The venerable Adolf Grimme Institute had no qualms in 1994: they awarded Herbert Feuerstein the Grimme Prize for the satirical program “Schmidteinander” he developed. From 1990 to 1994, Feuerstein and Harald Schmidt delivered one of the most creative and anarchic programs ever seen on German television.
Anyone who went as a guest to the show, which was first broadcast on WDR television and later on the ARD main program, had to reckon with everything: Schmidt was happy to present his interlocutors, such as Jessica Stockmann in 1993. It could also happen to a guest that he was simply left alone in the studio, which is what happened to Dieter Thomas Heck.
However, it was always entertaining. No wonder the programs are still very popular today and the WDR keeps digging them out of the archive. The old episodes can currently be seen again in the night program, the next time in the night from Monday to Tuesday. Although unabridged – but provided with a warning.
Schmidt and Feuerstein suffer the same fate as Otto Waalkes, whose shows from 1973 and 74 are also broadcast by WDR with a warning sign. “The following program is shown in its original form as part of the television story,” the viewer is informed. “It contains passages that are now considered discriminatory.”
Now the audience of “Schmidteinander” is being warned. But why actually – and from what? When asked by stern, WDR announced that before the broadcast of old programs from the archive, the content would be checked again by the editors. The editorial team, in consultation with the program planner, can come to the conclusion that a program should not be broadcast again.
“In the event of a broadcast, the programs will be shown in their original form and the content will not be deleted,” it said. However, it is not necessary to classify the context for the vast majority of programs from the archive. Only very rarely do you come across passages that can be perceived as discriminatory from today’s perspective, which makes classification necessary. “In these exceptional cases, we use information boards at the beginning of the show and classify the format accordingly.”
For “Schmidteinander” fans, this means that if they survive the ten-second warning, they can enjoy the old episodes unabridged and in full.
Harald Schmidt also seems to get over it. “World class! A real Schmidteinander gag,” the entertainer commented on the measure in the “Bild” newspaper. “It’s just a pity that the blessed Feuerstein didn’t experience that anymore.”
Source: WDR press office, “Bild” newspaper
