Dutch singer, composer, actor, stand up comedian, dancer, column writer and for most an inspiring all television personality.
Angela Groothuizen (literally meaning “Angel Large houses”) became famous at young age after becoming after some hesitating the sixth member of the maiden pop group the “Dolly Dots”, that scored many hits in the Netherlands between 1979 and 1988. After the Dolly Dots split, she studied music and worked together with Ruud Mulder, former guitarist of disco/funk-contemporaries Spargo, to record as “Angela & the Rude”.
Groothuizen had begun a television career starting with an adaptation of Challenge Anika for AVRO television (1990). Her open talk show for adolescents “Sex met Angela” (autumn 1993/94) received attention of Phil Donahue, who invited her in his talkshow. In December 2005 the AVRO dropped her as host since 1999 of “Wie is de mol” (Dutch version of The mole), presumably because of her age and her wish to combine private motherhood (since 1995) with a public career.
She was extremely disappointed, and so was her public, who approached her on the street and gave her new hope. She moved to the commercial television as a panel judge on talent show programs, particularly in Dutch X Factor since 2008. From 2010 until 2012 she was one of the first judges on the Dutch version of The Voice of Holland. She was also active in musical theatre. As she felt an urge to always express herself.
Personal
Angela lives together with Rob Mooij. The “marriage” is open. They have two children Lola (1995) and Nona Tijger (1998). Lola was named after the Lola song of The Kinks and Nona got her name from being born in the Chinese year of the Tiger. She is is seen by others as active, concerned with others, spontaneous and direct, being the same person under all circumstances. In an interview with NRC (1998), she admitted she blowed daily and sometimes drank a bottle of wine a day till 1994, when she was was confronted with the high drug use of adolescents in “Sex met Angela”: ‘Laat ìk dan tenminste stoppen’, nam ik me voor. Ik moet die jongeren die het liefst op maandagochtend al stoned zijn niet op verkeerde ideeën brengen. (Let me stop, I should be a better model for the young children).
Angela has great communication skills, and by being herself she makes people surrounding her feeling at ease. If you feel safe on television, you can be yourself, which will show the best of you, she honestly believes. Her fan site calls her the lady (diamond) with the thousand faces, as she shows her selves and does not bother about what others think of it. If you don’t like me, just state it and realise it is your problem she said.
Her great example was the first Dutch female television host Mies Bouwman. As a great motivator and visionary she was involved in many benefit actions for the Dutch Aids Fund, Revalidation, UNICEF and Amnesty International and others. When Angela is involved, the action will be success, knew the Dutch television makers. Because she was and still is, an even after her personal disappointments, being reborn and others “healthy” motivating Spirit/Soul, being the kind of person Bob Dylan wrote the song Forever Young for.
Link to Wikipedia