DAVID HASSELHOFF Signed KNIGHT RIDER MICHAEL VINTAGE PHOTO GREAT INSCRIPTION

Description: DAVID HASSELHOFF VINTAGE SIGNED 8X10 INCHES SIGNED IN BLACK SHARPIE WITH GREAT INSCRIPTION T.ElisaThanks ForLAST NIGHT! WOW- All RightI Made The Wall! David Hasselhoff David Michael Hasselhoff (born July 17, 1952),[1] nicknamed "The Hoff",[2] is an American actor, singer, producer, and businessman, who set a Guinness World Record as the most watched man on TV.[3] He first gained recognition on The Young and The Restless, playing Dr. Snapper Foster. His career continued with his leading role as Michael Knight on Knight Rider and as L.A. County Lifeguard Mitch Buchannon in the series Baywatch. Hasselhoff produced Baywatch from the 1990s until 2001 when the series ended with Baywatch Hawaii. He has also appeared in films, including Click, Dodgeball, The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, and Hop. Before Samuel L. Jackson, Hasselhoff was the first actor to portray the Marvel Comics character Nick Fury in the 1998 telefilm Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. In 2000, he made his Broadway debut in the musical Jekyll & Hyde. Following his debut, he starred in other musicals including Chicago and The Producers. Contents1Early life2Early career2.1Knight Rider2.2Baywatch3Later career3.1Get Hasselhoff to Number 1 campaign3.2HoffSpace3.3The Hasselhoffs3.4Hoff the Record3.5It's No Game & The HoffBot3.6Motivational speaking4Music career4.1Looking for Freedom4.2Later music career5Personal life5.1Family5.2Alcoholism6List of works7Honors and awards8References9External linksEarly lifeHasselhoff was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Dolores Therese (née Mullinex/Mullinix; died February 11, 2009), a homemaker, and Joseph Vincent Hasselhoff, a business executive.[1][4] His family is Roman Catholic, and of German, Irish and English descent.[4][5][6] His great-great-grandmother, Meta, emigrated with her family to Baltimore from Völkersen, Germany, 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Bremen, in 1865.[7] He spent his childhood in Jacksonville, Florida, and later lived in Atlanta, Georgia, where he attended Marist School. Hasselhoff made his theatrical debut at the age of seven in Peter Pan, and ever since his childhood dream was to have a career on Broadway.[8] He graduated from Lyons Township High School in La Grange, Illinois, in 1970.[9] He was a member of the speech team, senior discussion leaders, president of the choir, captain of the volleyball team and held roles in several plays (including one lead role as Matt in The Fantasticks). He studied at Oakland University before graduating with a degree in theater at the California Institute of the Arts.[10] Early career Hasselhoff in costume as Michael Knight in 1986Hasselhoff portrayed Dr. "Snapper Foster" on The Young and the Restless from 1975–82, leaving the series as the show wrote out many of their original characters. His feature film debut was in 1974 as "Boner" in Revenge of the Cheerleaders which he did to get accredited into the Screen Actors Guild. At the time, he believed that the film would not be released, but it was: two years later, also appearing under the title Caught with their Pants Down.[11] In 1979, he played "Simon" in Starcrash. He launched his singing career with guest appearances on the first season of children's program Kids Incorporated, performing "Do You Love Me". He guest-starred on two episodes of Diff'rent Strokes and the soap opera Santa Barbara as himself in 1984. Knight RiderHasselhoff was recruited by then NBC President Brandon Tartikoff to star in the science-fiction series Knight Rider from 1982 to 1986 as Michael Knight. He has described Knight Rider as more than a TV show: "It's a phenomenon. It's bigger than Baywatch ever was." On the success of Knight Rider – "It's because it was about saving lives, not taking lives, and it was how one man really can make a difference."[citation needed] He describes the acting he has done as "a little more difficult than if you had a regularly well-written script – like, if I was going to be in, say, Reservoir Dogs, or The Godfather, or Dances with Wolves or Lawrence of Arabia or ER, I had to talk to a car."[12] His role in the show led him to a People's Choice Award for 'Most Popular Actor'.[13] Now, over 33 years later, the show is still playing throughout the world.