General von Kaplow

SS-Brigadeführer Heinrich von Kaplow is a fictional character who appeared in the Hogan's Heroes episode, Movies Are Your Best Escape. He was played by Henry Corden.

General von Kaplow first appears after his staff car has entered the camp. After the car has stopped in from of Klink's office, he gets out of it. Shown having a briefcase handcuffed to one of his arms, he is met by Colonel Klink and Sergeant Schultz before being lead into the building. A short time later, inside Barracks 2, Sergeant Carter tricks Schultz into revealing that he is the reason that the prisoners are being confined to the barracks by claiming that he is a Colonel. By the time Schultz has realized that he has messed up, he is tricked by Colonel Hogan into revealing that he has a briefcase. Schultz then leaves the barracks. Curious as to what is inside the briefcase, Hogan tells LeBeau to get together his best recipes as they are going to use them to get the General to talk about what was in the briefcase, before he heads off for Klink's office.

Meanwhile, inside Klink's main office, von Kaplow informs Klink that he is on his way to Berlin and that he is stopping there for security reasons. Inside's Helga's office, Hogan asks her if she knew anything about the General. She tells him no, although she informs him that he has earlier made a pass at her. Commenting on his good taste, Hogan then enters Klink's main office, soon introducing himself to the General. von Kaplow watches a presently angry Klink remind Hogan that he is suppose to be inside his barracks and orders him to leave. Before he does, Hogan mentions in the General's presense that he is there to remind Klink that his men wanted to ask him to help them celebrate one of their national (American) holidays, the repeal of Prohibition. He hears Klink remind Hogan that he is not suppose to fraternize with the prisoners, and again orders Hogan to leave. Von Kaplow's interest is then piqued as soon as he hears Hogan mentions that the prisoners are going to be making a gourmet dinner. He tells Klink to let Hogan stay, which Klink does, and after hearing Hogan mention that he would invite him to the dinner as well, the General says that he would accept the invitation, as does Klink, and that he and Klink would both be eating with him at 7:30. He then accepts Hogan's idea of holding the dinner inside Klink's living quarters, much to Klink's reluctance. He then watches Hogan leave the office.

Von Kaplow appears next at the dinner table in Klink's living quarters, seated between Hogan and Helga, while the four are being waited on by Newkirk. As they eat, he compliments LeBeau's cooking, soon hearing the same comment from Helga while Klink comments that he is glad the General is enjoying the meal and that it helps make the camp look civilized. He asks Newkirk to give Helga some more wine, which the British corporal does, before he watches him put some more into his own glass. He then sees Newkirk knock Hogan's wine-filled glass onto the floor, breaking it, while feeling some ot the wine get spilled onto his uniform. He then watch Hogan tells Newkirk, after the former has apolozied for knocking over the glass, to pick up all of the broken pieces, before he sees him go under the table. Von Kaplow, as he hears Klink's comment about the prisoner having to be there anyway in response to Hogan's 'you can't find good help these days' comment, having no idea that Newkirk is trying to get at the briefcase. The General soon feels a hand touching his knee, thinking it is Helga, not knowing it is actually Newkirk's hand that has touched him. As he looks at her, he separates his legs, allowing Newkirk to get at his briefcase and then open it up, soon revealing a large envelope inside. As this is occurring, after he hears Klink comment about his experience eating the horrid food at Stalag 9 and thinking that the prisoners there appear to eat better than the Kommandant and his officers, he asks Colonel Hogan what he would be doing if not a prisoner. Von Kaplow hears his reply that he would probably be bombing his headquarters, which he finds amusing. The General then starts to ask him if he would escape, when he is interrupted by Klink who informs him that Hogan would never be able to escape. He reminds Klink that is it Hogan's duty as an officer to escape, to which Hogan adds it would keep him out of trouble. He then watches Newkirk get out from under the table, claiming that he has gotten most of the pieces and just need a dust broom to get up the rest, not knowing that Newkirk now has the envelope hidden under the cloth as he enters the kitchen.

After commenting about the meal, he suggests that they all (including the accompaning guard) go to the living room, Hogan suggests instead that Klink entertains them by playing on his violin, in the process giving Hogan's men, Newkirk and LeBeau time to take pictures of the enevelope's contents. He comments to a modest sounding Klink that he had no idea that he could play music. The General hears Klink's reply that he does but that he is reluctant to do it now, although Hogan keeps telling the others how good a player he is, even claiming that the other prisoners call him "Papa" Haydn. After hearing Helga also encourage him, the General soon comments that Klink doesn't have to play, which causes Klink to actually get up from the table and get his violin. A short time later, he hears Klink play, soon cringing along with Helga and Hogan from the bad tone of Klink's playing. After Klink is finished playing, von Kaplow then hears Hogan request a song, one which Klink didn't know, before he hears Klink play badly one that he does know. He soon sees Newkirk reappear from inside the kitchen and then goes back under the table, thinking that he is finally going to pick up the rest of the broken glass, while Newkirk in actuality places the envelope back into his briefcase and closes it. After dinner, von Kaplow heads for Berlin, not knowing that Hogan's men have taken pictures of the order of battle, battle plans, etc. of his unit, 4th Army Group that he has inside the envelope.

The General next appears, entering the camp in his staff car, while the now disguised Lieutenant Ritchie and Lieutenant Donner are pretending to be members of a camera crew who are taking pictures of Stalag 13 for military archive, showing life inside the camp, while actually trying to leave the camp with the microfilm of the earlier taken photos. He exits the vehicle and then informs Klink that he has left Berlin, coming to see Helga, before adding that he hopes to stay around long enough to eat another gourmet meal. When he is asked by a surprised Klink about the rumors that he has been hearing lately about Berlin being in ruins, he replies that is all they are, rumors, since Berlin is busy with war work and that they are winning on all fronts before adding that any idea about negotiations being conducted by Der Führer with the Allies is probably just a trial balloon being done in order to help confuse his enemies. After being thanked by Klink for the new information, he heads over to Klink's office with a reluctant looking Helga. The General is last mentioned when Hogan suggests that Klink plays his violin over the camp's PA system until after von Kaplow leaves, so that the General won't see first hand a mass escape attempt being made by the prisoners.