Meister Eder und sein Pumuckl (English: Master Eder and his Pumuckl) is a German children's series created by Ellis Kaut. Originally a radio play series of the Bavarian Radio in 1961, the stories were later adapted into books, a successful TV series of the same name, three films and a musical.
Pumuckl is a red-haired Kobold and descendant of the Klabautermänner. He is invisible to people around him except for the master carpenter Eder with whom Pumuckl lives. Pumuckl is one of the most popular characters in children's entertainment in Germany and several generations have now grown up with the cheeky but funny little Kobold.
Plot
How Pumuckl and Master Eder met
Being a descendant of the Klabautermann people, who were sailors, Pumuckl loves everything that has to do with the ocean, especially sailboats. For reasons unknown, he gets lost in Bavaria, where no ships are to be found. He doesn't like neat and clean places, so he takes refuge in a carpenter's untidy workshop. The workshop belongs to elderly Meister Eder. It is precisely the fact that the workshop is untidy which seals Pumuckl's fate. He gets stuck on an overflowing pot of glue. It is a rule among Kobolds that whenever one of his kind gets stuck to something manmade, they become visible, and according to the rules of their ancestors, must stay with the human who sees them, in this case Meister Eder. On the show and in the books, Pumuckl is always visible if nobody other than Meister Eder is present. However, he turns invisible when other people come into view. At first, Meister Eder is reluctant to take in the kobold, since he is quite content on his own, but Pumuckl makes it clear that he has no other choice. A deep friendship soon blossoms between the elderly man and the cheeky kobold.
Note: Meister Eder's profession is given as "Schreinermeister" in the original German, which means that he makes and repairs furniture, which is also shown on the show (and mentioned in the stories / radio plays). The term "Meister" means that Eder has the qualification to take in apprentices. In Germany at the time, it was common to refer to craftsmen by their professional title and their last name, the way it is still done with doctors.
A typical Pumuckl story
There are several ways for a Pumuckl story to begin. These include:
Pumuckl feels bored in the workshop, so Meister Eder tells him to go out to explore, but not get into trouble. Naturally, Pumuckl does get into trouble. Pumuckl is bored and sneaks out of the workshop without Meister Eder's approval. He meets the people in the neighborhood, eavesdrops on them and occasionally plays a practical joke on them or else tries to help them (with varying levels of success). A client enters the workshop who has something Pumuckl fancies. A client enters the workshop and discovers a belonging of Pumuckl's (typically one of the tiny pieces of furniture that Meister Eder has made for him); he/she wants to purchase it at all cost. A conflict between Meister Eder and his sister or his cleaning woman is shown. Pumuckl tries to help. Meister Eder and Pumuckl go on holiday or on a day trip. Meister Eder is ridiculed by somebody (usually because he believes in Pumuckl), and Pumuckl tries to make things better. Meister Eder presents Pumuckl with a gift Note: Usually, this ends with the gift being withdrawn. Pumuckl discovers something in Meister Eder's household (e.g. matches) and plays with it.
At the end of each episode of the 1980s TV show, Pumuckl and Meister Eder usually reconcile. However, some episodes end with Pumuckl being punished. At the end of one episode, in which Pumuckl tries to make chocolate pudding without Meister Eder's permission, Eder confines Pumuckl to the balcony and eats the pudding alone. Other episodes end with Eder's withdrawal of something he gave to the little kobold. The two-part story "Der große Krach" ("The big dispute") has the first part ending with Eder throwing Pumuckl and his bed out of the workshop. But by the end of the second part, the two have reconciled.