrmat]

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to appreciate this song...

[@d1v1nu5]

Lyrics ... Gather 'round while I sing you of Wernher von Braun A man whose allegiance Is ruled by expedience Call him a Nazi, he won't even frown "Ha, Nazi, Schmazi" says Wernher von Braun Don't say that he's hypocritical Say rather that he's apolitical "Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down? That's not my department" say Wernher von Braun Some have harsh words for this man of renown But some think our attitude Should be one of gratitude Like the widows and cripples in old London town Who owe their large pension to Wernher von Braun You too may be a big hero Once you've learned to count backwards to zero "In German, oder Englisch, I know how to count down Und I'm learning Chinese!" says Wernher von Braun

[@acarney20]

So who thought of this after Elon made a certain salute on stage?

[@opheliarosewood7847]

Came back to this vid right after seeing that shit lol "Nazi shmazi" says Elon Musk

[@liviwaslost]

Me

[@Justaguythatcameby]

Love how people tried to defend it by saying it was just a "Roman salute" without knowing it's the same salute with a different name

[@DieFlabbergast]

@@Justaguythatcameby Hypocritical a**hole. He was just raising his hand to the crowd to acknowledge their support, like hundreds if not thousands of leftists have also done at innumerable political rallies. Every single thing the left accuses conservatives of is something they themselves have done time and time again.

[@jr2503]

Funny enough Elon is named after a person in a book written by Wernher von Braun

[@ambzcloud]

"That's not my department," is one of the funniest things ever to me. I never get tired of this somg. 😂

[@kchishol1970]

Good for you being so honest about what you don't know and looking something up to change that. That seems like a rare attitude nowadays.

[@6funswede]

Yes, I do. To quote Tom Lehrer: "to hire von Braun was one thing, OK, but to make him a hero...." If you visit the front page of this channel (user = 6funswede) and THEN the supporting web site, check out the links. You'll hear Lehrer talking on radio and you can read all the interviews :-) This man is both funny and politically incorrect, and he deserves attention.

[@esthera3923]

I see the politics of the people running the Space Program haven't changed

[@williet.3058]

Don't let fantasies ruin your day

[@xvonfrankenstein]

My first wife babysat von Braun's kids when they lived in Huntsville Alabama

[@ormancam]

I think Tom would appreciate ALL the comments showing up here. Thats the point to get people talking an issue! Bravo!

[@Moinsdeuxcat]

This'll turn 50 in two years, and I'm only 17. Those are things that get me sad. Born somewhat earlier, I would have been able to see him.

[@waltrz]

Well you could hang around the University of California there a small chance of seeing him just around there apparently.

[@arthas640]

+Béranger Seguin He's still alive, he just mostly stopped performing publicly in the early 70's

[@tessahallett4133]

+Béranger Seguin I was 5 in 1960 and already had a love for this cat. I would have loved to see him live.

[@arthas640]

Tessa Hallett I didn't know he was was a cat, he plays pretty well with paws :D

[@tessahallett4133]

Arthas Menethil Sorry...raised by true Beat people..lol

[@tylertone2776]

THIS GUY IS STILL ALIVE

[@lisamatthews890]

Long may he play and sing!

[@toxikyle5419]

To clarify, Tom Lehrer is still alive, *not* Wernher von Braun

[@jsuma2873]

America: Hey von Braun, wanna build rockets for the United States? Von Braun: Nein America: We won’t send you to be executed at the Nuremberg trials. Von Braun: Ok

[@TripleAlfafa]

If the US was worried about something, it would have been him going to the Soviets.

[@0x777]

Actually, what they originally had in mind for him is to put him on ice so he can't build those rockets for the Russians. Only when they noticed that their own rockets are more suited for a game of KSP they gave von Braun the go.

[@Kemuri7784]

Nice way to think. Trust lies is very easy and accepted.

[@Kalletheswede]

Without him the Americans would have Been second to the moon

[@raysgr]

Are you suggesting that somehow the US is morally superior in this deal?

[@Qosize]

That man was a stable genius...

[@F5ss]

I LOVE how the intro sounds like the german international anthem

[@ptkwilliams]

This is the most brutal diss track in the history of music

[@Janeandhound]

freaking amazing! oh my God I thank you so much for posting Lehrer! I think my dad kept this one from me (I used to memorize and sing all the songs from other stuff dad had and played of his). would have gotten my ass kicked but good for this one! ; ) !!

