RIP Loriot (German comedian dies at 87)

Cafe Society
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I’m not sure if this means anything to anyone outside of Germany, but yesterday we lost the greatest comedian this country has ever known. Vicco von Bülow, or Loriot, as he was known, lived to be 87 years old and will be missed by all generations.

For everyone who thinks Germans have no humor, I give you Das schiefe Bild (The slanted picture frame), a 3 minute clip that requires no knowledge of German. It’s quite old, but timeless.

This is a sad day for humor. I’m thankful he left us with all his timeless classic skits and cartoons. Rest in peace!

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Not to talk ill of the dead but… I didn’t know Germany had comedians.

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Well, we do, and he certainly was the best among them. Most of his stuff probably doesn’t translate very well since it deals with language, societal hangups and errors in communication. In Germany, his fame and reputation is probably similar to the Pythons.

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Moved MPSIMS --> Cafe Society.

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Oh, dear. His film Pappa ante Portas was the first German movie that I watched after moving to Germany and I thought he was just hilarious. Here’s another grand clip, labeled in English: - YouTube

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But ve haff very funny jokes! “There were zwei peanuts, walking down the Straße, und one was a salted… peanut”

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This: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KURF72MtJjk might also work for those who don’t speak a lot of German.

R.I.P. Bernhard Victor Christoph Carl von Bülow

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Ach, Loriot.

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This week’s cover of Germany’s major news magazine.

He will be missed.

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Missed very much indeed. Basically everyone I know is spending their free time nostalgically watching Loriot skits. His was a voice of refined humour amidst a torrent of coarse Mario Barths and Oliver Pochers.

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Mops, just a quick question, is your user name inspired by his love for those furry little creatures?

Also, I think I’m gonna have to buy that Spiegel.

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Thanks, Pitchmeister, for this thread. Here’s what Dieter Wedel (German director) once commented about German sense of humor:

It’s a pity that Loriot’s art translates not well, but it’s exactly its prevalent inherent ridicule of very German characteristics that makes it so great, but hard to get for the rest of the world.

Furthermore, I can’t think of another artist who’s universally loved the way Loriot is in Germany, including by everyone who worked with him, although he is reported to have been a perfectionist to the highest degree. But he always was a gentleman, and I have never heard or read about anyone talking bad about him, which is a rare case in show business.

He already became a German classic in his lifetime. and I’m sure there will be people hundred years from now who’ll laugh about “Ein Klavier, ein Klavier” or “Früher war mehr Lametta”.