[14] Baywatch Hasselhoff in 2005Hasselhoff returned to television on Baywatch which premiered in 1989. Although it was canceled after only one season, he believed the series had potential, so Hasselhoff revived it for the first-run syndication market in 1991, investing his own money and additionally functioning as executive producer. His contract stipulated royalties to be paid to him from the rerun profits, which gave him the financial liberty to buy back the rights to Baywatch from NBC. In its second incarnation, Baywatch was much more successful. It ran for a total of 11 years and, from the 1990s until its series finale in 2001, was watched by almost 1 billion viewers across 140 countries, solidifying his status among the world's foremost television personalities of the said period.[15] This success combined with his royalties and his other ventures have placed Hasselhoff's fortune at more than $100 million.[16] In 1991, Hasselhoff reprised his role as Michael Knight in the television film Knight Rider 2000 as a sequel to the original series. The movie served as a pilot for a proposed new series, but despite high ratings, the plan was abandoned. In 1996, Hasselhoff was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1997, he performed a duet with Filipino singer Regine Velasquez, which was used as the main theme for his 1998 movie Legacy. He made his Broadway debut in 2000 in the title role of Jekyll & Hyde. In August 2001, he hosted an event at the Conga Room, in Los Angeles honoring the Latin rock band Renegade for record sales in excess of 30 million units worldwide, taking the stage with the Latin rockers and singing in Spanish.[17] Beginning on July 16, 2004, he played the lead role in London performances of Chicago for three months.[18] Hasselhoff has made several self-parodic appearances in movies. He had a major role in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, released November 19, 2004, starring as himself (though resembling his bygone Baywatch character) and meeting SpongeBob and Patrick (his full name is heard once in the movie; he is referred to as "Hasselhoff"). Hasselhoff also had another short appearance in the movie DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story as the dodgeball coach to the German national dodgeball team, Team Hasselhoff. Berating his team after being eliminated from a tournament, he shouts "Ihr seid alle Schweine!" (translated: "You are all pigs!", a common German insult) and smashes a photo of himself in his Baywatch attire. In 2004's EuroTrip, Hasselhoff appears in a washroom. In the 2006 Adam Sandler film Click Hasselhoff portrays Sandler's despicable boss. Hasselhoff also appears in an episode of Wildboyz. In 2007, he again played himself in the Jamie Kennedy comedy Kickin' It Old Skool.[citation needed] In his music video for "Jump in My Car", he engages in self-parody; this time parodying his performance as Michael Knight in Knight Rider. The car in the video was a black Pontiac Trans Am with a pulsing LED and an interior nearly identical to that of the KITT car in the series. The video was shot in Sydney, Australia using a right-hand drive KITT replica, including KITT's ejection seat system.[19] In November 2006, Mel Brooks announced Hasselhoff would portray Roger DeBris, the director of the Nazi musical Springtime for Hitler, in the Las Vegas production of The Producers.[20] In 2006, Hasselhoff became a co-judge on NBC's America's Got Talent, a show that showcases America's best amateur entertainers. He also judged in the second, third and fourth seasons alongside Sharon Osbourne and Piers Morgan. On the 2007 season finale, Hasselhoff sang "This is the Moment." He was replaced by comedian Howie Mandel for season five.[21] Later careerHasselhoff produced Baywatch for first run syndication. He has spoken at both the Oxford and Cambridge Student Unions.[22] He was a celebrity cast member on the eleventh season of Dancing with the Stars which increased in ratings by 36% from the previous year and served as a judge on NBC's America's Got Talent from 2006–09. In 2011, he joined the Britain's Got Talent judging panel, replacing Simon Cowell.[23] Hasselhoff was later honored on Comedy Central's The Comedy Central Roast of David Hasselhoff[24] in addition to receiving the International Star of the Year Award for Outstanding Contribution to Global Entertainment by the Bollywood Awards.