Gisela Schlüter

Blonde, lanky comedienne, singer, dancer and cabaret artist: a genuine original and all-round entertainer. This daughter of a professional soldier first aspired to be a dancer, but, at 1.76 metres, was deemed as being too tall. Gisela found consolation in taking acting classes. Her tutor, the renowned stage actor Erich Ponto, was quick to recognise her unique comic potential. In due course, Gisela made her breakthrough in revues and cabaret at the Scala, the 'Kabarett der Komiker' and the 'Berliner Komödie', where she came into her own with that distinctive gift of gab known as 'Berliner Schnauze'. She also dabbled in film acting with small roles in Richard Eichberg's Das indische Grabmal (1938) and The Tiger of Eschnapur (1938). After a lengthy absence from the screen, Gisela found a wider audience and enduring popularity on television as hostess of the long-running variety show Zwischenmahlzeit (1963) in which she sang, danced, performed sketches and featured prominent guests. Known under the sobriquet of "Quasselstrippe" (which translates to 'motormouth' or 'chatterbox'), Gisela became nationally famous for her staccato delivery (a staggering 492 syllables per minute!) and once proudly claimed: "Anybody, who thinks they can get a word in edgeways hasn't been born yet".