The Florida Tanzpalast in Berlin was only open for a short period of time from late 1927 to 1928 and then ownership changed and it became Himmel und Hölle. Nevertheless, it was one of the premier night rendezvous in Berlin during the Jazz Age of the 1920s and 1930s.
The Florida opened in early December 1927 in rooms at Kurfürstendamm 237 (at the Memorial Church end on the corner of Rankestrasse) that had previously been called ‘Wilhelma’ or ‘Wülhelma.’ The enterprise had been established by the merchants Werner Daum and Max Bollo, owners of the company Florida Tanzpaſt Bollo and Daum in Charlottenburg. Elegantly appointed the Florida had a large dance and restaurant hall, a large bar and a comfortable winter garden.
The well-known, cheerful, cabaret artist Ernst Petermann directed the inaugural cabaret performance that comprised the best domestic and foreign talent and included, the well-known ballroom dancing team of Ernest and Yvonne, the singer lse Kochann, the dancer Olga Smirnova from the Petersburg State Opera, Glory and Laron, Andre and Denise, Erik Garden and many others. Petermann was supported by Kalada Petschyansky and the music supplied by Anton Goronczy’s ‘The Hudson Band’.
The venue only lasted a few months and by April 1928 the company had gone bankrupt and was dissolved. Then in October 1928 the business man Emil Kiwi took charge of the premise and launched a new venue called Himmel und Hölle (Heaven and Hell).
The new place proved more popular and enduring than the Florida and it was described as a ‘popular amusement park on Kurfürstendamm.’ In January 1929 a new notable American attraction presented itself with the Reger Dance Band but it is not known how long Himmel und Hölle remained opened.
All images (unless specified in the caption) and text © copyright Gary Chapman / Jazz Age Club and must not be re-used without prior consent
Sources
Postcards
Berliner Börsen-Zeitung 26/10/27
Deutsche allgemeine Zeitung 2/12/27
Sport im Bild 9th December 1927
Deutscher Reichsanzeiger und Preußischer Staatsanzeiger 10/5/28
Berliner Börsen-Zeitung 23/10/28
Westfälische Zeitung, Bielefelder Tageblatt 27/10/28
Vorwärts 13/1/29
