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Friedrich Nietzsche was raised having five women around him - his mother, grandmother, two aunts and a sister, all living together. His father, a Lutheran pastor, died when Nietzsche was 5 years old. After a Catholic school he studied music and Greco-Roman culture at the famous Schulpfora from 1858-1864, continued at the universities of Bonn, Leipzig and Basel, where he was a professor of classic philology for 12 years. His influences were: classic history, Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, writer Fyodor Dostoevsky and Jesus Christ, whom he called "Superman".

His main books are "The Gay Science", "Thus Spoke Zarathustra", "Beyond Good and Evil", "Twilight of the Idols" and the radical "Antichrist". Nietzsche analyzed foundations of values and morality through transformations of human nature and society. His contention that traditional values, religion and God, are not working in the modernized world, led to his conceptual statement: "God is dead." In replacement of God comes his concept of a superman - a rational, secure and highly independent individual. He lists Jesus, Socrates, Leonardo da Vinci, Shakespeare, Goethe and Napoleon as models or prototypes of a superman. His idealistic superman was often misinterpreted as a role for a dictator in a totalitarian society. Nitzsche's goal for this concept was mainly individualistic because of his despise of any crowd and attention to him. He considered any crowd as a main source of lies and manipulations. According to Nietzsche it is the independence that allows a superman to be truly original and creative.

His sarcastic humor and contradictory ideas, often misunderstood in metaphysical context, caused misinterpretations of his personality and his works. His nihilism resulted from frustrations in search of meaning. For self-liberation Nietzsche terminated his German citizenship and remained a stateless person for the rest of his life. He distanced himself from Richard Wagner being repelled by the banality of the Bayreuth shows and the baseness of the crowd. He suffered from migraine headaches and from shortsightedness to the degree of blindness that caused his retirement from University of Basel. After he saw a brutal beating of a horse on a street, Nitzsche had a mental breakdown at age 44, and he retreated into solitude as a self-defense from crowds and manipulations. He lived with his mother and sister until his death of pneumonia in 1900. Most researchers regard his breakdown as irrelevant to his works. He received postmortem recognition by existentialists and by 20th century postmodern philosophers.

Nietzsche's idea of a day in a life repeating itself again, and again, and again was written at the end of the Book IV of "The Gay Science" (1887). It is used in the film 'Groundhog Day (1993)'.

Nietzsche listed laughter and humor as vital qualities of being a superman. He only failed to add a superwoman on his list of models to make it really serious.

Johann Wolfgang Goethe was born on 28 August 1749 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany as son of a lawyer. After growing up in a privileged upper middle class family, he studied law in Leipzig from 1765 to 1768, although he was more interested in literature. As he was seriously ill, he had to interrupt his studies, but finally graduated in Strassburg with a degree in law. In the following years, his novel "The Sorrows of Young Werther" (1774) became one of the first bestsellers, making him a key author in the "Sturm und Drang" (Storm and Stress) movement. In 1775, he settled down in Weimar, being the Duke's adviser and writing popular dramas such as "Egmont" or "Torquato Tasso". One of his life's important milestones was the Italian Journey from 1786 and 1788, where he discovered his interest in Greek and Roman classicism. After his return to Germany, he began the "Weimar Classicism" movement with his good friend Friedrich Schiller, concentrating on poems and dramas such as his best known work "Faust", which he published in two parts (1808/1832). Beside his literary work, he contributed many interesting theories to sciences, making him Germany's leading polymath in that period. On 22 March 1832, he died in Weimar, the town he had lived for more than fifty years.

Friedrich Schiller was born on Nov. 10, 1759, in Marbach, Germany. His father was an army doctor. Growing up in a very poor environment, Schiller eventually managed to get the support of a wealthy duke that enabled him to study medicine. He served as a military doctor first, but through the efforts of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe he finally went to Jena and Weimar, where he died on the May 9, 1805.

Schiller is an important German author of his time, most famous for his stage plays. They were highly acclaimed--and mostly forbidden, because of their contents. His first big work, "Die Räuber", dealt with the revolt of sons against their parents and environment, a very modern topic for the time and one that was not accepted in many regions of Germany. Overall, though, he is underrated as an author due to the fact that he lived and wrote in the same time as Goethe: Schiller is considered to be a good writer, but not as brilliant as Goethe.

Norman Sirnic was born on 2 May 1952 in Sharon, Pennsylvania, USA. He died on 1 May 1999 in Weimar, Texas, USA.

Fritz Diez was born on 27 February 1901 in Meiningen, Germany. He was an actor, known for Já, spravedlnost (1968), Ernst Thälmann - Führer seiner Klasse (1955) and Die gefrorenen Blitze (1967). He was married to Martha Beschort-Diez. He died on 19 October 1979 in Weimar, German Democratic Republic.

Charlotte Küter was born on 17 January 1900 in Berlin, Germany. She was an actress, known for Weite Strassen stille Liebe (1969), Columbus 64 (1966) and The Axe of Wandsbek (1951). She was married to Paul Lewitt. She died on 2 June 1983 in Weimar, German Democratic Republic.

