A page from Josef Mengele's sketchbook. Under the group of seated figures is written "He who works long lives long", a phrase reminiscent of the notorious signs that greeted arrivals at Auschwitz.
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One of the scariest and weirdest parts I've seen was how human the dictators really were. Both Stalin and Hitler were portrayed as jolly; Stalin was made to be an 'uncle' to soviet children, and Hitler had many pictures taken of him being gentle with animals and kids. That was of course not their true nature. While Hitler's secretary, Traudl Junge, confirmed that he infact was gentle with animals, including his German Shepherd 'Blondi', there is no reason to believe that. If you do believe it, you're being fooled by the propaganda machine, just as they intended. An example of an instance where these pigs were so "human" can be seen in the image above: Goebbels photobombing Hitler. It is strange to imagine that they had emotions as well. That they had the same biological structure as all others. I would rather not think about that.
2nd example, Goebbels skipping down the stairs. Why would he do such a thing at a rally if he loved being percieved as a powerful, fearless individual? This only emphasizes that he is impatient and short, making him seem unprofessional. Maybe he did it to show people that his clubfoot was not a huge bother to him. It is uncanny-- so many people that I know of--including me--skip down the stairs. Though it may seem like a mindless observaton, it's just interesting to think about, that's all.
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The Nuremberg Trials, 11/1945 - 10/1946. Goering, Hess, Jodl & Kaltenbrunner are seen laughing. Hess was considered a nutjob even among the other Nazis and while he would talk, Goering would often make fun of him for uttering ridiculous things and would laugh it off, trying to earn the Judges' chuckles and pity.
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Albert Speer's "Spandau, The Secret Diaries": Passages that stuck out to me.
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Hitler peeling a apple. He despised this image due to it reminding him of his farm life as a young child. He later had this picture and a load of other ones banned as he did not want society to view him as a farmboy. Note: He was a vegetarian starting from 1942, though he made some exceptions (ie dumplings).
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