[25] He was awarded the Comeback Star of the Year award during the VH1 Big in '06 Awards.[26] David Hasselhoff waving the checkered flag at the 2008 Gumball 3000In February 2008, towards the end of the Knight Rider 2008, he reprised his career-making role as Michael Knight as he walked on to introduce himself to his on-screen son, Mike Traceur. On November 12, 2008, he became the first celebrity downloadable character for the PlayStation Network's video game Pain.[citation needed] In September 2009, he featured on a radio podcast for Compare the Meerkat, part of the advertising for British website, Comparethemarket.com.[27] He was the subject of an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom as a result of his support for the re-opening of Morecambe Winter Gardens.[28] In 2010, Hasselhoff guest hosted professional wrestling's WWE Raw in London, England. On August 15, 2010, Comedy Central aired a special "roast" of Hasselhoff.[29] Hasselhoff returned to The Young and the Restless, reprising his role as "Snapper" for a short arc that aired in mid-June 2010.[30] Hasselhoff appeared as a contestant on season 11 of Dancing with the Stars. His professional dance partner was Kym Johnson. On September 21, 2010, they were the first couple eliminated from the competition. Coincidentally, Hasselhoff competed against Brandy Norwood, who judged alongside him in the first season of America's Got Talent.[31] In October 2010, it was announced that he would be playing Captain Hook in the New Wimbledon Theatre production of the pantomime "Peter Pan" from December 2010 to January 2011.[32] He has reprised his role of "Hoff the Hook"[33] for 2012 at the Manchester Opera House. In 2011, he was a guest judge at the Belgian Idols competition.[34] Hasselhoff became a judge on Britain's Got Talent in 2011 alongside Amanda Holden, Michael McIntyre and Simon Cowell. However, Hasselhoff was axed after only one series on the show. In 2011, he revived his music career with a short tour across Germany, Austria and Switzerland.[citation needed] In the same year, Hasselhoff was featured in the trailer of the spin-off downloadable game, Burnout Crash!. On February 24, 2014, he opened his own 10-week talk show in Sweden on TV3, in English.[35] A similar show was later recorded in Finland, premiering on Sub on April 2, 2015.[36] On New Year's Eve he performed again at the Brandenburg Gate, arriving late because his plane was diverted to Hannover.[37][38][39] Hasselhoff had a major role in Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! which premiered globally on July 22, 2015. He then starred in a new musical, Last Night a DJ Saved My Life at the Blackpool Opera House, late in 2015.[40] On May 18, 2017 Funner, California[41] introduced its first official mayor: David Hasselhoff.[42][43][44] Hasselhoff also starred in a cameo role in the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as himself. He additionally performed the song "Guardians Inferno" heard over the closing credits of the film and lent his appearance to a retro styled music video for the track found on the film's DVD and Blu-Ray release. On October 28, 2019, Dolly Parton announced that David Hasselhoff will star in 9 to 5: The Musical at the Savoy Theatre in London's West End from 2 December 2019 until 8 February 2020.[45] Get Hasselhoff to Number 1 campaignIn 2006, fans of David Hasselhoff launched a tongue-in-cheek website "Get Hasselhoff to Number 1"[46] in an attempt to get the 1989 hit "Looking for Freedom" to the top of the UK music charts through Internet downloads of the single. The campaign attracted attention on British radio and television broadcasts, in the national press[47] and on the Internet.[48][49] Over 40,000 people signed up to receive the "Hoff Alert" e-mail when the time had come to purchase the single. The focus of the campaign shifted to "Jump in My Car", when that was actually released as a single, and BBC Radio 1 DJ Scott Mills lent his support.[50] On October 3, 2006, "the Hoff Alert" was sent out, and Hasselhoff promptly gained his highest ever UK chart entry (number 3) on October 8, 2006.[citation needed] HoffSpace Hasselhoff with journalist Irina Slutsky promoting social networking venture HoffSpaceIn 2008 Hasselhoff launched a MySpace-like social networking site, known as "HoffSpace".[51] The HasselhoffsHasselhoff and his daughters, Taylor-Ann and Hayley, starred in a reality series on A&E called The Hasselhoffs. The series launched on December 5, 2010, and focused on Hasselhoff's attempts to resuscitate his career and launch his daughters onto the Hollywood stage.