[@Sleepy1988]

“Like the widows and cripples, in old London Town, who owe their large pensions, to Wehrner Von Braun” I sense some anger behind those words, but I would guess this was performed in the 1950s or at the latest the 1960s, when the wounds from the war were still fresh enough.

[@MemekingJag]

Definitely. Jonny Buchardt was a German comedian (yes, they exist apparently) that, all the way in 1973, on colour TV, he got the audience into a call/response rhythm, and tricked them by ending with 'Sieg', to which the audience of Germans largely in their 40s and 50's replied with an immediate and instinctual 'Heil!'. All the way in the 70s there were audiences in Germany who all still shared memories of the Hitlerjugend etc, so yes, the V2 bombings of London were still a sore memory for many. They weren't a weapon of strategy, operations or tactics, it helps neither the soldier nor the general - it was simply a weapon of vengeance, like the name implied. To see the man responsible for your neighbourhood's destruction waving off his horrific history after dedicating his years of the war to a weapon not of thinking, but of pure hate, now receiving awards and commendations for his scientific genius - it certainly didn't sit right with much of the country.

[@opheliarosewood7847]

It's also important to note that Tom is Jewish so this song definitely has some personal anger to it. Which I love as a fellow Jewish person lol.

[@Trolligi]

did anybody notice that the opening in this song is the same as the start of the anthem of germany (which was the same tune that was used by nazi germany's anthem)

[@denzelpanther240]

Nice catch

[@charlescassells4562]

Wonderful and very touching, a man I admire.

[@anonleft]

The text addition at the beginning is woeful

[@OnionBread-41]

“Once the rockets go up, who cares where they come down.” Well of course he does! He is on first base.

[@UncategorizedContent]

He is on first? Who is he? Yes. He is who? Exactly. So He is on first base? No, Who is on first! That's what I said!

[@HighlanderXTV]

you either get it, or you don't!

[@pucie_boi]

There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who believe there are two kinds of people in the world and those who don't

[@codehorse8843]

Ryan Hallberg I lol'd

[@Katesac]

So true...:)

[@OZ88]

.....clips and papers says Wernher Von Braun ....

[@lucyinchat]

Your text inserts got me! I thought you were talking about the guy the song is about (an unfortunate thing some people these days would say.) I was humorously surprised when the second slide displayed and smiled at the final one.

[@Alexandertygreat]

This is nothing short of brilliance. 😊

[@6funswede]

bosunbilly, thank you for your comment. And it really makes me wonder how many "paperclip guys" you Americans imported into the US...

[@JustinZymbaluk]

This guy is like Bo Burnham from 50 years earlier

[@joannabadami1091]

Love the stuff -- more clever and important than any other commentary on Today's scary politics. Thanks to the NPR special for the introduction!

[@germanpianist]

"... where they come down... ? It `s not my departement, says wernher von braun ..." Großartig und demonitarisiert, logo 🙂!

[@fromchernobylwithfreesheva75]

“what goes up, must come down... eventually.”

[@NoirChat138]

I took ballistics in school, fascinating subject ! Things goes up, things goes down...

[@number3Ihatetoontown]

@@NoirChat138 That's wrong grammar!

[@NoirChat138]

@@number3Ihatetoontown do you know this is a reference ? I think not...

[@number3Ihatetoontown]

@@NoirChat138 Probably not, but I was using another reference, where somebody spelled grammar wrong. I guess I said that and four other phrases enough in 8th grade that someone wanted to write them next to a picture of my face he had drawn.

[@NoirChat138]

@@number3Ihatetoontown whatever...

[@slayermate07]

here from For All Mankind.

[@aliashraf7617]

I knew there would be some people here who discovered this song from that

[@Glassy967]

"Nazi Schmazi" just utter genius 🤣

[@ug-ei6xw]

Jewey, dewey, ha ha.

[@harrisonhan5610]

Who’s here from For All Mankind?

[@aryanraj1667]

boasome1 SSS RADIO It’s a show on Apple TV + about what if the Soviets landed on the moon first

[@aryanraj1667]

boasome1 SSS RADIO Oh shit I read the question wrong, my bad. Yeah it was in the show on episode 2 I think.

[@etron1967]

Confirmed, episode 2 of this show. I am impressed that there was any negative feelings against the „ex“ Nazi „Herr Wernher von Braun“ at all... 😆

[@JoseLinharesBernardo]

When i play Kerbal Space Program I say "Once the rocket are up,who cares where they come down, that's not my department..."

[@Jonathanatus]

Great song, greatings from Germany