Oliver Erens (born February 2, 1967 in Heidelberg) is a German physician, publicist, magician, and author.
He actively pursued his hobby, magic, alongside his school and university studies. Since then, he has increasingly focused on writing about magic. Since 1995, he has published specialist books on magic, for which he was honored with the title of “Author of the Year” in 1996. From 2004 to 2011, he was an editor of the magazine “MAGIE” of the Magic Circle of Germany. From 1986 to 2000, he was a regular contributor to the magic magazine “Magische Welt”, for which he wrote around 80 articles.
From 2003 to 2010 he was part of the editorial team of the club magazine Magie.
Dr. Vera Zylka-Menhorn cannot yet reflect on her life’s work; born in 1954 she certainly still has a lot planned. After all, she has been a medical journalist for exactly 20 years. On April 25, she was awarded the Walter Trummert Medal by the Association of German Medical and Professional Press in recognition of her overall achievements. Prof. Dr. Peter Sefrin, the chairman of the association, presented her with the award in Wiesbaden, where medical journalists meet every year for the Internal Medicine Congress.
Zylka-Menhorn, born on May 3, 1954, studied medicine in Cologne (1972 to 1979) and further trained to become a specialist in anesthesiology. What attracted her to anesthesiology was “the atmosphere in the operating room.” In 1986, she changed careers and became a journalist, initially at the “Welt” newspaper (1986 to 1990), then successfully working freelance, finally joining Deutsches Ärzteblatt in 1993. There, Zylka-Menhorn is responsible for the “Medizinreport” (Medical Report), which primarily focuses on current medical reporting and commentary. Zylka-Menhorn is committed to providing truthful information about new products and procedures. She is not afraid to speak her mind. Roche Diagnostics is the founder of the Walter Trummert Medal, named after a former editor-in-chief of the Münchner Medizinische Wochenschrift (Munich Medical Weekly).
At the same time, the Bayer Health Care European Journalism Award was presented. It was noted with praise and a touch of irony that two competing companies were jointly participating in such an event. Although the teams sat at separate tables, they had one goal: to honor critical journalism.
She headed various departments at Deutsches Ärzteblatt.
Detlef Strathmann (1941-2001) He financed his medical studies as a medical journalist – including for the Bild newspaper – and thus found his way into the pharmaceutical industry. His subsequent career then led him into advertising. In 1973, he founded the advertising agency Intramed, which is still part of the Strathmann Group today.
At the same time, he recommended the right medications as a mailbox doctor for several magazines. He advised readers of the women’s magazine “Petra” as family doctor Detlef Günther. In the television program “TV Hören und Sehen,” he offered his expert advice as physician Michael Falk, and in the rainbow newspaper “Neue Post,” he gave health tips under the pseudonym Dr. Bertram.
Strathmann reached the pinnacle of his doctorate in the illustrated magazine “Brigitte” when he wrote about the skin disease cellulite in the women’s breviary “Brigitte”: He coined the fruity name “orange peel” for this common female blemish, referring to a medication that he was soon able to offer from his own production.
His “vita humores”: It began in 1971 at a song contest in his high school: Singing “Anuschka” from Udo Jürgens he got the third prize. Next year he had the best student prize with “Mathilda” also by Udo Jürgens.
Later he took theatre courses in “Stehgreif-Theater” (spontaneous improvising theatre) which he connects involving the audience in the humorous interaction…..!
Lüder Wohlenberg has been a successful cabaret artist for many years. He currently has two full-length cabaret shows in his repertoire. A native of the Hanseatic City of Rhineland, Wohlenberg is a doctor by profession, specifically a radiologist.
Born in Hamburg, he attended school in Neuss and studied medicine in Cologne. He trained as a radiologist in Düren and Mönchengladbach. There, he also worked as a certified emergency physician until, not least due to the success of his alter ego “Mr. Raderscheid,” he decided to work primarily as a cabaret artist and presenter.