[52] On December 10, 2010, A&E confirmed in a statement that, after airing just two episodes, The Hasselhoffs had been canceled. According to Nielsen Co. ratings, the first episode was seen by 718,000 viewers. Viewers dropped to 505,000 for the second installment, which aired on the same evening. The full series aired in the UK on May 30, 2011, on The Biography Channel.[53] Hasselhoff stars in a casino-style game series online, produced in partnership with Eric Bischoff[citation needed] with Europe being among the first markets to roll out the game. In keeping with internet and online gambling culture in the UK, "The Hoff" series of games includes video slots and scratch-card type games, all played for real money in Europe's online casino environment. The first in the series of games launched on Valentine's Day in early March 2013, with media and promotional activities commencing in early February.[54] Hoff the RecordMain article: Hoff the RecordIn 2014, UK channel Dave announced that it had commissioned Hoff the Record, a sitcom series in which Hasselhoff plays a fictionalized version of himself. The series started airing on June 18, 2015.[55] It's No Game & The HoffBotIn 2017 Hasselhoff appeared in short film It's No Game by director Oscar Sharp, playing "The HoffBot". Hasselhoff's lines were generated by a neural network artificial intelligence (called Benjamin) using a statistical model trained on his own 80's and 90s television performances. Hasselhoff said the A.I. "really had a handle on what's going on in my life and it was strangely emotional".[56] Motivational speakingHasselhoff works as a motivational speaker.[57] In January 2014, he spoke before hundreds of students at New College Nottingham in Nottingham, England.[58] In April 2019, Hasselhoff spoke before thousands of attendees at TwitchCon Europe in Berlin, Germany.[59] Music careerLooking for FreedomHis music career took off in the late 1980s and achieved success at the tops of the charts, with his album Looking for Freedom which went triple platinum in Europe. He had one #1 hit in the German pop charts in spring of 1989 ("Looking for Freedom").[60] He was noted for his performance of the single at the Berlin Wall on New Year's Eve 1989, two months after the East German government had opened the wall, but nine months before unification took place. Wearing a piano-keyboard scarf and a leather jacket covered in motion lights, Hasselhoff stood in a bucket crane and performed the song along with the crowd. The performance has had a lasting impact on German pop-culture with Hasselhoff commenting that the song became an "anthem" and "song of hope" for the people of East Germany. In 2004, Hasselhoff lamented the lack of a photo of him in the Checkpoint Charlie Museum in Berlin.[61][62] Later music careerIn 1993, he released the single "Pingu Dance" based on the children's show Pingu. In 1994, he was scheduled to perform a concert on pay-per-view from Atlantic City. The concert was expected to help his singing career in the United States. However, on the night of the concert, O. J. Simpson was involved in his slow-speed chase in southern California. Viewership of the concert was significantly lower than expected due to the live coverage of the chase, and the event was ultimately a $1.5 million loss.[63] Hasselhoff joked that "90 million people watched O. J. and three people watched me, including me and my mom and my dad".[64] In May 2006, Hasselhoff was mentioned in an interview of Dirk Nowitzki, an NBA star playing for the Dallas Mavericks and a native of Germany. Nowitzki was asked what he does to concentrate when shooting foul shots. Dirk replied that he sings "Looking for Freedom" to himself. He meant this as a joke but it was thought to be a serious answer. Shortly thereafter, Hasselhoff attended the May 26, 2006, Mavericks home playoff game where they faced the Phoenix Suns in the NBA Western Conference Finals. Interviewed by Craig Sager, Hasselhoff stated he was as much a fan of Nowitzki as Nowitzki was a fan of him. In The 2006 NBA Finals, fans of the Miami Heat in the American Airlines Arena held up facial photos of Hasselhoff and chanted his name when Nowitzki went to the foul line. On August 2, 2006, he proclaimed himself "King of the Internet" in a tongue-in-cheek advertisement for Pipex.