Charlie Schneider
Encyclopedia
Charlotte 'Charlie' Schneider is a fictional character
from the German
soap opera
Verbotene Liebe
, portrayed by actress Gabriele Metzger. She made her first appearance on screen in the series premiere on 2 January 1995. Together with Konrad Krauss, who plays Arno Brandner
, Metzger is the only remaining original cast member.
, played by Isa Jank. She is rarely seen in the beginning and then only as sidekick of Clarissa. She is the one to whom Clarissa can talk and the only one with whom Clarissa is really honest about everything. Charlie doesn't judge her no matter what and even supports Clarissa with her lies and schemes. It's also revealed that Charlie has a thing for younger men when she leaves a party of the Anstetten family in the company of a man, saying to Clarissa that she has plans with him for the night. The character of Charlie Schneider is also an adaption of the character on Sons & Daughters
named Charlie Barlett, played by Sarah Kemp
. The original and the adaption share a similar minor role during the show's early months, before they both emerge as key characters.
, played by Kristina Dörfer
, arrives in 2006 and blackmails her aunt with one of her old mistakes. In scenes with Olivia we see more of Charlie's old self. When the secret [that she paid the ex-girlfriend of her younger brother to get an abortion] comes out, she later forgives Olivia for her blackmail and leaves her old self once again in the past.
, played by Miriam Lahnstein
. She invested too much time in her relationship with Johannes von Lahnstein
, played by Thomas Gumpert
, when he wasn't ready for a new love in his life. As time goes by, Charlie tries to give up on love. But then Bernd von Beyenbach
, played by Ron Holzschuh, seems to have true feelings for her. At first he is only after her money, but honestly begins to fall for her. But when Bernd cheats on her with Olivia, she breaks up with him. Bernd hopes for her forgiveness - with success. Charlie tries to speak with him before Bernd leaves town, but by then he is already gone. After this heartbreak, Charlie is once again shown as a woman how loves uncomplicated affairs, however long they last. With this side of Charlie, the viewers see parts of her old self in her again. When Sascha Göbel, played by Tobias Fries, is introduced, Charlie gets involved with him, yet another younger man. But Sascha wants to get serious with Charlie and has genuine feelings for her. Charlie doesn't trust men anymore and she dumps him, not believing that it could work out. Even though she ended it, Charlie is left heartbroken once again. Then the character takes a drastic turn, when Stella Mann, played by Anne Wis, is introduced and shows interest in Charlie. This begins the build up to a lesbian
relationship between Stella and Carla von Lahnstein
, played by Claudia Hiersche
, that gets more serious with time. This is a plotline of which many viewers disapprove, showing Charlie as a woman with a depressing past with men that is pushed into a potential love affair with another woman.
, played by Yvonne Burbach, becomes Charlie's new best friend. Charlie develops as good soul and loyal friend to Cécile and also to Clarissa's stepson Henning
, last played by Patrick Fichte. She is shown as someone who likes to play amour and a very good listener. Charlie also becomes friends with other characters, most notable Arno Brandner
, played by Konrad Krauss and Elisabeth von Lahnstein
, played by Martina Servatius. In 2008, Charlie becomes friends with Nathalie von Lahnstein
, played by Jenny Winkler, a woman that had committed a hit and run by Charlie. Also involved in this was her friend Elisabeth, who kept Nathalie's crime as a secret. Charlie forgives both of them, which once again shows the mentioned weakness in her personality.
Charlie begins an affair with David McNeal and falls in love with him. They get into a relationship, but when Charlie's worst enemy, Tanja von Anstetten, who was supposed to be dead, returns, and wants to get back at Charlie. She threatens her with her life and begins an affair with David. Tanja makes sure Charlie finds out about it and Charlie catches David with Tanja in bed. Charlie breaks up with him, but Tanja isn't finished with her old "friend" - she wants to drive Charlie crazy. And her plans work, as not even her brother Lars
(Herbert Ulrich) eventually believes or trusts her anymore. Charlie engages a professional murderer who should kill Tanja. But she already knows about Charlie's plan and blackmails her. Charlie has to give her all of her possessions and Charlie ends up working at the No Limits.