Wohlenberg and his portrayal of the professional patient, Mr. Raderscheid, are always welcome guests on radio and television. Among other things, he has gained many new fans over several years as Mr. Raderscheid in his weekly radio column on SWR radio.
Numerous health care reforms, two traffic accidents, and a shoulder joint dislocation have not diminished him, the over two-meter-tall stage giant. Wohlenberg knows the health care system from both sides of the needle and knows what medicine can do and where it’s better to keep the scalpel in the package.
Today he lives in Cologne with his family doctor, his two children, and a few fish. Wohlenberg is also a proven football expert. As the coach of a youth football team, he has found another true passion. He enjoys analyzing, philosophizing, predicting, and commenting, even on these topics, entertainingly and with his usual competence and reliability.
You can find out more about him and his programs as well as his work as a cabaret artist, presenter and speaker here on his homepage.
Prof. Dr. Werner Schunk has traveled to more than 100 countries in his lifetime. His curiosity about people in other cultures, their way of life, and their art has repeatedly led him to board trains, cars, buses, airplanes, rickety helicopters, and the suspiciously light boats of the locals. He wanted to see with his own eyes how the indigenous people of Papua New Guinea, the Amazon, or Madagascar live, and always stayed for a while. Rich in impressions, insights, and the gratitude of the people, he returned home, bringing back rare works of art as souvenirs. He will exhibit some of these extraordinary mementos at the KunstForum Gotha from October 2, 2020, to March 28, 2021, combining them with interesting anecdotes and tips from his work as a physician and brain researcher.
The astonishingly universal life’s work of Professor Werner Schunk is anchored in his hometown of Gotha. He was born in Sundhausen, trained as a metalworker in railroad car manufacturing, and just a few years after completing his medical studies, became a company doctor. When practice space became scarce, he treated people from Gotha East in his apartment. For the rubber combine, he systematized poisons, their effects, and their treatment. Schunk shared the findings of his work with other researchers from Sweden, Great Britain, and America. He later traveled to Japan and India to help people suffering from Parkinson’s disease with his “Way of Schunk” treatment method. Thanks to his extensive knowledge and experience, he became Director of the Institute for Occupational Medicine and Vice-Rector of the Medical Academy in Erfurt, while also serving on the Gotha City Council and for the Perthes Forum in Gotha.
The core of Professor Werner Schunk’s research is the miracle of the brain. He knows it with incredible precision, down to the most complex biochemical processes, yet has never lost his sense of wonder. He calls this mysterious organ a work of art capable of thinking, feeling, and moving. He explored it so extensively and persistently that he became one of the first people in the world to discover that the brain’s own metabolism can be severely disrupted by manganese. From then on, he could have only hung around at receptions and accepted numerous prizes and honors. But then he swapped his fine suit for a doctor’s coat and tropical clothing to be where true art is created: among people.
He has published 800 scientific publications and lectures, as well as ten scientific books. He holds 68 patents, including those for biomaterials.
Wandlung des Lächelns
Jetzt huscht es über dein Gesicht, ein Lächeln, das die Starre bricht. Zeigt an die innere Verspannung, löst Körper, Geist aus der Verbannung.
Das Lächeln ist auf bestem Wege zur wundersamen Körperpflege. Verschenke es mit deinem Blick, es kommt in andrer Form zurück.
Diese äußerliche Handlung zeugt von innerer Verwandlung.
Uhlenbruck’s family wasn’t supposed to know that their Gerd was running, because to them he was ill (sarcoidosis). So he chose Urbach’s GSV Porz, a slightly out-of-town club, as his club. He has completed 36 marathons and a 100km race, which he ran on his birthday. Twice he finished the 42.195km in the age group 70. His personal best of 3:18 hours is astonishing considering his lung history. Once (1984), he even became German Marathon Champion for cross-country doctors and pharmacists. He demonstrated athletic versatility by taking runner-up titles for cycling doctors, both in the road and time trial categories.
