Swiss Comedy by the Schmirinskis

Yesterday, I stumbled upon a youtube video of two Swiss comedians the 'Schmirinkis'. Even though they ended their career as comedians, Stefan Schmidlin and Rene Rindlisbacher are still two of the most popular comedians in Switzerland. Whereas Schmidlin has pulled back from the public, Rindlisbacher was hosting a game show on Swiss television called "The Million Trap" (Die Millionenfalle) for a while.

If you're not from Switzerland, chances are you have never heard of the Schmirinskis. Much like the Swiss tv series 'Fascht e Familie', they were and are popular almost exclusively in Switzerland and its Swiss German speaking audiences. Who were the Schmirinkis?

The name "Schmirinskis" is made up of the first few letters of the two comedian's last names Schmidlin and Rindlisbacher.
Schmirisnkis are famous for getting into staged fights while performing. The fight usually starts when they start discussing which of them the better comedian or better looking man is.
Their on-stage programs (as opposed to televised programs) usually included a medley of popular and well-known German and English songs.
Schmidlin is extremely athletic, he was a gymnast before becoming a comedian.
They won the prestigious Prix Walo (Swiss Showbiz Award) for their show "Top of Switzerland".

In order to give you a taste of what the Schmirinkis were like, I added this video. Since it is shadow theater you will have no troubles getting the gist of it even if you don't speak Swiss German!

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