Hans Lucke was born on 25 April 1927 in Dresden, Germany. He was an actor and writer, known for Sommerwege (1960), Die Leute von Züderow (1985) and Urlaub ohne Dich (1961). He was married to Irina Lucke-Kaminiarz. He died on 27 August 2017 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Inge von Wangenheim was born on 1 July 1912 in Berlin, Germany. She was an actress and director, known for The Struggle (1936), Der Auftrag Höglers (1950) and Und wieder 48 (1948). She was married to Gustav von Wangenheim. She died on 6 April 1993 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Karl Koch was born on 2 August 1897 in Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany. He was married to Ilse Koch and Marie Sophie Elisabeth Josephine Margarethe Katharina Müller. He died on 5 April 1945 in Buchenwald, Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Rosemarie Deibel was born on 11 March 1936 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany. She was an actress, known for Am Ende der Welt (1975), Schultze Gets the Blues (2003) and Die Hollies (2003). She died on 17 July 2012 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Princess Charlotte of Prussia was born on 24 July 1860 in Potsdam, Kingdom of Prussia [now Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany]. She was married to Prince Bernhard of Saxe-Meiningen. She died on 1 October 1919 in Baden-Baden, Weimar Republic [now Baden-Baden, Baden-Württemberg, Germany].

Brigitte Renner was born on 8 August 1925 in Gotha, Thuringia, Germany. She was an actress, known for Police Call 110 (1971), Hinter Gittern - Der Frauenknast (1997) and Die schönsten Jahre (2005). She died on 5 December 2022 in Weimar, Germany.

Ah Wing was born on 12 July 1851 in China. He was an actor, known for The Grub Stake (1923), The She Wolf (1919) and The Girl from Beyond (1918). He died on 27 February 1941 in Weimar, California, USA.

Karl Platen was born on 6 March 1877 in Halle, Germany. He was an actor and cinematographer, known for M (1931), Woman in the Moon (1929) and Deception (1920). He died on 4 July 1952 in Weimar, German Democratic Republic.

Harry Thürk was born on 8 March 1927 in Zülz, Silesia, Germany [now Biala, Opolskie, Poland]. He was a writer and actor, known for Streng geheim (1963), Haus im Feuer (1960) and Das Tal der sieben Monde (1967). He died on 24 November 2005 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Josef Dischner was born on 26 September 1872 in Karlsruhe, Germany. He was an actor, known for Eskimo (1930), Die schwarze Schachdame (1922) and Die Radio Heirat (1924). He died on 30 December 1949 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Fritz Bennewitz was born on 20 January 1926 in Chemnitz, Saxony, Germany. He was a director, known for Die Ratten (1962), Schule der Frauen (1965) and Der Regenwettermann (1963). He died on 13 September 1995 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Johann Nepomuk Hummel was born on 14 November 1778 in Preßburg/Pozsony, Hungary, Habsburg Monarchy [now Bratislava, Slovak Republic]. Johann Nepomuk was a composer, known for Vanity Fair (2004), Inspector Lewis (2006) and Legend of the Galactic Heroes (1988). Johann Nepomuk died on 17 October 1837 in Weimar, Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach [now Thuringia, Germany].

Fred Graeve was born on 7 April 1933 in Bochum, Germany. He was an actor, known for Naked Among Wolves (1963), Rocník 21 (1958) and Lotte in Weimar (1975). He was married to Christa. He died on 12 February 2020 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Margarete Taudte was born on 12 November 1920 in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. She was an actress, known for Thomas Müntzer (1956), Johnny Belinda (1960) and The Gleiwitz Case (1961). She was married to Otto Roland. She died on 20 September 2009 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Ivan Ivanji was born on 24 January 1929 in Zrenjanin, Vojvodina, Serbia, Yugoslavia. He was a writer and actor, known for Izgubljeni raj (1964), Ajkula neznog srca (1964) and Sudjenje Bertoltu Brehtu (1973). He died on 9 May 2024 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Robert Benoist was born on 20 March 1895 in Auffargis, France. He died on 12 September 1944 in Buchenwald, Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Karen Sirnic was born on 13 September 1951 in Bryan, Texas, USA. She died on 1 May 1999 in Weimar, Texas, USA.

Alfred Bohl was born on 8 January 1909 in Münsterberg, Lower Silesia, Germany [now Ziebice, Dolnoslaskie, Poland]. He was an actor, known for Ernst Thälmann - Sohn seiner Klasse (1954) and Drei von der K (1969). He died on 25 December 1989 in Weimar, Thuringia, Germany.

Hugo Kalthoff was born on 11 December 1903 in Mühlhausen, Thuringia, Germany. He was an actor, known for The Affair Blum (1948), Karriere in Paris (1952) and Rotation (1949). He died on 16 July 1971 in Weimar, German Democratic Republic.