Operation Hummingbird - The Answer to Traitors & Degenerates

 

BLOG'S COMMENT : 30th of June marks the beginning of Unternehmen Kolibri (English : Operation Hummingbird) that took place in the year 1934. It was the true National Socialist answer to the traitors, degenerates and other poisonous elements within the NSDAP that now was on the leadership of Germany.  Few weeks later Adolf Hitler, side by side with the new SA leader Viktor Lutze delivers the following speech at Nuremberg.

Unternehmen Kolibri must be remembered not only for the bravery of the dedicated National Socialists who saved the Party and Germany from falling into chaos and anarchy, but also as a reminder and historical example that oftenly in between comrades and fighters are parasites and opportunists that must crushed and ostracized from the very beginning.

Adolf Hitler – speech before the SA and the SS

Nürnberg, September 9, 1934

Men of the SA and SS!

For the fourth time in the history of the Party, the SA and the SS have assembled

here. Twelve months ago as a sign of having gained power in the State! Today, to

testify that this process was carried on and completed! Today, the power of the

German Reich lies in our hands. The National Socialist Movement is today the master of

Germany. In the twelve months lying behind us, we took possession over one position after

another. No one who is willing to open his eyes can believe that this regime can be eliminated

or that it would even consider stepping down of its own accord.

But these twelve months also comprised a period of hard work within the National

Socialist Movement itself. When I decided to convene another Party Congress after such a

short time in order to summon you, my comrades in the SA and SS, to this place, I did it for a

particular reason. A few months ago, a dark shadow was cast over the Movement. Many of

our opponents believed that they could see the day approaching on which the power of the

National Socialist Party would perhaps come to an end. I have summoned you to this place,

my comrades, in order to document three things:

1. the SA had as little to do with this shadow as any other institution in the Party;

2. in order to demonstrate to everyone that my relationship to you, my comrades, is the

same as it has been for fourteen years; and

3. in order to show our enemies that the Party stands firm and that its SA and its SS

stand firm as guarantors of the National Socialist Revolution.

They are all mistaken, those who believe that even a single crack has appeared in the

structure of our Movement. It is standing as solidly as this block here! And it will be broken

by nothing in Germany. If someone sins against the spirit and purpose of our Movement, if he

sins against the spirit of my SA, this shall not affect the SA, but those very persons who dared

to sin against it.

We have lined up for this roll call not only to demonstrate how indestructibly solid the

structure of the Movement and its organization is, but also to demonstrate how it continues to

be filled by the spirit of loyalty, of discipline and of obedience, and in order to assign 126

standards to the SA and 57 standards to the SS.

These new ensigns of the Movement will now join forces with the great columns of our

old standards. You will put them at your fore and follow them loyally as you have the old.

These ensigns will serve to remind you of what made you great. You will remember the

long years of difficult battles, of sacrifices, when it seemed almost impossible that we would

be able to conquer the State. And you will recall the great persistence during the time of

struggle which was required to wage this battle for Germany. You will learn from this the lesson that we must not allow what once enabled us to be victorious to desert us after the

victory, but must hold fast today even more than in the past to the virtues of old.

SA members and SA leaders have no choice but to be loyal, obedient, disciplined,

modest, and willing to sacrifice-for otherwise they are not men of the SA.

Holding fast to these virtues of old will not only make our power indestructible; it will

also mean that the resurrection of the German Volk will continue to have an effect far into the

future. For we are not simply a manifestation of months or years; what has come about in

these fifteen years shall live on for centuries.

Only a lunatic or a deliberate liar can claim that I or anyone else ever entertained the

thought of dissolving what we ourselves have built up in long years. My comrades, we now

stand firmly united for our Germany, and we must stand united for this Germany. 

We want to continue to strengthen the Movement in the years ahead of us by more strongly than before

consolidating the individual organizations and fusing them together to form a single whole.

Our flag shall truly fly over a single and unified Movement. That is our goal.

And if we work toward this goal, no one will dare to put up resistance or oppose this

organization, the most tremendous of its kind in German history.

Thus I assign to you the new ensigns in the conviction that I am placing them in the

most loyal hands in all of Germany.

In times past, you have proven your loyalty to me a thousand times over.

In times to come, this cannot and will not change.

Hence let me now welcome you as my old and loyal men of the SA and SS: Sieg Heil!

An Artist at The Bridge of Death....