[65] In December 2008, he sang the national anthem at the NCAA Las Vegas Bowl. Although the game was televised live by ESPN, the station chose not to broadcast Hasselhoff's performance.[66] In 2015, he recorded the single "True Survivor", accompanied by a music video, which featured as the lead track for the 2015 Swedish short film Kung Fury.[67] The song was composed by Mitch Murder (Johan Bengtsson). Recorded in Sweden, the song and the video is designed as an ostentatious over-the-top 1980s homage/parody, with the video featuring dinosaurs, kung fu, Adolf Hitler, skateboarding, Norse Gods and time travelling. Hasselhoff claimed that he had received the offer to record the song and the video by a request from Sweden Universal to "sing a tribute to the '80s".[68] Hasselhoff performed a live version of the song during the 2016 Guldbagge Awards.[69][70] In 2017, a retro music video called "Guardians' Inferno" was released as a bonus on the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 home release, where Hasselhoff does the singing.[71] In 2019, Hasselhoff released a new studio album entitled Open Your Eyes, his first since 2012's This Time Around. The album consists of covers of popular songs such as "Sweet Caroline" and "Lips Like Sugar", with all but one song featuring collaborations from other artists, including Todd Rundgren and Steve Stevens.[72] A promotional music video for the title track was released on YouTube on September 9,[73] followed by the album's release on CD, vinyl, digital download and streaming services on September 27, 2019.[74] Personal lifeHasselhoff's autobiography Making Waves was released in the UK in September 2006. In an interview in April 2006, he said the book would present the "last chapter" regarding controversial elements of his personal life.[75] In November 2015, Hasselhoff posted a YouTube video in which he announced that he had changed his name to "David Hoff".[76] It was then reported that he was not changing his name; that the video was an excerpt from an upcoming advertising campaign.[77] After touring Glasgow in late 2015, Hasselhoff stated that he supports Scottish football team Partick Thistle F.C..[78] FamilyHasselhoff was married to actress Catherine Hickland from March 24, 1984, to March 1, 1989.[1] Their wedding was recreated in the Knight Rider Season 4 episode "The Scent of Roses" which first aired on January 3, 1986. Hasselhoff married actress Pamela Bach in December 1989.[79] The couple have two daughters: Taylor Ann Hasselhoff, born May 5, 1990,[80] who attended the University of Arizona and was cast for the 2015 season of Rich Kids of Beverly Hills, and actress Hayley Hasselhoff, born August 26, 1992.[81] In January 2006, Hasselhoff announced he was filing for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences.[79] Their divorce was finalized in August 2006.[82] Bach was given custody of one daughter and Hasselhoff custody of the other,[83] until Hasselhoff later obtained custody of both.[82] As of December 2010 he resided in Southern California with his daughters.[84] In 2012, Hasselhoff began dating Hayley Roberts, from the town of Glynneath in Wales. He is a fan of Welsh rugby union, and they regularly attend matches in Wales.[85][86][87] He and Hayley were married at a ceremony in Italy on July 31, 2018.[88][89] AlcoholismOn May 3, 2007, a viral video surfaced online of Hasselhoff appearing to be severely drunk inside his home. His daughter, Taylor Ann, who filmed the video, can be heard interrogating him and asking him to stop abusing alcohol. She also warns her father he could be jeopardizing his spot on the Las Vegas production of The Producers he starred in at the time.[90] In the wake of the leaked clip, Hasselhoff issued a statement saying it was recorded by Taylor Ann so that he could see how he behaved while intoxicated and the footage was deliberately released.[91][92] As a result of the video, Hasselhoff's visitation rights with his two daughters were suspended on May 7, 2007, for two weeks until the video's authenticity and distributor were determined.[93] In May 2009, Hasselhoff's attorney, Mel Goldsman, described Hasselhoff as "a recovering alcoholic".