Abstract
The dissertation deals with the first Czech urban subculture to endorse American culture and swing music under the Nazi occupation of Bohemia and Moravia. The members of this subculture referred to themselves as "potapky" and "bedly".
They dressed in eccentric clothes such as a loose coat, deformed hat, high sole boots, narrow trousers, and brightly coloured socks. Typically, boys wore long hair, which were part of their identity.
Moreover, "potapky" distinguished themselves by another characteristics, such as body posture and their slang. It must be noticed that similar eccentric fashion as concerns swing music coexisted in Hamburg, Vienna, and Paris.
In the case of the swing subculture in Bohemia and Moravia, its sources of inspiration - besides American films - were local ones, based on the tradition of Czech humorous literature. Importal part of this subculture was a rebellion against the older generation.
From its beginning in 1940, Czech swing subculture meant a rebellion against Nazi occupation. Swing music also became a generational expression of significant part of young Czechs, also popularly known as "saxophone generation".
From its beginning, National-Socialist ideology was very hostile towards Jazz, so when it came to power in Germany in 1933, Jazz music was gradually banned. However, in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, Jazz music was not only tolerated, but also Nazi regime even tried to use it for propaganda.
The reason why swing music was to some extend tolerated dwells in Nazi racial policy. Swing branded by the Nazis as "decadent music" was acceptable for Czechs, who were anyway regarded as an inferior nation, while German society and especially the youth should be protected from this evil.