But Charlie wins everything back, reopens the Schneiders and is very happy when her nephew Oliver Sabel
(Jo Weil
) comes back to town from working as a steward on cruise ships for a few years. He finds out Charlie hasn't the best relationship with Olivia
and he wants to change that. He finds out that Olivia slept with Charlie's fiancé Bernd von Beyenbach. But when Olivia tells him that she regrets that, Oliver wants to help make peace between them. But what Oliver doesn't know is that Olivia is blackmailing her aunt about a secret from her past. Then Charlie finds out that Olivia faked a pregnancy and made Andi Fritzsche
(Dominic Saleh-Zaki) and Ansgar von Lahnstein
(Wolfram Grandezka
) each believe they are the father of the baby. Olivia warns Charlie not to tell anyone about that. But she can't shut her mouth and gives Andi a hint. When Olivia finds out that Charlie is partially responsible for Andi leaving her, she wants to get back at her. Olivia tells everyone that Charlie paid Lars' ex-girlfriend to have an abortion years ago. Lars breaks ties with his sister and Charlie is left heartbroken. Oliver tries to help his aunt and sets up a big family reunion. Lars forgives his sister for the mistake she made years ago and Charlie is even willing to forgive Olivia. Since then, Charlie has a good relationship with Olivia and again with her brother Lars.
In fall of 2008, Charlie starts dating again. She meets the young and attractive Sascha Göbel (Tobias Fries) in a gallery, which she visits with her good friend Elisabeth
(Martina Servatius). Charlie tries to take things slowly and doesn't want to rush in anything because of her history with men. But Sascha really seems like a nice guy and Oliver and Olivia seem to like him too. But when Charlie sees Sascha with Olivia, old memories come back to her mind and she thinks about how her relationship with Bernd turned out. Charlie gets a little paranoid and assumes that Sascha is flirting with Olivia. He isn't and tells Charlie that he wants her and even confesses his love to her. But this is too much for Charlie and she tells him she isn't ready to say it back to him yet. Sascha is okay with it, but things get more complicated when he becomes more and more an important part in Charlie's life. Thinking that she isn't ready for a serious relationship, she ends things with Sascha.
Single again, Charlie enjoys her life and is invited to a masked ball at Castle Königsbrunn. Set up to dance with Eduard von Tepp (Hubertus Regout
), she soon needs to see that he is a boring character. When Eduard wants to have another dance with Charlie, Stella Mann rescues her. Charlie thanks Stella and has a nice chat with her before she decides to leave the ball. But her driver is already gone. Stella offers her to take her home. The two ladies end up in the Schneiders, have another glass of champagne and dance together.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Verbotene Liebe
Verbotene Liebe
Verbotene Liebe , often abbreviated to VL, is a Rose d'Or Award-winning German television soap opera. The show was created by Reg Watson and first broadcast on Das Erste on 2 January 1995...
, portrayed by actress Gabriele Metzger. She made her first appearance on screen in the series premiere on 2 January 1995. Together with Konrad Krauss, who plays Arno Brandner
Arno Brandner
Arno Brandner is a fictional character on German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character is portrayed since the show's debut on January 2, 1995 by actor Konrad Krauss.-Background:...
, Metzger is the only remaining original cast member.
Introduction
Charlie is introduced as a secondary character and best friend of Clarissa von AnstettenClarissa von Anstetten
Clarissa von Anstetten is a fictional character on German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character was played by actress Isa Jank from the show's debut on January 2, 1995 to September 5, 2001. Jank left the show after a disagreement with the producers...
, played by Isa Jank. She is rarely seen in the beginning and then only as sidekick of Clarissa. She is the one to whom Clarissa can talk and the only one with whom Clarissa is really honest about everything. Charlie doesn't judge her no matter what and even supports Clarissa with her lies and schemes. It's also revealed that Charlie has a thing for younger men when she leaves a party of the Anstetten family in the company of a man, saying to Clarissa that she has plans with him for the night. The character of Charlie Schneider is also an adaption of the character on Sons & Daughters
Sons and Daughters (Australian TV series)
Sons and Daughters was a Logie Award winning Australian soap opera created by Reg Watson and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation between 1981 and 1987. The first episode aired in December 1981, during the Christmas/New Year non-ratings period, and the official broadcast date of the final...
named Charlie Barlett, played by Sarah Kemp
Sarah Kemp
Sarah Kemp is an actress best known for starring in the Australian soap opera Sons and Daughters, playing the highly popular but rather dizzy character, Charlie Bartlett, from 1982 to 1987....
. The original and the adaption share a similar minor role during the show's early months, before they both emerge as key characters.
