Elmar Brandt is a German impressionist

Impressionist (entertainment)

An impressionist or a mimic is a performer whose act consists of imitating the voice and mannerisms of others. The word usually refers to a professional comedian/entertainer who specializes in such performances and has developed a wide repertoire of impressions, including adding to them, often to...

, best known for his imitations of politicians. He was born in Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...

.

His most famous series is The Gerd Show, in which actual events are lampooned using an imitation of former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder

Gerhard Schröder

Gerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...

. The Gerd Show was broadcast between 1999 and 2005 as a short daily comedy on various radio programmes. Other politicians and celebrities Brandt has imitated include current Minister-President of Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...

 Edmund Stoiber

Edmund Stoiber

Edmund Rüdiger Stoiber is a German politician, former minister-president of the state of Bavaria and former chairman of the Christian Social Union...

, Reiner Calmund, the late President

President of Germany

The President of the Federal Republic of Germany is the country's head of state. His official title in German is Bundespräsident . Germany has a parliamentary system of government and so the position of President is largely ceremonial...

 Johannes Rau

Johannes Rau

Johannes Rau was a German politician of the SPD. He was President of Germany from 1 July 1999 until 30 June 2004, and Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia from 1978 to 1998.-Education and work:...

, Dieter Bohlen

Dieter Bohlen

Dieter Günter Bohlen is a German songwriter, singer, musician, producer, entertainer, TV personality, and writer. Bohlen is best known for being part of popular pop-duo Modern Talking during 1984–1987 and 1998–2003.-Biography:Bohlen took his Abitur in Oldenburg...

, Marcel Reich-Ranicki

Marcel Reich-Ranicki

Marcel Reich-Ranicki is a Polish-born German literary critic and member of the literary group Gruppe 47. He is regarded as one of the most influential contemporary literary critics in the field of German literature and therefore was in Germany often called the 'Pope of literature' .-Life:Marcel...

 and ex-Foreign Minister

Foreign Minister of Germany

The Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs is the head of the Federal Foreign Office and a member of the Cabinet of Germany. The current office holder is Guido Westerwelle...

 Joschka Fischer

Joschka Fischer

Joseph Martin "Joschka" Fischer is a German politician of the Alliance '90/The Greens. He served as Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor of Germany in the cabinet of Gerhard Schröder from 1998 to 2005...

; he also provided voices for the remake of German satirical puppet show Hurra Deutschland

Hurra Deutschland

Hurra Deutschland was a German satirical series running from 1989 to 1991, appearing regularly on TV station Das Erste.-Overview:...

 (the puppets of which were also used in the Gerd Show music videos).

External links

• This article is based on a translation of the corresponding German-language Wikipedia article, retrieved on July 6, 2006.