Piazzale Loreto nearby Piazza Argentina. The Piazzale Loreto was the scene of the public execution of 15 Italian partisans on 10 August 1944, hand picked by Theo Saevecke, head of the Gestapo in Milan, as a reprisal for a partisan attack on a German military convoy. The executed were left on display for a number of days. Piazzale Loreto was the scene of one of the best-known events in the modern history of Italy, namely the public display of Benito Mussolini's corpse on 29 April 1945. The day before, Mussolini, his mistress Clara Petacci and some other high-ranking Fascists had been captured
The Great Dictator the West was lost. Chaplin, on the other hand, laughed uproariously at the film. He used it to inspire many elements of "The Great Dictator", and by repeatedly viewing this film, Chaplin could closely mimic Hitler's mannerisms. Trimborn suggests that Chaplin decided to proceed with making "The Great Dictator" after viewing Riefenstahl's film. Hynkel's rally speech near the beginning of the film, delivered in German-sounding gibberish, is a caricature of Hitler's oratory style, which Chaplin also studied carefully in newsreels. The film was directed by Chaplin (with his half-brother Wheeler Dryden as assistant director), and written and produced by Chaplin.