Personality
Charlie is a dizzy socialite in the beginning that loves it to gossip about everything and everyone. She has a taste for younger men, even though she wants something more in life. With time, we find Charlie often as the tragicomic character of the show. While she entertains us with her love to gossip and some embarrassing situations, Charlie is also a character that has tragic moments when it comes to her relationship. Her belief in love and the desire for something more puts her in relationships with lousy men, who hurt her sooner or later. Even though she supports Clarissa's schemes in the beginning, Charlie later becomes a very warm and hearty person. She is also a very forgiving woman, which can also be her biggest weakness.Development
Upon her arrival, Charlie was quickly established as gossip factory, a characteristic she keeps through to the years. But Charlie is also a character that goes through changes in her personality. Always shown on-screen and mentioned, she deals with her past and the person she has become now. While she is Clarissa's "partner in crime" in the beginning of the show, she develops as a participant, before Charlie becomes a good soul that helps others. But that her past can never be rewritten is shown when her niece OliviaOlivia Schneider
Olivia Schneider is a fictional character on German soap opera Verbotene Liebe portrayed by actress and singer Kristina Dörfer from December 29, 2006 to September 24, 2009.- Character's background :...
, played by Kristina Dörfer
Kristina Dörfer
Kristina Dörfer, also known by the stage name KR!S or Kris, is a German singer and television actress.-Biography:...
, arrives in 2006 and blackmails her aunt with one of her old mistakes. In scenes with Olivia we see more of Charlie's old self. When the secret [that she paid the ex-girlfriend of her younger brother to get an abortion] comes out, she later forgives Olivia for her blackmail and leaves her old self once again in the past.
Love in Charlie's life
In the beginning, Charlie is shown as a woman who loves it to have affairs with younger men. With time, Charlie tries for something more; she wants to find love and even a husband. She fails miserably a few times. Most of the men seem to fall in love with Charlie's wealth instead with her. Others betray Charlie, like David McNeal, played by Sam Eisenstein, who cheated on her with Tanja von AnstettenTanja von Anstetten
Tanja von Lahnstein is a fictional character from the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe , played by actress Miriam Lahnstein. She made her first appearance on-screen on 21 June 1995 and left after three years in May 1998. Lahnstein returned to the role in 2001, where she was seen from 24 April to...
, played by Miriam Lahnstein
Miriam Lahnstein
Miriam Lahnstein is a German actress.In 1995, Miriam came to the "Das Erste-Soap "Verbotene Liebe". She played the villain Tanja von Anstetten from 1995 until 1998...
. She invested too much time in her relationship with Johannes von Lahnstein
Johannes von Lahnstein
Johannes von Lahnstein is a fictional character on the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character was portrayed by actor Thomas Gumpert from September 23, 2003 to January 9, 2008.-Storylines:...
, played by Thomas Gumpert
Thomas Gumpert
Thomas Gumpert is a German actor.He studied acting from 1972 to 1976 in Leipzig.Since 2003, he played the role of the patriarch Johannes von Lahnstein in the soap opera Verbotene Liebe.-Theater:...
, when he wasn't ready for a new love in his life. As time goes by, Charlie tries to give up on love. But then Bernd von Beyenbach
Bernd von Beyenbach
Bernhard 'Bernd ' Konstantin Ferdinand von Beyenbach is a fictional character on the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character was portrayed by Ron Holzschuh from March 19, 2003 to February 13, 2007...
, played by Ron Holzschuh, seems to have true feelings for her. At first he is only after her money, but honestly begins to fall for her. But when Bernd cheats on her with Olivia, she breaks up with him. Bernd hopes for her forgiveness - with success. Charlie tries to speak with him before Bernd leaves town, but by then he is already gone. After this heartbreak, Charlie is once again shown as a woman how loves uncomplicated affairs, however long they last. With this side of Charlie, the viewers see parts of her old self in her again. When Sascha Göbel, played by Tobias Fries, is introduced, Charlie gets involved with him, yet another younger man. But Sascha wants to get serious with Charlie and has genuine feelings for her. Charlie doesn't trust men anymore and she dumps him, not believing that it could work out. Even though she ended it, Charlie is left heartbroken once again. Then the character takes a drastic turn, when Stella Mann, played by Anne Wis, is introduced and shows interest in Charlie. This begins the build up to a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
relationship between Stella and Carla von Lahnstein
Carla von Lahnstein
Carla Sophia von Lahnstein is a fictional character from the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe , portrayed by actress Claudia Hiersche. She made her first appearance on screen on September 19, 2003 and left the show on November 10, 2009. Hiersche then returned for a guest stint on January 29, 2010...
