A ring of counterfeiters is flooding the country with phony money, and suspicion falls upon a wealthy playboy who may--or may not--have amnesia.

The local council of the Bavarian village of Mooskirchen has ambitious plans for the small town. Mooskirchen is to become a tourist destination, but this requires money, because at the moment there is not even an access road to the highway, let alone such "attractions" as a spa or a swimming pool. When one day a letter arrives at the town hall informing the community that Mooskirchen has received a huge inheritance, all problems seem to be solved. However, the inheritance is a huge plantation in Africa, valuable but very far away. Ferdl Lechner, the mayor of Mooskirchen, decides to travel to Africa with his friend Karl Köpfle to officially take possession of the inheritance. First of all, they go to Hamburg. The two rustic Bavarians want to enjoy life in the big city for a while, but the two provincials are not up to this kind of jungle.

Rival gangs are fighting for control of Hamburg's notorious harbor district, spreading fear and terror in the process. In the streets, houses and clubs, the thriller shows the lives of a handful of people whose fates will be decided within 24 hours.

A pop singer who has been successful on Broadway, is homesick and returns.

Just before the Berlin Wall is built, a young East German worker tries his personal and professional luck as a barkeep in West Berlin. A realistic love story set during Germany’s post-war economic miracle, which here does not fulfil its bright promises.

Beautiful young Helga gets publicly shamed because a rich land owner seduced and impregnated her but refuses to take responsibility in a story of love and death in Sweden.

Mathias Ferner commits perjury and is thus able to secure the farm of his stepbrother Jakob as soon as he dies. In doing so, he deprives Paula Roth and the children of their inheritance. However, there is a letter incriminating Mathias Ferner. Years later, Paula Roth gets her hands on this letter.

Captain Ebbs is an older, experienced seaman who has, however, only sailed on freighters. While his current old barge, the Martin Luther, has to go into the shipyard for an overhaul, the shipping company gives him command of the elegant cruise ship Julia to temporarily replace a colleague who has fallen ill. The rough Ebbs finds his way into his new job only with difficulty and initially puts his foot in his social mouth.