Dr Strangelove at 60: The mystery behind Kubrick’s Cold War masterpiece

BBC ^ | 01/29/2025 | Dorian Lynskey

[Kid Shelleen]

As Stanley Kubrick's satirical masterpiece Dr Strangelove turns 60, an ongoing mystery endures: who was the real-life inspiration for his demonic central character?

In 1999, a reporter from Scientific American asked the 91-year-old physicist Edward Teller whether it was true that he had been the real-life template for Dr Strangelove, the chilling scientific adviser played by Peter Sellers in Stanley Kubrick's movie Dr Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.

Rumours had been circulating ever since the movie's release on 29 January 1964

[Dstorm]

These lines of dialogue always make me laugh

Russian Ambassador DeSadeski:

I will have poached eggs. And bring me some cigars, please. Havana cigars.

General:

Try one of these Jamaican cigars, ambassador, they’re pretty good.

DeSadeski:

Thank you, no. I do not support the work of imperialist stooges.

General:

Oh, only commie stooges, huh?

[cgbg]

Thanks for reminding me about that line.

I am a cigar guy and have to side with the Russkie on that one.

Legitimate Cuban cigars are outstanding.

Jamaican cigars taste like air.

Lol.

[rlmorel]

I just finished listening to the Mel Brooks autobiography (read by him!) and he talked about filming Young Frankenstein, and he got so angry because they had to keep re-shooting because people would burst out laughing on the set and ruin the shot!

He went out and purchased a hundred handkerchiefs and distributed them to the production crew, and told them if they felt like they were going to laugh, to stuff the handkerchief in their mouth!

It worked well, but he didn't get one for himself, and in the part of the movie where they are all sitting at the table eating dinner, and Dr. Frankenstein is disconsolate because his experiment failed, Terri Garr says kindly to him "You haven't even touched your food." Gene Wilder improvised and repeatedly stuck both hands in his food saying "There! I've touched it!" and Mel Brooks himself nearly ruined that perfect shot, but was able to somehow suppress his laughter!"

They said Marty Feldman as Igor was another one who was constantly causing people to laugh resulting in re-shoots.

Almost every actor involved said they had so much fun working on that.

Lots of good stuff there. He said he got the studio to fund the movie, and after they all shook hands and he walked out, he casually said "And I'm going to shoot it in black and white!" they went berserk!

Brooks, who is Jewish, said "I had a dozen Jews running down the hall after me, simultaneously yelling at me that the deal was off!"

I always found this part funny:

Every time someone would say "Frau Blucher" in the movie, you could hear in the distance, the horses go crazy, because they thought "Blucher" somehow meant "Glue" in German, but Brooks said that wasn't true...:) I forget why he said they had that part...

He also talked about how Gene Hackman (at the height of his popularity due to The French Connection) heard about the movie and desperately wanted to be in it, so Mel Brooks gave him a bit part that I think was uncredited, and most people didn't know it was him! (he was the old blind guy who spills hot coffee in the monster's lap!)

[LouAvul]

I laughed out loud at that. Blazing Saddles. Wonder how that would have done if Brooks introduced it today? (Rhetorical question. I know how it would have gone over.)

[HartleyMBaldwin]

Peter Sellers also was going to play Major Kong, but sprained his ankle and couldn’t work in the plane mockup.

[Kid Shelleen]

>>Kubrick was A Master Film Maker. <<

Now you got me checking out the YouTube clips off Full Metal Jacket.

[rlmorel]

Hahahaha...I was all in on that. I hated the Soviet team. They were professionals playing against amateurs in the Olympics, and I loved seeing them see what real hockey was like!

[rlmorel]

In Brooks’ autobiography, he talked about that at some length...it was meant to be wholly offensively racist, to poke fun at racism! I think he succeeded, but Leftists just don’t get it!

[dfwgator]

I remember the Flyers "Sign Guy" showing this:



Ok, so he was a little behind the times, LOL!

[dfwgator]

Basically Rush’s “demonstrating absurdity by being absurd”.

[rlmorel]

Love it!

Philly fans have a bad reputation (as the Flyers did!) but I was a Flyers fan when they played the Soviets!!!

[x]

If there are that many answers offered to that question, then it’s likely that Strangelove was a composite character. Ditto for the other characters.

The American President owed a lot to Adlai Stevenson. His voice, though, was probably Sellers’ own creation.

[dfwgator]

- He doesn’t realize he’s dealing with sophisticated people here.

- Marie, now just stay calm. Stay calm. Just don’t look down. Don’t look down! Look up! Just keep your eyes up and keep them that way, okay?

- Waiter! There are snails on her plate. Now get them out of here before she sees them. Look away! Just look away! And keep your eyes that way!

- You’d think at a fancy restaurant like this, at these prices, you would be able to keep the snails off the food! There’re so many snails in there, you can’t even see the food!

- Now take them away and bring me those melted cheese sandwich appetizers you talked me out of!

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

During the 80s when home video was hitting it’s stride, every B-52 crewman was unofficially required to have a VHS or Beta copy of this movie.

[dfwgator]

As a kid, the Flyers were my introduction to hockey. I loved them. I was devastated with the Canadiens beat them, and put an end to the era.

[Big Red Badger]

Clockwork Orange
The Shining
2001 A Space Odessy
Eyes Wide Shut

[cgbg]

“Brooks, who is Jewish, said “I had a dozen Jews running down the hall after me, simultaneously yelling at me that the deal was off!”

Omg that is hilarious.

Only business folks could get how funny that is....and of course in Hollywood it is so typical of how it works.

[LouAvul]

That happened to Randy Newman. He made a song poking fun at racism called "Short People." Sure enough, short people protested the song as insensitive and boorish.

He tried to explain it wasn't about short people, it was about racism. Dunno if they accepted his explanation.

But I liked the song. I'm 6'6" tall.

[dfwgator]

He tried to explain it wasn’t about short people, it was about racism. Dunno if they accepted his explanation.

---

Another Newman song is “Rednecks”. People assumed it was a dig at Southerners, when in fact it was about the hypocrisy of Northerners.

[Reily]

I also liked Barry Lyndon. A superbly done historical period movie.