My K.I.T.T. with David Hasselhoff at ZDF-Fernsehgarten 2010

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On 29th August 2010, David Hasselhoff appeared live on the German TV show "ZDF-Fernsehgarten" in Mainz. K.I.T.T. was there too - in the form of my replica.
2.32 million viewers (18.2% market share) watched as David drove the car onto the Fernsehgarten stage, with host Andrea Kiewel sitting in the passenger seat. The two then kicked off the show, which also featured German guests such as Helene Fischer, Die Flippers, Bernhard Brink, Steffen Henssler and many others.
Even before the show began, my K.I.T.T. appeared in a trailer with host Andrea Kiewel, which was likely recorded on Saturday during rehearsals (see right).
Hasselhoff was in Germany primarily to promote his daughters Taylor-Ann and Hayley as "Bella Vida" and their first single, but he didn't miss the opportunity to sing his own hits "Crazy For You" and "Looking For Freedom" as well.
K.I.T.T. was prominently featured in the show on several occasions. For example, he offered a funny comment as David ran past him during "Crazy For You" and "winked" at singer Thomas Mandl with his pop-up headlights. He also stood in a meadow at the end of the show to note that his batteries could use a little rest.

Screenshots from the Show

Below are some screenshots from the show. Unfortunately, it wasn't broadcast in native HD back then. The broadcast technology in Mainz was still SD.

2010-08-19: Bringing K.I.T.T. to Mainz

When German TV channel ZDF contacted me on 12th August 2010, David's appearance on "Fernsehgarten" was still scheduled for 5th September. That would have worked out well, since we were supposed to return from our honeymoon in the USA at 5:00 AM that morning. We would have easily made it in time for the show's 11:00 AM start, since we were landing in Frankfurt/Main, which is just under a 30-minute drive from the "Fernsehgarten" in Mainz. I could therefore drop off the car there before our flight on 19th August and pick it up again after the show on 5th September.
Unfortunately, David's appearance was moved up by a week shortly afterward to 29th August 2010 - we were in Las Vegas at that time and wouldn't be able to be there in person. Nevertheless, it was an honor for me to still provide my K.I.T.T. for the show, so that David Hasselhoff could drive it. That's practically a "knightly accolade" for the car. So we stuck to our agreement. And maybe I'll get to meet him some other time in person 🙂
So on 19th August 2010, we drove to Mainz in two cars to drop off K.I.T.T. there and then continue on our way. My buddy Daniel (n000g from the ZIDZ.COMmunity) from nearby Bischofsheim came along; he was able to be there during the show to take backstage photos for me.
Once there, I removed the license plates and installed the KNIGHT license plate and the Gullwing steering wheel. After a short briefing, the car was accepted by editor Fabian and production manager Claire and safely parked in a garage on the Fernsehgarten grounds. This allowed us to set off on our trip with peace of mind - a journey that would take us to San Francisco, Los Angeles, Yosemite, Las Vegas, Washington, D.C., and New York over the next 16 days.

2010-08-29: The live show

For the show, K.I.T.T. was given a thorough makeover by the props department and looked absolutely stunning. Unfortunately, on the way to Mainz, the car suffered a rock chip on the windshield near Gotha, which grew into a long crack along the way. Somehow, I must have overlooked the spray truck that had stripped away the molecular bonded shell beforehand... 😉
ZDF decided, in consultation with me, to have the windshield replaced by a mobile windshield service the week before the show, so that it wouldn't be visible on air 🙂
Before the live broadcast began, David received a brief introduction to K.I.T.T. from production manager Claire and took a short test drive with the prop master.

Before the show began, Andrea Kiewel welcomed the star guests and the audience on the main stage. David Hasselhoff also stopped by briefly, joked around with the host, and then went down to K.I.T.T., where he waited for Kiewi.
For the live broadcast, they decided to remove the roofs from K.I.T.T. This made it easier to get in and out and provided a better view of the passengers.

For the live broadcast, they decided to remove the roofs from K.I.T.T. - David had already been taken to K.I.T.T. before host Andrea Kiewel arrived and was waiting there for his appearance.
Just before the broadcast began, Kiewi joined them and went over a few final points with David sitting in K.I.T.T.

Right on time at 11:00 AM, David and Kiewi kicked off the show and drove onto the stage in K.I.T.T., where the other guests were already waiting.

During the broadcast, K.I.T.T. remained parked right next to the main stage and thus made several more appearances on the show.
After the live broadcast ended, editor Fabian took the opportunity to snap a few photos of K.I.T.T. on the Fernsehgarten grounds:

2010-09-05: Picking up K.I.T.T. in Mainz

On 5th September 2010, we landed back in Frankfurt as planned and were able to take part in that day's episode of "ZDF-Fernsehgarten" and, of course, pick up K.I.T.T. again.
Of course, we were given backstage passes and were able to take photos with German singer Guildo Horn and TV host Horst Lichter. We also saw several other stars, such as singers Andrea Berg, Kim Wilde, Christina Stürmer, Chris DeBurgh, and, of course, host Andrea Kiewel. However, since we were still pretty exhausted from our trip due to jet lag, we decided to leave the venue about 30 minutes after the live broadcast began and get some rest before driving back to Erfurt in the afternoon.

Conclusion

I was very happy that my K.I.T.T. was featured so prominently on the show - and, of course, especially that David Hasselhoff drove him onto the stage. Thanks to this "knightly accolade" it has since become one of the few replicas worldwide that he has not only sat in but also actually driven. David was in a good mood and very impressed with my replica.
Of course, it would have been nice if we'd been able to attend the show ourselves, but aside from the fact that we also got to meet a few celebrities on our wonderful trip to the USA (including Reese Witherspoon, Marcia Cross from "Desperate Housewives", Claudia Wells from "Back to the Future"), Hasselhoff was apparently quite busy backstage, so a personal meeting would likely have been difficult overall. However, production manager Claire got me an autograph on a portrait photo, and editor Fabian and my buddy Daniel - who managed to snag a seat at one of the tables on the main stage - took lots of photos for me, as promised 🙂
Regardless, I had several more opportunities in the years that followed to meet David in person. At our first meeting at "Celebrate the 80s and 90s" in 2014, I also had him sign two photos of his Fernsehgarten performance with my K.I.T.T. 🙂

And also the Fernsehgarten production team had fond memories of my K.I.T.T. - When David Hasselhoff was scheduled to appear as a guest once again on 14th July 2019, K.I.T.T. and I were invited back, so David drove my K.I.T.T. onto the show's main stage once more - nearly 9 years after the first appearance. This time I was able to attend in person, briefed him personally at the rehearsals, met him backstage for lots of photos and even made a brief appearance with Hasselhoff on stage to pick up K.I.T.T. again!
My detailed report on the ZDF-Fernsehgarten 2019
Incidentally, including other appearances, David Hasselhoff has now driven my K.I.T.T. more than 12 kilometers (7.5 miles)! That makes my K.I.T.T. one of the world leaders in this regard 😎

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