The alcohol flows freely: for many, this is the essence of New Year’s Eve. In that respect, it makes sense that ProSieben is now apparently setting up a new New Year’s Eve tradition in which two drunken chaotic people laugh at each other about the consequences of their actions. Because today On New Year’s Eve, ProSieben will show a very free remake of the cult classic “Silvester für Eins” from 8.15 pm.Dinner for one“.
Joko Winterscheidt and Klaas Heufer-Umlauf take on the role of tipsy butler James and his boss Miss Sophie. The comedy special premiered exactly one year ago, so it’s still a long way from the original in terms of staying power.
Behind the scenes of a remake of a cult sketch
Due to the high cult status of “Dinner For One”, the new editions and imitations of the English-language sketch are piling up. “Silvester für Eins” differs from them because the special is to some extent a making of an unfinished “Dinner For One” remake with Joko and Klaas.
To explain: as part of the primetime show “Joko & Klaas versus ProSieben”, the duo always plays for the right to win 15 minutes of live broadcast. Joko and Klaas then use them, for example, to clarify grievances or cause chaos, for example by pulling plugs from ProSieben’s broadcast center until the distress signal for technical problems has to be sent out.
However, when Joko and Klaas lose in the game show “Joko & Klaas versus ProSieben”, they are forced into actions. Also “Silvester für Eins” was a punishment for the failure of the star moderators in an edition of “Joko & Klaas versus ProSieben”.
Originally it was said that they should just recreate the iconic sketch. However, a beast of its own turbulent entertainment was delivered: The approximately 23-minute special shows that Joko and Klaas arrive on set already drunk and their producer Thomas Schmitt, who is part of the “Baywatch Berlin” podcast, get on their nerves.
Presenter, film critic and voice actor Steven Gätjen, who plays the role of emcee opening “Dinner For One”, is also thrown off balance by the drunks. Another baffled eyewitness to the confusion is TV editor Jakob Lundt, who is also a member of “Baywatch Berlin”.
This leads to the development of foreign embarrassment, dark instances of miscommunication, and drunken situational comedy. It blurs the line between the slapstick that comes with “Dinner For One” and the blunders that happen when people don’t just pretend to drink too much. To what extent this blurring of fiction and reality was part of the concept from the start remains the secret of the responsible Florida production company.
Because when she’s not making films like the slow-motion moving drama “Mittagsstunden”, the entertainment forge is primarily responsible for Joko and Klaas formats and likes to practice film references, meta humor and playing with media conventions.
The “Dinner For One” cult
The basis for “Silvester für Eins” was written for British theaters and premiered several decades before its German TV debut. The sketch about a 90th birthday first reached Germany in 1963: “Dinner For One” was played live during the “Guten Abend, Peter Frankenfeld” animation program. and caused such a euphoric response that plans for the future were made in the same year.
May Warden, who played Miss Sophie, and Freddie Frinton, aka Butler James, again recorded a performance of the play, this time with a foreword by Heinz Piper, who explained the plot to an audience that did not know English. It is this version that has become a cultural asset in Germany that many people miss on New Year’s Eve worse than sparkling wine, fireworks and marzipan pigs.
However, the constellation between the end of the year and “Dinner For One” didn’t happen right away: The recording “Dinner For One” was sporadically shown on German television from 1963, when program planners wanted to close a gap of about 20 minutes.
Since 1972, so for 50 years, New Year’s Eve and “Dinner For One” are one heart and one soul: The high-proof birthday party was so well received by the TV audience, wanting hearty laughs at the end of the year, that the skit became an integral part of the TV program for December 31. He is such an attitude that he can be seen on multiple channels every New Year’s service, sometimes several times a day on the same channel.
As a result, Comey’s contribution entered the Guinness Book of Records as early as 1988: “Dinner For One” is the world’s most repeated television productionand year after year, the skit builds on its record.