Otto Braml

Walter Gruber once belonged to a group of unscrupulous, money-grubbing poachers. Now released from prison, he is determined never to touch a gun again. He was imprisoned for poaching, but they couldn't prove he fired the shot that wounded forester Kuhnert. Upon his return home, Walter is horrified to discover that his former lover, Kuhnert's daughter Grete, has since married someone else. Grete still loves Walter, with whom she was pregnant. But her father would have made life a living hell for her and the child had she not married another man. This man, Robert Thiele, is still poaching and is extremely ruthless in his methods. Robert eventually blackmails Walter into rejoining the poachers. When the gang shoots the old forester Kuhnert, Robert shifts suspicion onto Walter.

Nora, the wife of the architect Heinz Ottendorf, feels neglected by her husband. He is getting more and more engrossed in his work, but Nora, apparently a stranger to hard work, suspects that the real reason for her husband's diverted attention must naturally be another woman. Robert, the cousin of Nora's friend Marianne, has long been in love with Nora and sees an opportunity to win her hand. Heinz, for all his distractions in his work and the phantom lover he doesn't have, isn't quite ready to let Nora go. While he may be married to his work, his work is a fickle mistress: he makes a career error and this leads to near financial ruin. He begs Nora to be patient with him. Marianne, who for her part is in love with Heinz, spins a web of deceit and intrigue, which leads to Robert taking a potshot at Heinz and then eventually causing Robert to kill himself.

The Minerva Mines Company is interested in transporting two particularly valuable diamonds from Cape Town to Amsterdam. To confuse potential thieves, two detectives are sent on two different ships with steel suitcases and they have no clue whether they’re carrying pebbles or diamonds. Nevertheless, a collection of questionable characters come on board both ships. The hunt for the diamonds begins; the suitcases are stolen; everyone is suspect.

Already a famous painter, Rembrandt van Rijn is commissioned to paint the Amsterdam Archers' Guild. But upon completion of the picture, the men of the guild feel duped, because they don't consider themselves flatteringly depicted in the painting. They therefore decline to pay for the work. During this dispute, the painter finds out his wife is close to death. He finds himself terribly lonely after her passing and suffers from depression until he decides once more to marry.

In a theme reminiscent of the classic Greek comedy Lysistrata by Aristophanes, wives and sweethearts in a Bavarian village agree to withhold sex from their men, as long as the men keep spending time with a new waitress at the inn.

Sabine Heitmann, the young boss for the shipping company Heitmann, has become friends with Michael, the First Officer and Helmsman of the ship, the "Sabine Heitmann". He only knows Sabine by her first name and doesn't know that she's the boss. When he discovers the fact, however, he gets pissed and refuses to accept his promotion to Captain. Then the shipping company gets a lucrative offer: In a competition with another shipping company, they need to reach Baltimore in 18 days and pick up some freight. Whoever can move their rear ends faster, gets the very profitable contract from an American firm (correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't this sort of thing sink the Titanic?). Together with Michael, Sabine comes up with a plan, which should have them win the contest. The upshot? She wins back his heart and he becomes Captain.

The physician Dr. Deruga is suspected of having poisoned his wife out of greed. She died after naming Deruga, poor and in debt, the sole heir in her will. There are a lot of people willing to testify against him in court, including Marta, the dead woman's best friend. Only his niece Mingo believes him to be innocent and goes out on her own to prove it.

A horse trader from Berlin, once a farmer in Southwest Africa, manages to drive his children out of the house and anger his wife. After serious complications with his heart, which he tried to hide at first, he realizes how much he needs the love and support of his family. The oldest son returns from Argentina and proves his abilities.