Quartett im Bett (1968)

Quartett im Bett (subtitle: “Clap, Clap, Little Thighs—Grandpa Wants a Grandchild”) is set in West Berlin in the summer of 1968. The spirit of the times is portrayed through several musical quartets. The loafers Ingo, Jürgen, Peter and Karl, played by the Insterburg & Co. quartet, roam the courtyards of Kreuzberg, fooling around. They pass the time with comic poems, building instruments, and their mutual girlfriend. In contrast, the four Saxon sisters Johanna, Rosemarie, Eva and Hannelore, together with their poodles, represent the glittering world of show business. At the start of their tour of Germany, they are even received at Schöneberg Town Hall. Eventually, the two mismatched quartets perform together at the Congress Hall, until the women’s manager separates them from the men again. A third quartet, also played by Insterburg & Co., appears as four Arab sheikhs, who are shown official Berlin. What particularly catches their fancy, however, is the sex trade, where they shop by the basketful. At the end, speech bubbles proclaiming that they are Berliners appear as they board their plane again.