Photograph, 1958
The photo captures a moment in the double sense of the word: a fleeting moment and a historical chapter. It is a moment from the history of Bremerhaven, which those who experienced it still recount today. On a foggy morning, October 1, 1958, 700 boys and girls stand at the Columbuskaje to welcome their idol. One of them, Helge Rothenberg, daringly climbs the gangway and extends a pen to Elvis. All he wants is an autograph. Unfortunately, the ‘King of Rock’n’Roll’ drops the pen, and the chance is lost. Instead of the autograph, the boy keeps the photo of himself and the ‘King.’ The photo also captures an entire historical chapter by giving it ‘a face’: the period of American occupation. Just as Elvis Presley was among the 1,300 G.I.s, so too did a piece of the American lifestyle come to Germany – and Bremerhaven served as its vanguard. Whatever fashion it was – before it reached the rest of Germany, it was already popular in Bremerhaven. Bremerhaven was the city of hamburgers, Coca Cola, and ice cream. Migration history has not only written Bremerhaven as the temporarily largest emigration port in Europe – but also as a ‘Port of Enculturation,’ the most important import harbor of American culture after World War II.
