Anecdotes

Is Germany's most successful comedian throughout the Seventies and Eighties and now again with the two Movies 7 Zwerge (2004) and 7 Zwerge - Der Wald ist nicht genug (2006). All record albums, books, live shows, a TV series and several theatrical movies all being major hits!.

In the course of his career, he released more than ten comedy albums in Germany, most of them going platinum with more than 500,000 copies sold.

In episode 2.2 "Le Cabinet Noir" of the French-German mystery-sci-fi-show "Aux Frontières Du Possible" one of the people on their way to attending a show shortly before the end of the episode is Otto Waalkes (way back then he was still unknown).

Otto Waalkes could already read at the age of three and a half.

Otto designed a postage stamp in 2017 showing one of his famous Ottifants.

At the age of 13, Otto had his first public performance in a department store. There, he performed the "Babysitter-Boogie" and won a shopping voucher and a book.

Once, the ARD (German public broadcaster) offered Otto to play a "Tatort" detective. He declined, saying that the audience wouldn't be able to take him seriously.

Otto once worked at the OTTO-Versand company. During his studies, he earned some extra money as an elevator operator. However, he was fired after just one week because he caused passengers to go to the wrong floor.

As a young man, Otto lived in the famous shared apartment community at the Hamburger Villa Kunterbunt with Marius Müller-Westernhagen and Udo Lindenberg, with whom he remained close friends and occasionally went on tour together. Just like his former flatmates, Otto released several successful albums. However, his first record, "Otto," a recording of his early live performances from the 1970s, was initially rejected by labels. So, he simply founded his own: "Rüssl Räckords." His courage paid off, as his debut album sold 500,000 copies.