City history
Where famous people lived in Berlin: Bowie, Dietrich, Einstein and others
We answer the question of where the stars live in Berlin in a particular way: we show the homes of famous people who are now part of history, often marked by a memorial plaque. We do not name the addresses of living celebrities, even if they can be found somewhere online. Anyone living in Berlin today should be able to buy their bread rolls in peace.
Bowie Hauptstraße 155, Schöneberg
Dietrich Leberstraße 65, Rote Insel
Einstein Haberlandstraße 5, Bavarian Quarter
01 David Bowie · Schöneberg
about 3 minutes on foot from Kleistpark U-Bahn station
David Bowie lived at Hauptstraße 155 in the late 1970s, for a time together with Iggy Pop. The albums now known as his Berlin trilogy date from this period. A memorial plaque on the building commemorates him. People live there, so please look only from the street.
02 Marlene Dietrich · Schöneberg
about 9 minutes on foot from Julius-Leber-Brücke S-Bahn station
Marlene Dietrich was born in 1901 at Leberstraße 65 on the Rote Insel, where a memorial plaque hangs. She is buried in the cemetery on Stubenrauchstraße in Friedenau. More on the Rote Insel is in Ringbahn, part 3.
03 Albert Einstein · Bayerisches Viertel
about 5 minutes on foot from Bayerischer Platz U-Bahn station
From 1918, Albert Einstein lived with his wife Elsa and her daughters in a flat at Haberlandstraße 5, until he left Germany at the end of 1932, never to return. In the Bavarian Quarter, the signs of the memorial Places of Remembrance recall the Jewish residents who were stripped of their rights, driven out and murdered after 1933.
04 Christopher Isherwood · Schöneberg
about 5 minutes on foot from Nollendorfplatz U-Bahn station
The British writer lived at Nollendorfstraße 17 from 1929 to 1933. His Berlin stories later became the basis for the musical and film Cabaret. A memorial plaque hangs on the building. From here it is only a few minutes to Salut! Classic Bar, more in Bars and pubs in Berlin.
05 Max Planck · Grunewald
The physicist lived from 1905 to 1944 in a villa at Wangenheimstraße 21 in the Grunewald villa colony. The house was destroyed in an air raid during the Second World War, and a KPM porcelain plaque has commemorated him since 1989. It is a long walk from Grunewald S-Bahn station, so the bus is the better option.
And today?
Celebrities today live all over the city, many in quite ordinary neighbourhoods, and Berliners usually leave them alone. The Grunewald villa colony, laid out at the end of the 19th century, attracted bankers, publishers and scientists early on; Planck is one example. If you want to see stars, your best chance is at public events such as the Berlinale red carpet in February. Locations from well-known films are in Film locations in Berlin and Potsdam.