Joe's Babe of the Week

Even though many have called for a stop to this column, calling it "sexist" and "awesome," Joe kowtows to no one. I labor on, for it is a labor of love.

Joe's Babe of the Week:
Eva Braun

Well known as the hottest wife of any dictator, she was well-known as the first-babe of the Third Reich. With her golden locks and her perfect figure, she was worth fighting for. Word is that she was coveted by Stalin until Hitler killed half the Red Army and slung her over his shoulder.Why would I pick the wife of Adolf Hitler? Because hotness is hotness, regardless of political views. Have you ever seen Stalin's first wife? Wowza! In fact, we need to appreciate the delicate hotness of all babes, especially if they've been overlooked before. I won't overlook you.Hey Eva, there's a new Fuhrer in town! Call me and ask for Joe (my mother might answer).

Joe's Red-Hot Score: 9.5/10.0 Panzers

Movie Review-- Valkyrie

I was fortunate enough to see the movie Valkyrie with Tom Cruise a little while back. Overall, it was a positive experience. Cruise was good in the role of Count Stauffenburg and the rest of the supporting staff was good. This was particularly the case for the actor that played General Frohm.

The film was mostly historically accurate, but appeared to give too much leeway to Cruise's character. While Stauffenburg is a hero who did much to stop the Third Reich, the rest of the organization against Hitler was ignored in the film. For example, Erwin Rommel's role (which would later cause his suicide) was not included.

The movie was directed well, as the action left the viewer in suspense. This is an excellent feat, considering that most people must know how the adventure ends. Scenes are interposed excellently and even many technical details of the plot are used.

This movie is a must for history buffs, and is a good movie for those who are not. Even Hitler was in it. Good and to the point, this film earns:

3.5 stars/4.

Hitler's Personal Library

I stumbled across a very cool piece of news. A book has been published detailing Adolf Hitler's personal library. To see where the mind of a maniac came from is really neat, and is a new insight into the Third Reich. And it gives another perspective into Hitler the man:

Only one large segment of the collection--three thousand books hidden in beer crates in a Bavarian salt mine--remained intact after the war ended. Members of the U.S. Army's Twenty-First Counterintelligence Corps concluded, after what they called a "hasty inspection of the scattered books," that the collection "was noticeably lacking in literature and almost totally devoid of drama and poetry." Worse still, "none of the books examined gave the appearance of extensive use. They had no marginal notes or underlinings." Hans Beilhack, reporting on the collection in November 1946 for the Süddeutsche Zeitung, noted contemptuously that the "library itself, seen as a whole, is only interesting because it is the library of a 'great' statesman and yet so uninteresting. It is the typical library of a dilettante."

So that's:

Hitler's Private Library: The Books That Shaped His Life

By Timothy W. Ryback

( Knopf, 304 pp., $24.95)

Coming to a bookstore near you!