Stefan Von Spielzeug
Posted by: Berlin Fritz on 09 August 2004
Not a lot of people know this !
" That's another fine mess you've got me into "
"Das ist ein sch¿nes Schlamassel, in dem Du mich wieder gebracht hast *"
Luke Harding in Berlin
Monday August 9, 2004
The Guardian
They are affectionately known in Germany as Dick and Doof - Fat and Stupid.
But Laurel and Hardy, whose slapstick exploits have delighted generations of cinemagoers, had a previously unknown
talent, it emerged yesterday - they could speak German. A film newly discovered by archivists in Russia shows the
comedy duo cracking jokes in a language which neither of them apparently mastered.The 40-minute movie was entitled
Spuk um Mitternacht (Spook at Midnight) and was based on the English version, The Laurel and Hardy Murder Case. It
was premiered in Berlin in 1931, later disappearing for more than half a century. Yesterday the film museum in
Munich, which discovered the rare footage, said Laurel and Hardy had spoken German with the help of speech coaches.
Because dubbing was still difficult at the beginning of the sound era, their films were shot in various languages,
including French, Spanish and German. Supporting actors were replaced by native speakers, and the stars spoke their
lines phonetically. Wolfgang Günther, director of Germany's Laurel and Hardy museum, described the discovery as "an
absolute sensation". He said: "We've had inquires from Laurel and Hardy fans all over the world, wanting to see it.
"Laurel and Hardy spoke their lines by reading them off a board at the side of the stage. Fortunately, there wasn't
much dialogue. Their German accents were really appalling. You could tell immediately they weren't from Germany." Until
recently the only German-speaking piece they appeared in was a short trailer, but last week museum staff found the new
material while trawling through film archives in Moscow.The comedians enjoyed extraordinary popularity in Germany from
1927 onwards, and their films continued to be shown after the Nazis seized power. But in 1938 a trade ban prohibited
the German import of US films. At the end of the second world war the Red Army seized huge quantities of film from
Germany - including, it seems, the Laurel and Hardy print. In the post-war era Laurel and Hardy films were shown in
West Germany from the late 1940s onwards, and were revived on German TV in the 1960s. The film museum said many other
foreign language films starring Hollywood actors were made at the same time but had since disappeared. The two comedians
have never been known in Germany by their English names and have always been referred to lovingly as Dick and Doof,
originally spelled Dof. A Spanish version of the same film, Noche de Duendes, has recently been released on DVD.
The French equivalent is still missing. Spuk um Mitternacht will be screened next weekend in Bonn, and at the Munich
film museum in October. *Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into.
Stefan Von Spielzeug 
Special report
Germany
World news guide
Germany
Europe
Useful links
German government
German embassy in London
German embassy in Washington DC
Frankfurter Allgemeine (English version)
Deutsche Welle (in English)
Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German)
" That's another fine mess you've got me into "
"Das ist ein sch¿nes Schlamassel, in dem Du mich wieder gebracht hast *"
Luke Harding in Berlin
Monday August 9, 2004
The Guardian
They are affectionately known in Germany as Dick and Doof - Fat and Stupid.
But Laurel and Hardy, whose slapstick exploits have delighted generations of cinemagoers, had a previously unknown
talent, it emerged yesterday - they could speak German. A film newly discovered by archivists in Russia shows the
comedy duo cracking jokes in a language which neither of them apparently mastered.The 40-minute movie was entitled
Spuk um Mitternacht (Spook at Midnight) and was based on the English version, The Laurel and Hardy Murder Case. It
was premiered in Berlin in 1931, later disappearing for more than half a century. Yesterday the film museum in
Munich, which discovered the rare footage, said Laurel and Hardy had spoken German with the help of speech coaches.
Because dubbing was still difficult at the beginning of the sound era, their films were shot in various languages,
including French, Spanish and German. Supporting actors were replaced by native speakers, and the stars spoke their
lines phonetically. Wolfgang Günther, director of Germany's Laurel and Hardy museum, described the discovery as "an
absolute sensation". He said: "We've had inquires from Laurel and Hardy fans all over the world, wanting to see it.
"Laurel and Hardy spoke their lines by reading them off a board at the side of the stage. Fortunately, there wasn't
much dialogue. Their German accents were really appalling. You could tell immediately they weren't from Germany." Until
recently the only German-speaking piece they appeared in was a short trailer, but last week museum staff found the new
material while trawling through film archives in Moscow.The comedians enjoyed extraordinary popularity in Germany from
1927 onwards, and their films continued to be shown after the Nazis seized power. But in 1938 a trade ban prohibited
the German import of US films. At the end of the second world war the Red Army seized huge quantities of film from
Germany - including, it seems, the Laurel and Hardy print. In the post-war era Laurel and Hardy films were shown in
West Germany from the late 1940s onwards, and were revived on German TV in the 1960s. The film museum said many other
foreign language films starring Hollywood actors were made at the same time but had since disappeared. The two comedians
have never been known in Germany by their English names and have always been referred to lovingly as Dick and Doof,
originally spelled Dof. A Spanish version of the same film, Noche de Duendes, has recently been released on DVD.
The French equivalent is still missing. Spuk um Mitternacht will be screened next weekend in Bonn, and at the Munich
film museum in October. *Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into.
Stefan Von Spielzeug Special report
Germany
World news guide
Germany
Europe
Useful links
German government
German embassy in London
German embassy in Washington DC
Frankfurter Allgemeine (English version)
Deutsche Welle (in English)
Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German)