, played by Claudia Hiersche
Claudia Hiersche
Claudia Hiersche Claudia Hiersche Claudia Hiersche (* 22 February 1977 in Frankfurt (Oder), German Democratic Republic [now Federal Republic of Germany] is a German host and actress and is well known for her portrayal of the lesbian fictional character Carla von Lahnstein in the soap opera...
, that gets more serious with time. This is a plotline of which many viewers disapprove, showing Charlie as a woman with a depressing past with men that is pushed into a potential love affair with another woman.
Friendships
Since the beginning of the show, Charlie always has had a friend on the show and, now that she is a key character, is a friend also to a group of characters. Charlie's best friend was the devious Clarissa for the first years. Even though Clarissa betrayed Charlie a couple of times, the two remained as friends until Clarissa's exit in 2001. The friendship between the two woman was very unequal. While Clarissa was scheming, Charlie became a good person. And even in the beginning, Charlie was portrayed as little bit dumb and quirky, while Clarissa seemed intelligent and elegant. Over the years Charlie changed and has proven that she has become an intelligent businesswoman. After Clarissa's exit, Charlie's stupidity was gone too. Cécile de MaronCécile de Maron
Cécile Antoinette de Maron is a fictional character on the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The role was portrayed by actress Yvonne Burbach from October 24, 2001 to January 23, 2006.-Storylines:...
, played by Yvonne Burbach, becomes Charlie's new best friend. Charlie develops as good soul and loyal friend to Cécile and also to Clarissa's stepson Henning
Henning von Anstetten
Henning Christoph August von Anstetten is a fictional character from German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character was first played by the late Markus Hoffmann from the series premiere on January 2, 1995 to February 1996. Two years later, actor Hendirk Martz took over the role and played...
, last played by Patrick Fichte. She is shown as someone who likes to play amour and a very good listener. Charlie also becomes friends with other characters, most notable Arno Brandner
Arno Brandner
Arno Brandner is a fictional character on German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character is portrayed since the show's debut on January 2, 1995 by actor Konrad Krauss.-Background:...
, played by Konrad Krauss and Elisabeth von Lahnstein
Elisabeth von Lahnstein
Elisabeth von Lahnstein is a fictional character from the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe, portrayed by actress Martina Servatius...
, played by Martina Servatius. In 2008, Charlie becomes friends with Nathalie von Lahnstein
Nathalie von Lahnstein
Nathalie Brandner is a fictional character from the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character is portrayed by actress Jenny Winkler...
, played by Jenny Winkler, a woman that had committed a hit and run by Charlie. Also involved in this was her friend Elisabeth, who kept Nathalie's crime as a secret. Charlie forgives both of them, which once again shows the mentioned weakness in her personality.
Storylines
In the beginning, Charlie owns a gallery and enjoys a luxurious lifestyle. She likes young men and has zippy attitude. For many years she is the best friend of Clarissa von Anstetten and supports her schemes, but changes her character later to the better and becomes a good soul. The friendship lasted to Clarissa's presumed death in 2001. After she decides to take a break from art and closes her gallery, she opens her own bistro - the Schneiders, which becomes a popular meeting place for the high society of Düsseldorf. Charlie thinks she only needs a man in her life to complete her happiness. But she always seems to meet the wrong guys. Most of them use Charlie because of her wealthy lifestyle and she is left heartbroken many times.Charlie begins an affair with David McNeal and falls in love with him. They get into a relationship, but when Charlie's worst enemy, Tanja von Anstetten, who was supposed to be dead, returns, and wants to get back at Charlie. She threatens her with her life and begins an affair with David. Tanja makes sure Charlie finds out about it and Charlie catches David with Tanja in bed. Charlie breaks up with him, but Tanja isn't finished with her old "friend" - she wants to drive Charlie crazy. And her plans work, as not even her brother Lars
Lars Schneider
Lars Schneider is a fictional character of German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character has been played by actor Herbert Ulrich from October 24, 2002 to May 18, 2005 and again from October 13, 2006 to August 29, 2008....
