“Assembly Line of Joys”: Touring Hamburg's Red Light District, 1949–1966

摘要

HAMBURG, as any tourist guide will tell you, occupies a unique positionrnwithin Germany. Now, every city can make this claim, so what consti-rntutes Hamburg’s uniqueness? Natives would say it is the harborrn(Germany’s largest) and the water that flows through the metropolis thatrnclaims more bridges than Venice. But ask an outsider, German or not, and hernor she will likely say the Reeperbahn, Hamburg’s notorious red-light district,rnknown also to music fans as the incubator of The Beatles. Historically speaking,rnthe harbor has been this Hanseatic city’s source of trade and prosperity, as well asrna major transit point for overseas travelers; the nearby Reeperbahn has longrnbeen a magnet for those seeking pleasure and distraction from the cares ofrnlife. In the 1950s and 1960s—the years of West Germany’s “EconomicrnMiracle” (Wirtschaftswunder)—Hamburg saw greater numbers of visitors thanrnever before. These guests included Germans from west and east (before thernBerlinWall was erected in 1961); international tourists, particularly from neigh-rnboring countries; British NATO troops stationed in the northern FederalRepublic; and seamen from around the world. Some chose Hamburg specifi-rncally as their destination, others passed through on their way to someplace else.