[94] List of worksMain article: List of works by David HasselhoffHonors and awards1983 – Favorite Male Performer in a New TV Program: People's Choice Awards2005 – International Star of the Year Award for Outstanding Contribution to Global Entertainment: Bollywood Awards2006 – Comeback Star of the Year: VH1 Big in '06 Awards2010 – The Comedy Central Roast of David Hasselhoff: Comedy Central t his recent Berlin concert, the Hoff once again recalled his part in the fall of the Wall. His obsession with reunification is gauche – but his message of hope is still necessary Wyndham Wallace Tue 8 Oct 2019 10.54 EDTLast modified on Tue 8 Oct 2019 10.55 EDTShares222Comments239David Hasselhoff at East Side Gallery, September 2019. David Hasselhoff at East Side Gallery, September 2019. Photograph: People Picture/Gerome Kochan/REX/ShutterstockFreedom! Freedom! Freedom!” David Hasselhoff chants as he snakes his way through the Max-Schmeling-Halle, a basketball stadium erected near where a section of the Berlin Wall once stood. It’s German Unity Day, Thursday 3 October, and Hasselhoff is here to promote his 14th album Open Your Eyes. The date is no coincidence. As the show begins, the actor and singer is raised on a hydraulic platform above the crowd, and it’s hard not to recall how, on New Year’s Eve 1989 – less than two months after the Wall fell – he was similarly lifted beside the city’s Brandenburg Gate in a bucket crane. “Thirty years of freedom!” Hasselhoff yells today, adding, in a nod to John F Kennedy’s 1963 speech, “Ich bin ein Berliner!” On that December night almost 30 years ago, in a televised performance that never seems far from his mind, Hasselhoff sang Looking for Freedom, a song that held West Germany’s No 1 slot for two months during the tumultuous summer that led to the momentous East-West reunion. As the Knight Rider star mugged for the camera, Germans from both sides of the border sat astride the hated barricade. Some tossed fireworks dangerously close to Hasselhoff, his leather jacket illuminated by the sparks. “I’ve been looking for freedom,” he insisted, over and over again, “I’ve been looking so long.” Hasselhoff was still clinging to his anthem the last time I saw him, grinning beneath his trademark coiffure at Berlin’s East Side Gallery. It was March 2013 and he was protesting developers’ intentions to dismantle some of the open-air gallery, which consists of murals on a stretch of the Wall, singing the song a cappella – repeatedly – through a PA strapped to a battered yellow van. This was a campaign to which he’d stay loyal: in December 2017, he called again on the city’s mayor to halt construction of luxury flats on what was once the “death strip” alongside the River Spree. (Nonetheless, the building went ahead.) For many, this provoked amusement, as Hasselhoff’s actions often do. Most famous in Germany for a kitsch celebration of the Wall’s demolition, he was now battling to keep it standing. FacebookTwitterPinterestTo justify his presence at Max-Schmeling-Halle tonight – as if it needs justification – Hasselhoff offers his resumé before the show. Songs from the new album, as well as his hits, play over the PA while most people are still coming through the doors. A replica of KITT, his talking-car co-star, stands behind the sound desk, and clips of Knight Rider and Baywatch – as well as videos for his many German pop hits – are beamed behind the stage before his show gets under way. Sign up for the Sleeve Notes email: music news, bold reviews and unexpected extras Read moreThen for the best part of three hours, he hammers out, with almost unceasing force, a series of cover versions that makes as little sense as his German fame does to the British. An improbably convincing cover of the Jesus and Mary Chain’s Head On is followed by one of Modern English’s I Melt With You. He perches on a stool for Glen Campbell’s Rhinestone Cowboy, then vigorously owns the pomp of Open Your Eyes by gothic rockers Lords of the New Church. He dons his Baywatch uniform, wielding an inflatable buoy, for theme tune I’m Always Here, then continues with a Rat Pack standard. When he lifts his shirt to reveal a back tattoo of his own face and the legend “Don’t Hassle the Hoff”, the crowd’s squeals are punctuated with disbelieving splutters. He also offers constant, gushing reminders that we’re commemorating “Thirty years! Thirty years of freedom!”, something he seems to be taking more seriously than Berliners, for whom time has passed as fast as rents have risen. Memories of the Wall have been chipped away at, just as the edifice itself was, before it was then sold in