(Herbert Ulrich) eventually believes or trusts her anymore. Charlie engages a professional murderer who should kill Tanja. But she already knows about Charlie's plan and blackmails her. Charlie has to give her all of her possessions and Charlie ends up working at the No Limits.
But Charlie wins everything back, reopens the Schneiders and is very happy when her nephew Oliver Sabel
Oliver Sabel
Oliver Sabel is a popular fictional character in the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character is portrayed by actor Jo Weil from December 31, 1999 to September 3, 2002 and again since November 2, 2007....
(Jo Weil
Jo Weil
Johannes "Jo" Hermann Bruno Anton Weil is a German actor. He is best known for his role of Oliver Sabel in Verbotene Liebe, on the German soap-opera channel, Das Erste...
) comes back to town from working as a steward on cruise ships for a few years. He finds out Charlie hasn't the best relationship with Olivia
Olivia Schneider
Olivia Schneider is a fictional character on German soap opera Verbotene Liebe portrayed by actress and singer Kristina Dörfer from December 29, 2006 to September 24, 2009.- Character's background :...
and he wants to change that. He finds out that Olivia slept with Charlie's fiancé Bernd von Beyenbach. But when Olivia tells him that she regrets that, Oliver wants to help make peace between them. But what Oliver doesn't know is that Olivia is blackmailing her aunt about a secret from her past. Then Charlie finds out that Olivia faked a pregnancy and made Andi Fritzsche
Andi Fritzsche
Andreas "Andi" Fritzsche is a fictional character of the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe . The character is played by actor Dominic Saleh-Zaki from October 4, 2001 to November 8, 2007. In July 2009 it was announced that Saleh-Zaki would reprise his role. Before reappearing on-screen, the...
(Dominic Saleh-Zaki) and Ansgar von Lahnstein
Ansgar von Lahnstein
Ansgar Eduard Johannes von Lahnstein is a fictional character of the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe , portrayed by actor Wolfram Grandezka. He debuted in the role on January, 22 2004....
(Wolfram Grandezka
Wolfram Grandezka
Wolfram Grandezka is a German actor.He landed the role of Roman Klingenberg in the Daytime soap opera Unter uns. He played the role from January 5, 1998 to April 26, 2000. Wolfram came to another soap, Verbotene Liebe, four years later...
) each believe they are the father of the baby. Olivia warns Charlie not to tell anyone about that. But she can't shut her mouth and gives Andi a hint. When Olivia finds out that Charlie is partially responsible for Andi leaving her, she wants to get back at her. Olivia tells everyone that Charlie paid Lars' ex-girlfriend to have an abortion years ago. Lars breaks ties with his sister and Charlie is left heartbroken. Oliver tries to help his aunt and sets up a big family reunion. Lars forgives his sister for the mistake she made years ago and Charlie is even willing to forgive Olivia. Since then, Charlie has a good relationship with Olivia and again with her brother Lars.
In fall of 2008, Charlie starts dating again. She meets the young and attractive Sascha Göbel (Tobias Fries) in a gallery, which she visits with her good friend Elisabeth
Elisabeth von Lahnstein
Elisabeth von Lahnstein is a fictional character from the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe, portrayed by actress Martina Servatius...
(Martina Servatius). Charlie tries to take things slowly and doesn't want to rush in anything because of her history with men. But Sascha really seems like a nice guy and Oliver and Olivia seem to like him too. But when Charlie sees Sascha with Olivia, old memories come back to her mind and she thinks about how her relationship with Bernd turned out. Charlie gets a little paranoid and assumes that Sascha is flirting with Olivia. He isn't and tells Charlie that he wants her and even confesses his love to her. But this is too much for Charlie and she tells him she isn't ready to say it back to him yet. Sascha is okay with it, but things get more complicated when he becomes more and more an important part in Charlie's life. Thinking that she isn't ready for a serious relationship, she ends things with Sascha.
Single again, Charlie enjoys her life and is invited to a masked ball at Castle Königsbrunn. Set up to dance with Eduard von Tepp (Hubertus Regout
Hubertus Regout
Hubertus Regout is an actor living and working in Germany. His father was Belgian, his mother is Austrian.-Biography:...
), she soon needs to see that he is a boring character. When Eduard wants to have another dance with Charlie, Stella Mann rescues her. Charlie thanks Stella and has a nice chat with her before she decides to leave the ball. But her driver is already gone. Stella offers her to take her home. The two ladies end up in the Schneiders, have another glass of champagne and dance together.