 

KEN KELLY 

19 May 1946 - 3 june 2022

A DRAGON'S KISS 

by 

David Priol

While fantasy art has existed for centuries, it was really the birth of both fantasy comics and modern fantasy literature, which has seen this genre become an integral part of our modern culture. Fantasy art has also melded strongly with science fiction writing and Film/TV generated sci-fi to shape a genre, which now possesses more categories than any other art form. Indeed, this genre is only limited by the imaginations of the artists who both explore and constantly push the boundaries of the fantasy world. 

     One of the field’s foremost exponents is American artist, Ken Kelly. Beginning in the 70s (after a stint in the Marines) Ken’s art covers styles as divergent as rock legends, Kiss to Conan the Barbarian and Tarzan. Ken has created a legion of mythical characters drawn from the pages of the world’s finest fantasy writers, not to mention his own voracious imagination. You can also put Ken to the test by offering your own ideas and then watch Ken employ his imagination to create a one-of-kind work of art. A genuine workaholic, Ken often simultaneously labors over a half dozen different paintings, projects and ideas. Organized chaos would be an apt description for this artist, who probably puts as many hours into his art now as he did thirty years ago.

Ken began drawing as a toddler, tagging every blank surface in sight. Later, he would have an art teacher at school that taught him throughout Grade and High School. However, it was surely that Dylanesque twist of fate, which would eventually make painting his life’s work. With the untimely death of his father, Ken got to know his uncle, more closely. Until his father’s wake Ken had known little about Frank Frazetta, the artist, but in Ken’s own words, Frank “acknowledged me as an adult and asked me to show him what I could do art wise. And that’s what started it all.”

     This fine artist, whose own brilliant career had began back in the mid-40s, soon took Ken under his wing and helped to develop his talent over a five year period. Frank Frazetta was at the height of his career at the time he was helping Ken explore his latent talents. You can see Frank’s influence where he retouched the face on Vampirella #6 which happened to be Ken’s very first commission at Warren Publishing. Again, it was Frank who got Ken’s foot in at the door to work for Jim Warren. Ken worked at Warren for several years and while the pay was fairly abysmal, the chance to learn his tradecraft provided its own reward. At least, until projects like the famous KISS paintings finally encouraged Ken to go out on his own. The KISS assignment also went a long way to really establishing his name internationally. Ken described this project quite simply, “I had a ball!!!” Ken did three paintings for them, although the original Destroyer canvas remains unpublished.

     Of course, the four years Ken spent in the Marines (1965-68) traveling the globe and observing amazing places from China to the Mediterranean gave Ken many insights and experiences, which he could bring to the canvas. As it was, he also received preferred status during his enlistment and worked on various Service publications due to his ability at line art. These influences can be seen in various series like The Gatekeeper & Feline Warriors. One painting often takes a fortnight’s preparation followed by another fortnight of actual painting, and the attention to detail is nothing short of sublime, Death Grip being a case in point.

     Versatility is also a keyword in Ken Kelly’s CV. Not only has Ken completed more than 700 works, but also he has completed a Howard Calendar, published two art books and worked for the Mego (and various other companies) painting their Micronauts. Many people who are not familiar with Ken’s fantasy work will have often seen his Famous Monsters covers, with subjects like The Fly based upon that classic 50s film. When Ken creates a book cover, he usually reads the unpublished manuscript and creates a scene, which captures the essence of the story “without giving away the entire storyline.” At one stage, Ken was simultaneously creating covers for Horseclans, the DAW books and the Conan series. Of all these works, the Howard Calendar hurts the most as Ken succinctly puts it, “I really put my heart into them. When the release date got screwed up, it really hurt. I felt it for years.” 

     Today, you will find a number of Ken Kelly’s canvasses have found their way into museums, or come under the hammer at grand auction houses likes of Sotheby’s and Christies, as well as being exhibited at numerous private galleries across the globe.

  The Internet has seen a huge growth in fantasy art mainly because of the accessibility it provides for both artists and fans to interact. The Net also allows the public to view a thousand-fold styles, which now make up this startling genre without even having to leave the comfort of their computer room.  Where once fine art was restricted to the rich, the intellectuals or to those with access to galleries and expensive magazines, now anyone can view/study/appreciate/purchase art for the cost of a basic computer system. The work of Ken Kelly is a case in point. Anyone with access to the web can find Ken’s brilliant website: www.kenkellyart.com.  Ken’s site is a world within a world of fantastic heroes and equally fantastic scenes, where colour and fury, adventure and drama know no bounds.