From Reader to Writer
“The aphorism condenses the quintessence of an experience into the sentence of an insight.”
During his hospital stay, Gerhard Uhlenbruck wanted to set himself a task to combat giving up, not only physically; he sought a challenge for body and mind. While he gained physical fitness with his “therapy of small steps,” he kept himself mentally fit with a “therapy of small sentences.” He began writing poems, exploring “life, love, and the love of life.” They were published in 1975 under the pseudonym Gerhard Günther (“Not Forever”).
Subsequently, he presented himself entirely as an aphorist. The number of his “rich fragments of thought” has risen astronomically over the decades. Whether medical aphorisms or sports aphorisms, with which he launched a new genre, Uhlenbruck was not only the most prolific writer of this genre, but also impressed with his quality and originality. “An insightful understanding of human nature emerges everywhere, which, despite all social criticism, does not result in cynicism or pessimism, but rather expresses hope for a better order of this fragile world” (Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Mieder).
Dozens of volumes of his aphorisms have been published since 1977, including “An Educated Sick Person,” “Blows to One’s Neighbor,” and “The Smarter One Doesn’t Give Up.” His flashes of inspiration, thought-provoking ideas, and observations can be found in satirical and specialist magazines, on calendar pages, and in illustrated books. H.-H. alone contains 1,000 volumes of aphorisms. Skupys’ “The Complete Handbook of Quotations from A to Z” (2004) included over 300 of his witty remarks. In recognition, the Narrenakademie (Fools’ Academy) in Dülken awarded him the title of “Dr. humoris causa” in 2001. The German Aphorism Archive in Hattingen elected him its honorary chairman. Finally, in 2017, he was awarded the Lehrer-Welsch Language Prize for Literature in Cologne.
Uhlenbruck also addressed running in countless aphorisms. It’s difficult to choose just one. “In the end, a marathon just drags on and on,” might particularly appeal to marathon runners. Running therapists might appreciate the following statements: “Running as therapy: What moves you internally can be processed through external movement.” “Running is psychotherapy without psychotherapists – with the help of your legs.” Or: “Running is the only therapy that costs nothing, except time! A one-person company like the AOK: Everything free of charge!”
Like running, for Uhlenbruck, laughter was medicine, a stress reliever, and an immune fitness booster. And because his interest in humor knew no bounds, he participated, whenever his time permitted, in an amateur drama group at the adult education center (VHS) and in the book project “Humor as Cologne Philosophy” (Cologne 2003). He also spoke perfect Cologne dialect.
Athletic Awards
Uhlenbruck began his athletic career in high school, first as a boxer, then as a runner. He was:
German Physicians’ Marathon Champion
German Physicians’ Cycling Runner-up (road race & time trial).
Citations of his Aphorisms (naturally in German):
Manche halten einen ausgefüllten Terminkalender für ein ausgefülltes Leben.
Zeitungsenten bringen die Leser zum Schnattern.
Die ungeschminkte Wahrheit bringt immer Farbe ins Gesicht.
Wenn man Spaß an einer Sache hat, dann nimmt man sie auch ernst.
Frisch gesagt ist halb gewonnen.
Wir sind alles Nichtsnutze, das heißt, wir tun nichts, was uns nichts nützt.
Neidhammel = Ehrgeizige Schafe.
Man empfindet es oft als ungerecht, daß Menschen, die Stroh im Kopf haben, auch noch Geld wie Heu besitzen.
Inzwischen wissen wir, was uns noch blüht – nämlich immer weniger!
Das wirklich Rührende an der Liebe ist der Kochlöffel.
Karrieristen = Leute, welche andere vor ihren Karren spannen.
Auf dem Gipfel des Erfolgs steht auch ein Kreuz: für die Leichen, über die man gegangen ist. (Als Betriebsrat/Sozialpolitiker/Manager wissen Sie, wovon ich rede. Von der Rücksichtslosigkeit. Vom Egoismus. Als Christ sage ich: Wer sich so verhält, kann kein Christ sein. Denn das Christentum kreist im Kern um den einen Satz, der da lautet: “Liebe deinen Nächsten wie dich selbst!”)
