June 1966: Beatlemania in Germany

Founded in 1960, the Beatles' career took off in 1962 in Hamburg's Star-Club, a rock club which served as a steppingstone for many bands. Just a short while later, the foursome become superstars, triggering hysteria wherever they went. In 1966, they came back to Germany - to the joy of their many fans. During their three-day tour, the German media hardly talked about anything else.

When their plane landed at the Munich airport at 12:56 on June 23, 1966, chaos broke out with 200 police officers desperately trying to get control over the fans. Journalists stormed the stairs, and Paul smiled at them while manager Brian Epstein tried to calm down the situation. John fought his way through the crowds, while the remaining Beatles disappeared into the crowd.

Fans are pictured waiting in front of the Bayerischer Hof hotel in Munich where the band stayed. The crowds screamed while the hotel management feverishly worked out the quartet's booking. Much to the disliking of the four gentlemen, double rooms had been booked by mistake. After that got worked out, the famous foursome greeted their cheering fans from their windows.

John, Paul, George and Ringo received some very special local gifts - Lederhosen, the traditional Bavarian leather pants. A press conference took place at 4:00 pm in the hotel, with reporters asking rather silly questions. When the tabloid "Bild" asked Ringo whether his Lederhosen were too big for him, he said maybe they were, but he'd just wait until the baby grew.

While Germany's youth went nuts, the older generation was annoyed by the musicians. The media was amazed at their success, with the daily "Münchener Merkur" focusing on the band members' shortcomings rather than their talents: "Short-sighted John Lennon, left-handed Paul McCartney, George Harrison with his huge ears, and Ringo Starr with his very long nose."

The Beatles gave two concerts in Munich's largest circus tent on June 24, playing to shrieking fans for a half hour in the afternoon and again in the evening. The daily "Süddeutsche Zeitung" expressed concern for the stability of the tent's roof . "When the guitars start playing their hard rhythms, it is advisable for medical reasons to leave the area."

The UK was experienced, but now Germany was also dealing with phenomenon of fan hysteria. A reporter for the "Main-Echo" observed at the concert: "18:56. A 16-year old girl jumps up, runs the few steps towards the stage, crashes onto the floor, and screams. Paramedics grab her and carry her outside."

After two performances in Munich, the Beatles traveled on to Essen. Why did they choose this comparatively unimportant town in the Ruhr region? Berlin had been negotiating with the management, but the Beatles refused to play in mass venues like the Olympic stadium or Waldbühne, which hold and 69,000 and 22,000, respectively. Instead, they performed for 8,000 fans at a smaller hall in Essen.

"Hamburg's teenagers raced around in Beatles hysteria for 25 minutes. Especially the girls were moaning and screaming themselves hoarse to the rhythm of their Idols. It was the biggest mass hysteria ever witnessed in this hall," wrote the "Hamburger Morgenpost" about the Beatles' two concerts for 5,700 people in Hamburg. Tabloid "Bild" kept it short: "They screamed. They cried. They fell over."

After their six short concerts in just three days, it was all over. On Monday June 27, 1966, thousands of fans came to Hamburg's airport to say "Auf Wiedersehen" and send them off on their Asia tour. The four flew directly to Tokyio, and the German media breathed a sigh of relief. "We survived the Beatles," commented the "Sonne" of Baden-Baden.