the Berlin Wall

Today is the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. The Berlin Wall separated communist controlled East Berlin from West Berlin, which was under democratic rule.

An oft remembered event related to the wall's end is the singing performance of American television actor David Hasselhoff.



Hasselhoff, quite the star in Germany and Austria, is best known in the States for his early 1980's work on the tv series Knight Rider and the 1990's lifeguard drama Baywatch. A few weeks after the wall's collapse, Hasselhoff was invited to perform near the wall, singing a collection of his musical tunes, songs that never really caught on in America, but were very popular in Europe. The singer's attire, a self-illuminating jacket, is remembered as much as is his performance. Some commentators have even suggested a reason the East Berliners poured into West Berlin in 1989 was to get their hands on copies of Hasselhoff's music.

JF