Some of the concept art in the Art Of Star Wars book is a little bit creepy. There was definitely a WWII influence of the look and feel of the Empire from the beginning.
I’m always amused when I spot actors who played imperials in the OT playing Germans in WWII movies, or Russians in Cold War movies. Talk about typecasting!
Alec Guinness playing the title role in Hitler : The Last Ten Days is way too creepy though.