fragments to tourists. These days Berlin celebrates this annual public holiday mostly for the simple reason that it’s one of only nine granted to the city. (Bavaria, in contrast, has 13.) David Hasselhoff in his Baywatch heyday.FacebookTwitterPinterest David Hasselhoff in his Baywatch heyday. Photograph: Allstar/NBC/Sportsphoto Ltd./AllstarIndeed, despite a handful of official festivities, the most prominent Unity Day events this year were demonstrations concerning the capital’s rather more immediate problems: widespread gentrification, with its subsequent spikes in housing costs; the growth of far-right extremism across the country, evident in a march involving 1,700 extremists, neo-Nazis and anti-Islamic German Defence League members, with counter-protesters numbering 2,000. Hasselhoff makes no mention of such issues. In fact, Hasselhoff doesn’t seem to have moved on at all, something reflected in his music. This is what provokes his critics as much as his enthusiasts: to some he’s an embarrassing, outdated reminder of the profligate, superficial nature of much of western culture, while to others he’s emblematic of a coveted future and a goal achieved. He’s a symbol of unresolved conflicts, something with which Berlin is familiar. As a globally recognisable star of huge shows – in 2011 Guinness World Records named him “the most watched man on TV” – he also provokes snobbery from those who consider themselves more cerebral, although it was he who recognised Baywatch’s commercial potential and invested his own money in the series when it was prematurely cancelled after its first season. He’s been releasing critically derided albums since 1985, some of which have nonetheless hit the top spots in Austria and Switzerland as well as Germany – even 2013’s A Real Good Feeling made the latter’s Top 30 – but prominent roles in musicals like Chicago, Jekyll & Hyde and The Producers, for which he was personally selected by Mel Brooks, have done little to restore his credibility. Few, though, are as earnest about Hasselhoff’s work as he is, and this includes his fans. During an unnecessary – and lengthy – interval, I ask two of them whether they take him seriously. Their response is amusingly ambivalent, and when I query whether he takes himself seriously, their reply is equally equivocal. “Probably,” they reply, adding, “hopefully not.” This, of course, suits a man who sometimes betrays an unusual self-awareness, as appearances in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (in which he plays the German team’s coach) and the droll mockumentary Hoff the Record – not to mention Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! – attest. In February this year, he published an audiobook, Up Against The Wall – set, of course, in autumn 1989 – in which he juggles performing to 100,000 people and saving Berlin from nuclear attack with the help of a doppelgänger CIA agent stationed in east Berlin. “Is this the greatest thing you can ever listen to?” one reader asks on Goodreads. “I’m saying, ‘Probably’.” But at other times he appears to be the only person not in on the joke. When he tears into True Survivor (the theme tune to cult Swedish time-travel-martial-arts-action-comedy Kung Fury, a short film in which he had a cameo role as “Hoff 9000”), it’s so beefed up it sounds like an immaculate parody of 80s hair-synth-rock. He plays it straight, and it’s this inappropriate sincerity that makes him an easy object of derision. But his fans are conscious of his absurdity and some, at least, are protective of Looking for Freedom. One local friend, who grew up in the 80s, explained to me that, back then, Hasselhoff and his biggest hit represented “the sehnsucht [wistful longing] for western culture and the weird word ‘freedom’, embodied in a two-metre-tall, leather-clad, chest-haired dude – and, more importantly, a very catchy song that every kid was singing in school”. Explained like that, his status becomes more intelligible, and its longevity more sympathetic. Hasselhoff was in the right place at the right time, for which some will always be appreciative, and they remember Looking for Freedom with the same degree of respect as the English do Three Lions. Perhaps both make recollections of what went before, and what came after, less painful. David Hasselhoff's role in the fall of the Berlin WallEmma Hartley Read moreIn Let’s Talk About Love: Why Other People Have Such Bad