Hamburg Red Light District – 1950’s
November 25, 2009 by
Filed under Red Light District
With the coming of Oktoberfest, (and in response to the above mentioned film As We Like It), let us reminisce of beer celebrations held nightly during the 1950’s and ’60’s in the Teutonic hamlet of Hamburg. A phenomena that grew from a chronically disaffected population of post-war Germany, you may never see so many irretrievably plastered people in one place at one time ever again. It is in the legendary Rathskellers of Hamburg that the early Beatles honed their craft and showmanship before …
Nazi’s …..sorry losers.
I was born in 1969 and I live in Hamburg where the movie was taken. The red light district “Reeperbahn” is even still alive. Today it’s what we call a party mile. Many of the prostitutes are gone because the sailors died out. A little piece of sin is available near the world famous police station “Davidwache”.
It’s not as bad as it looks like in the movie – and we don’t know how many days the cameraman needs to take his pictures. You can see the same drunken people with the same behavior today.
WE IN DA RED LIGHT DISTRICTTT
they were in a state of shock after the war and woke up, snapped back into reality, and realized the madness of what happened and needed the escape of drinking every night. i would’ve become an alcoholic too.
Poor woman at 4.28 – God knows what awful horrors she had lived through…
To be fair, alot of people in those video’s would have lost loved ones during the war, no wonder they drowned their sorrows big time.
This is the environment that the Beatles played in 1961 in such spots as the Top Ten Club,The Indra Club and The Kaiserkeller all dives in gritty Hamburg.
this looks like a terrible place to party.
wherever did these places go?
Thanks for the beer footage. it was fun while it lasted.
Wow, thats very interesting footage. While this was playing I was thinking, “Damn” not too long after this in 61 the beatles were playing in hamburg. They must have had some really interesting crowds.