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Posted on 04/05/2026 7:05:32 AM PDT by Twotone
When Francis Ford Coppola was writing the first version of the script that would be released as Patton in 1970, he was so spoiled for anecdotes and incidents that he was able to ignore gems like one that occurred a few days after V-E Day, when General George S. Patton was in his headquarters in the Bavarian town of Bad Tölz. A Soviet general presented himself and demanded a meeting with Patton, who told his aides to "bring the bastard in."
Patton's Soviet counterpart demanded that a river boat used by German soldiers to cross the Danube and surrender to the U.S. Third Army be returned to him immediately. Patton responded by reaching into a drawer and slamming a pistol on his desk. He bellowed for his aides to "Get this son-of-a-bitch out of here. Who the hell let him in? Don't let any more Russian bastards into this headquarters. Harkins! Alert the 4th and 11th Armored and 65th Division for an attack to the east."
After hustling the Soviet general out and conveying their commander's orders, the aides returned to Patton to find him smiling and smoking a cigar. "How was that?" he asked, as the incident is recounted in A Genius for War, Carlo D'Este's exhaustive biography of the general. "Sometimes you have to put on an act, and I'm not going to let any Russian marshal, general or private, tell me what I have to do. Harkins, call off the alert of the divisions." This ended what was probably the first close call of the as-yet-unnamed Cold War.
(Excerpt) Read more at steynonline.com ...
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One of my late dad’s two favorite movies along with The Ten Commandments.
A great book on Patton was “Lucky Forward” by Robert Allen. Patton was a very interesting man.
One cannot imagine any other actor than George C. Scott in his role as Patton or in Dr. Strangelove. He was brilliant and deserved all the accolades some gave him.
Patton, the General was very much like Pres. Trump. Unpredictable, full of fury, focused on the end goal and running his tank treads over anybody in the way.
Patton and Trump come along at crucial intersections of history. The state of the world in terms of the US’ position and respect has sagged since about 1975. Now we have a Patton in the Whitehouse who is both “crazy’ AND focused on the truth. BOTH, GET/GOT THINGS DONE.
I think every young male should see this.
That wasn’t a close call, Patton had no intention of attacking.
That wasn’t a close call, Patton had no intention of attacking.
He was a hell of actor and didn't even show up at the Academy Awards to accept his best actor award for Patton. Even back then he knew that the Oscars were a complete joke.
Replayed the movie in Youtube. It’s nice to see it again and look at things in the movie differently. The one scene where he runs his ‘feminine’ hand across the head of a young dead captain as he narrates the letter to the dead man’s parents was touching. Scott was 43 years old when playing the role of a general 10 years older and seemed to have taken off some weight to show his chiseled facial features that Patton didn’t have. Good for emphasis/effect. The funny part is how he was so friendly to Karl Malden and his Lt.Col. assistant-good looking guy. You’d think he’d scare them too. Last, Patton spoke French. Does Scott or was it a voiceover? Not worth finding out.
There’s more. The article dissed the Battle of the Bulge flick for it’s inaccuracies. True but it got the ‘gist’ of the event-the German mentality in a losing effort. Eisenhower let it be known he didn’t like the flick but dissing Henry Fonda and Robert Shaw was too much for me.
Next historical flick was “Hawaii”. Another good one with my favorite Richard Harris along with. Gene Hackmen Max Von Sydow. What’s funny is Julie Andrews getting top billing in the US while Von Sydow contractually getting it in Europe’s version.
The movie Paton is a masterpiece and equally iconic is the film score by composer Jerry Goldsmith.
It ended up being favorable to the memory of General Patton despite them, thanks to George Scott's character development.
I’ve read where George C. Scott was in real life a very unpleasant person.
Barking mad, but clearly necessary for a certain purpose.
Bump
Patton competed in the first modern pentathlon at the 1912 Stockholm Olympic Games finishing 5th overall out of 42 competitors. He did well in fencing and riding but lost his chance for a medal due to his shooting performance.
In WW1, Patton established the AEF (American Expeditionary Force) Light Tank School in 1917. He commanded the 1st Provisional Tank Brigade in France leading Renault light tanks into battle. Patton led his tanks into their first action in the Battle of St Mihiel in September 1918.
“Patton was a very interesting man”
Most Carthaginian generals were. Hannibal foremost.
So as through a glass, and darkly
The age long strife I see
Where I fought in many guises,
Many names, but always me.
“I think every young male should see this.”
They’re too busy swiping their phones. :)
“The New Centurions” was another good movie by George C Scott
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