Labaule & Erben: Harald Schmidt invents raven-black satire series
Two men in suit and tie have a murder fun. The publishing patriarch Christian Labaule (Dietrich Hollinderbäumer) and his son and designated successor Gernot Labaule (Attila Georg Braun) race in good spirits next to each other, each on a Segway, towards an abyss. Whoever brakes first loses. Until the father asks the laughing son: "Where are the brakes?" But there it is already too late - and the chaotic disaster takes its course: The publishing house Labaule needs a new leadership.
So it happens that the absolutely worthless, but very harmless esthete Wolfram Labaule (Uwe Ochsenknecht) takes his inheritance and becomes a publisher. His previous life he spent mostly in the pool on a blue air mattress reading by Adalbert Stifter, or in the Jaguar vintage MK2, or in any literary jury.
He also wanted to do his doctorate "On the division of the subject in Austrian literature on the example of melancholy", but as far as the energy was unfortunately not enough. From the publishing and newspaper business he has not the slightest idea, does not matter, he's called Labaule. However, his good will always fails in a lousy world.
Satire mini-series now available in the ARD-Mediathek
Thus begins a raven-black satire on a publisher family from the province. The six-part mini-series "Labaule & Erben" is a must-see for the German media industry (from 10 January, 10 pm on SWR television and now in the ARD-Mediatheque). Uwe Ochsenknecht (62) shines in the role of the unworldly publisher Wolfram Labaule, Fassbinder star Irm Hermann (76) plays his intriguing mother.
The idea for "Labaule & Erben" was provided by Harald Schmidt (61). The "Dirty Harry" of the German media scene took German publishing companies as a role model and created the plot: "Schoengeistiger son of a publisher inherits a publisher, which he does not want, because: That was the time when it was here in Cologne, too the press went, 'there is a quarrel in the Dumont house between the father and the son' and then Hubert Burda, as he has said in numerous interviews that he has difficulties with his father in the beginning and so on, 'he told the' Germany Funk ".
He came to Labaule on a holiday in the fashionable French seaside resort of La Baule. And also the title "Labaule & Erben" is from him. "With Sat.1 it would have turned into something like: Wolfram, the publisher whore, because of the market research," said Schmidt in an interview with the "Süddeutsche Zeitung".
Guest role is conceivable
Harald Schmidt outlined his idea in a 13-page treatment and also largely fixed the characters. The scripts were written by the renowned author trio HaRiBo (Hanno Hackfort, Richard Kropf, Bob Konrad), who also supplied the book for "4 Blocks". Directed by Boris Kuntz ("Hindafing").
Harald Schmidt, who as cruise director Oskar Schifferle is firmly booked on the "dream ship", does not appear on "Labaule & Erben" himself. If a second season is turned for which he has concrete ideas, but he can certainly imagine a guest role.
