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so graduated Panama

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1968 what Drew you to the service uh I

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was

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drafted actually it was 3 days before

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our wedding which was kind of exciting

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we had everyone

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invited I got drafted in 71 and I got

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out in

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73 what rank were you uh spec for you

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were assigned to Berlin did you know

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what your assignment was going to be

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there well I was in I was in the

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infantry so it was the only uh I guess

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you'd say leg unit left you know most of

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them were mechanized or helicopters mhm

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so uh we uh we would uh go out and train

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and we went to like graphen beer

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hosenfeld um we went by truck through

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East Berlin and also train which was

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kind of exciting got to see the shiny

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boots on the Russian soldiers and they

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would like when we went through with

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trucks they would come to the back of

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the truck and count each weapon and call

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you off by name and then you you'd go

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through the Border it was I imagine it

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was

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pre-arranged Hitler East

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dut hit

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[Applause]

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Hitler defendant Rudolph

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h on the counts of the indictment

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on which you have been

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convicted the tribunal sentences you to

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imprisonment for

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life has served that life sentence and

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Spandau prison in

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Germany and at some point you get

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assigned to prison Duty yeah that what

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what it was is the four Allied Powers

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the way it was explained to me um France

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Russia Berlin and the United States

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would switch off a month at a time time

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and

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uh guard the prison one man

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and his own uh building it's a 100 room

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prison and he was there alone seemed

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kind of crazy to me but the

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uh company Commander explained it to us

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that

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uh all uh France the US and and uh

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Britain wanted to let him go but it was

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the only way for the Russians to get

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over the wall to look around so they

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wouldn't sign the papers wow

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yeah so you described what was spand

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what was that before was it you know I'm

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not I I thought they told me it was the

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SS an SS Barracks or whatever

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or

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compound but uh I'm not really sure it

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was it was a beautiful but what I the

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only thing I really remember is uh the

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hall always and like the restrooms and

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showers were all marble and it was

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really a beautiful building and then it

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had uh a wall around with towers and

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whatnot so literally had to do you have

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Tower guards for this one person it was

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kind of funny cuz they would give it an

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M16 with three

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bullets kind of like Barney F I guess

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yeah and then I had a couple tours at

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night and I still

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recall it it was quite dark and then you

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could they had the uh I guess you'd call

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it the yard lit up and I could hear H

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making you know like sounds out the

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windows like he was uh trying to I think

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he was losing his mind to tell you the

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truth but he was doing wolf whistles and

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whatnot but I never really got a chance

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to see him much but I read some place

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where he had a garden that yeah that

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they had it's like a walk a yard that

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they let him walk around and get get

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some exercise and the uh there was a

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rumor going around that in his Library

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which he had in the prison he would read

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about a different

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country and he would go and draw that

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outline in the sand out there in the

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yard and I I did see him out in the yard

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once and he was kind of running around

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acting crazy trying to you know get I

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guess marck

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us here you got it's bizarre you have a

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a contingent us contingent uh guarding a

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prison which was huge physical facility

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one guy did you kind of Wonder this is

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ridiculous right yeah that's what we all

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thought it was crazy but you know it was

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kind of easy Duty we were kind of glad

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that's the only time I did it is for

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about a month I I'm pretty sure it was a

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month yeah so what would happen during

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that month were you actually building it

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there or did you actually yeah we stayed

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right there y and I think it was my

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whole company if I remember right like

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there was quite a a ceremony I remember

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they gave us a special belt to wear and

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and uh when we took over it was kind of

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like a changing in the guards and they

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made it kind of a big deal out of

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that I guess uh the way they explained

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it to me also had a doctor a cook which

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was uh you know being I me I'm sure they

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got paid but he considered himself a

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hero he wouldn't he would not uh see his

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family it was against it was a disgrace

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for a German Wario to see his family if

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he was captured and he would not see him

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from what I

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understood he is the last inmate of

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spand prison in West Berlin where he

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dies at the age of 93 on August 17th

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1987 that's why I'm so thrilled to meet

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you because you saw and listened to

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Rudolph

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h