An Karneval maskiert man sich, damit man die Maske fallen lassen kann.
Unsere Leistungsgesellschaft ist nicht eine Gesellschaft, in der nur Leistung gilt, sondern eine, welche bestimmt, was Leistung ist und wer sie leisten darf.
Manches wäre anders in der Welt, wenn man an manchen Dingen nichts verdienen würde.
Fanatiker lassen sich schon aus Überzeugung nicht überzeugen.
Ehrgeiz schafft viel, sogar einen selbst.
Sein Pferdefuß bestand darin, daß er nicht beschlagen war.
Wir sind ein Volk der Denker, denn wir denken immer daran, was andere wohl von uns denken.
Eine Änderung des Bewußtseins verändert unbewußt auch das Sein.
Guter Rat ist teuer, schlechter Rat kann teuer zu stehen kommen.
Man muß sich dauernd beherrschen, um die Beherrschung nicht zu verlieren.
Das Geheimnis des Autos: Man ist in seinen eigenen vier Wänden.
Erst haben die Menschen das Atom gespalten, jetzt spaltet das Atom die Menschen.
Aller Anfang ist leicht – wenn man ihn mit dem Ende vergleicht.
Zwischenmenschliche Beziehungen sind “mit Abstand” die besten.
Because he was already thirty at the time, and had been an international-level runner for a decade, this victory was a long-awaited one for him. He admitted that he decided to run the 5,000 metres instead of the 1,500 metres, because he lost to Ovett and Coe so often in the shorter distance. The fairly slow pace of the 1982 European Athletics Championships 5,000-metre final favoured Wessinghage, because he was in top form – having set a European record at 2,000 metres shortly before the Championships – and because he was the fastest 1,500-metre runner in the final, having run that distance in 3 minutes 31.6 seconds in 1980.
He won the German championship title 22 times. The European Championship over 5000 meters, which he won in 1982, was his greatest success. In 1979, he won the World Cup over 1500 meters in Montreal, in 1975 the European Cup over 1500 meters in Nice, and in 1983 the 5000 meters in London. He set German and European records, of which the German records over 1500 and 2000 meters (4:52.20 min) still stand.
In his marathon debut in Berlin in 1989, Wessinghage ran a time of 2:26 h.
Thomas Wessinghage was German champion 22 times, particularly in the 1500 meters. His greatest success, however, was in the 5000 meters. He won gold in this event at the 1982 European Championships in Athens. Wessinghage also competed at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich and the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal.
All achievements at a glance:
22-time German Champion
1972: Olympic Participant
1975: European Indoor Champion (1500 m)
1976: Olympic Participant
1977: World Record with the German 4×1500-meter relay team (Wessinghage, Harald Hudak, Michael Lederer, and Karl Fleschen), valid until September 4, 2009
Detlef Fastré enjoys being a doctor. But when the Cologne-based anesthesiologist isn’t on duty, he has another passion: cycling. He doesn’t just ride the ten kilometers to work on his racing bike. When he’s out and about on weekends, he sometimes covers 100 kilometers in a day. His favorite ride is in the Bergisches Land region. “Cycling is a wonderful counterbalance to his medical career,” he says. His workload at the anesthesiology practice where he works currently amounts to about 50 hours a week. “On my bike, I can relax mentally and stay physically fit at the same time.”
For Fastré, however, sport is also a social experience. And so, in 2002, he became a member of the “Cycling Association of German Doctors and Pharmacists” (RVDÄ). (now dissolved). The association had around 200 members. They all shared a passion for cycling. Fastré is a board member and serves as treasurer. The motivation for his commitment: the friendly contact with colleagues from other disciplines. The association organizes road bike and mountain bike tours and training events on medicine and cycling.