Taste – a critical consideration of the meaning of taste, as seen through the lens of Céline Dion’s career – critic Carl Wilson wonders “whether ‘easier’ music might contain hints for reconciliation with the world into which we’re already thrown. Maybe it deals with problems that don’t require leaps of the imagination but require other efforts, like patience, or compromise.” Hasselhoff’s audience seem familiar with both qualities, while cynics see things in less tolerant, more binary terms, rejecting him on purely aesthetic grounds. Reconciling these two viewpoints seems as much of a stretch of the imagination – especially when faced by Do the Limbo Dance, which tonight inspires a conga line through the stalls – as the idea of the Wall falling once did. But harmony is exactly what, on a smaller scale, the Hoff achieves. The arena is packed with people from across the social divide, and however much Hasselhoff is mocked outside its walls, here there are dreadlocks and mohawks, groups in matching Baywatch T-shirts, late middle-aged couples who’ve come straight from dinner, and others who weren’t even born when the Wall fell. Several fans even wear replicas of the jacket Hasselhoff donned in December 1989. For them, Hasselhoff is a reminder of an era when division seemed to have been overcome: a time when the world might come together. Indeed, if you listen to his selections, the wildly varied music is of less import than the lyrics. He convinces us that the preposterous Hot Shot City – “You will find her on the street / In her red Ferrari / With her top pulled down” – is an anthem for Berlin, and employs Modern English to remind us to “dream of better lives / The kind which never hates”. Before Air Supply’s Lonely Is the Night, he instructs us to introduce ourselves to the people next to us, “even if you know them”, while the dramatic chorus of Open Your Eyes is spelled out on the screens behind him: “See the lies right in front of you.” As for Sweet Caroline, its message is perfect for a man so desperate for us to be friends, not least with him: “Hands, touching hands / Reaching out, touching me, touching you”. David Hasselhoff performing at Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin, 3 October 2019.FacebookTwitterPinterest David Hasselhoff performing at Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin, 3 October 2019. Photograph: Frank Hoensch/Getty ImagesIt’s a message he communicates successfully, and it’s especially poignant in Berlin. Tonight, we’re a ragbag of people singing a ragbag of songs, remembering – or, in surprisingly plentiful cases, imagining – how it felt to be so full of hope. Frankly, it’s a relief. This is perhaps what the Hoff wants of us, too: to love and forgive each other as much as he loves and forgives us – which is as much as he wants us to love and forgive him. If we can manage that here, maybe we can take that tolerance away with us afterwards. It’s gauche, but nonetheless admirable and – if you drop your prejudices – rather bewitching. Hasselhoff is a recovering alcoholic, and one suspects that to him, as to many, this city is a symbol of how a “different” lifestyle can flourish after even awful things have happened. A bit more of this compassion, however self-satisfying, might resolve many conflicts, not just his own. Whether he’s taken seriously or not, Hasselhoff is a unifying force. He’s contradictory, of course: he demands walls stay up which he once wanted torn down; he sings karaoke with a grubby Sunset Strip rock band like he’s changing the world. But even when the Wall tumbled – as Tim Mohr’s recent, gripping history of the 1980s East German punk scene, Burning Down the Haus, reminds us – there were plenty of anti-capitalist DDR citizens who rejected reunification and wished instead to see socialism remodelled. Contradictions are a part of life. Resolving them should be too. He brings things to a close, inevitably, with Looking for Freedom, and if you pay attention, you realise he understands that the thing about “looking for freedom” is that “still the search goes on”. His relentless optimism is irresistible, and it’s infectious, too. That he keeps persevering is to be applauded – as he is noisily tonight – and there is hope in how so many remain prepared to listen.

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End Time: 2024-11-13T16:54:49.000Z

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