Sgt. Krebs

Oberfeldwebel Ernst Krebs is a fictional character who appeared in the Hogan's Heroes episode, Happiness Is a Warm Sergeant. He was played by Norman Alden.

Sgt. Krebs, an Oberfeldwebel in the German Luftwaffe, is to be Sergeant Schultz's replacement as the head guard at Stalag 13 after Schultz has returned to camp late with Newkirk, while being pushed around by him in a wheelbarrow in a drunken state, which soon results in an angry Colonel Klink telling Schultz that he would walk a post in front of the camp until the arrival of his replacement, which would turn out to be Sergeant Krebs.

Krebs arrives in camp via motorcycle. He is quickly noticed by several of the prisoners who are presently standing in front of one of the barracks as they watch Schultz walk his post in front of the camp's barbed wire fence, as earlier ordered by Klink. Krebs exits the motorcycle's sidecar after it has stopped in front of Klink's office, where he is quickly met by Klink, to whom Krebs first salutes and then hands over his orders. As this is occurring, Colonel Hogan tells Carter to check Krebs out, so that the prisoners would have a better idea of what they are up against with him. Carter does as ordered, and is soon approaching Klink and Krebs, just as Klink has finished looking over Kreb's orders. Krebs sees Carter walk past them, while greeting a surprised Klink as if they are old friends. Krebs angrily shouts an order at him, telling Carter to stop, which Carter does almost immediately. Krebs then asks Carter if what he has just done is how he is suppose to act before a superior officer. When he hears Carter start to reply as if it is, he shouts another order at him to stand at attention, before telling him to salute Klink, which Carter quickly does. He then hear Klink informs Carter that Krebs is a new broom and that if he isn't careful, the new broom would end up sweeping him into the cooler before he hears Klink finally dismiss Carter. After Carter leaves, an excited Klink starts to show Krebs around. The situation doesn't make Hogan happy.

Later, inside Barracks 2, after learning that the radio would not be ready for three more days, the prisoners start to discuss what to do about Krebs, since he is likely to disrupt their organization because of his no-nonsense attitude. Hogan is soon rejecting LeBeau's idea of trying to bribe him with strudel because of how long it had taken them to get Schultz to look the other way. A short time later, Schultz catches Capt. Jeb Winslow inside the barracks, and in exchange for him not turning in Winslow, Hogan promises that they would get rid of Krebs, thus forcing Klink to keep Schultz at the camp.

Krebs is soon seen talking to Carter, who is telling the new German Sergeant that he wants to help him get in good with Klink. He is then shown a radio by Carter, with the American Sergeant telling him that it is a homemade model that some of the guys have built. A happy Krebs then takes the radio from Carter, and after thanking him, leaves for Klink's office with it, with no idea that Carter has just set him up. Once he is inside Klink's office, he is standing in front of a seated Klink, with the radio placed in the middle of Klink's desk while he claims that he has taken it from inside one of the prisoners' barracks. He sees that Klink is impressed by what he tells him, before he hears Klink inform him that he would conduct an investigation into the matter. He then sees Klink looking over the device, impressed by the prisoners' handiwork. He then watch Klink try to turn it on, which leads to the radio squirting water into a surprised Klink's face, quickly causing his monocle to fall out. Krebs then see a wet Klink give him a look of disapproval.

A short time after that, Krebs sees Kinch in front of one of the barracks, lying face down on the ground over a device. He then hears him speaking into the device, while appearing to speak to Hogan through the ground, soon informing the latter that if he can hear him, then the tunnel that he is building is too close to the surface. Upon hearing this, he heads back towards Klink's office to inform the Kommandant. As he does, Krebs does not notice Kinch's depature or see the happy look on his face as he has been tricked again. He is then shown leading Klink and another guard over towards the spot where he has seen Kinchloe, even pointing out that his hand prints are still there. He then watches in shock as Klink walk over to the direct spot and then fall through it.

After that incident, with things soon set to send Winslow back to England to rejoin his unit, the prisoners set into motion their final plan to get Krebs sent back to headquarters and keeps Schultz at the camp. They plan to use the fact that Krebs tends to stand outside the barracks' windows at night in order to listen in on any possible escape attempt planning to their advantage.

That night, Krebs is soon found standing outside one of the windows of Barracks 2, as he hears the start of a conversation between Newkirk, LeBeau and Carter, who are all talking about something that is suppose to happen the next night. After hearing the conversation, Krebs leaves, intending to stop what he believes to be an escape attempt. The next day he goes over to Carter, who is at the moment putting up some wet clothing on a clothesline. Carter, upon seeing Krebs, quickly apologizes for the squirting radio, claiming that he had no idea that the guys had made it to do that. Krebs accepts his apology, but then asks Carter if he knew anything about what had been talked about the previous night, like maybe an escape attempt. Carter instantly protests, saying that he has no intention of finking on his friends, although he then lets slip that if Krebs doesn't see him after tonight, it had been nice knowing him, almost confirming that there would indeed be an escape attempt that night. Krebs, satisfied by Carter's slip-up, then leaves, not realizing that he has once again been set up by the prisoners, since Carter's slip-up had been done intentionally.

Krebs that night enters Barracks 2, thinking that the escape would originate there. After walking into the barracks, he sees LeBeau with Newkirk, who is showing him a card trick. He then watch Newkirk take first one and then a second card from behind Krebs' back. Krebs is soon being shown some more magic tricks by Newkirk, which intrigues him, while also distracting him from realizing that his hunch about the escape attempt starting from Barracks 2 is right, as LeBeau, who had earlier left with Carter, Carter and Hogan quickly exits a window in Hogan's office with Kinch's help, before they head over to Schultz so that he would capture them. A short time later, Krebs hears the alarm sounding, announcing that an escape is in progress. Krebs immediately leaves the barracks, not seeing Newkirk and Kinch head over to the rising bed entrance so that Kinch would lead Winslow through the emergency tunnel so that he could meet up with the sub that would take him back to England. Krebs, on the run, soon reaches the fence, where he sees Schultz standing in front of Hogan, LeBeau and Carter, as they claim to Klink that their escape attempt had been stopped by him. As he does, he tells Klink that an escape is being made, which Klink already knew. He then hears Klink ask him where he has been. Krebs informs him that he has been in the barracks, as he had previously heard about the planned escape attempt and had thought that it would start from there. Krebs then hears an exasperated Klink inform him that it had been an obvious diversion and that what he saw before him is the real escape attempt. He is then informed by Klink that he is to be relieved of his duties and is to be sent back while Schultz is to be reinstated as the camp's Sergeant of the Guards. Krebs then hears Klink sings Schultz's praises, which adds insult to his injury. After he hears Klink tell Schultz that Hogan is to be confined to the barracks while Carter and LeBeau are to be placed in the cooler for two weeks, Krebs leaves with the other guards, trying to figure out what had gone wrong.