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Nico at Lampeter University Photo by GanMed64

Top 10 Unknown Facts about Nico

Christa Paffgen was born on October 16, 1938, and died on July 18, 1988. She was known by her stage name Nico, the name given to her by a  friend Herbert Tobia while working together at the KaDeWe fashion show in Berlin. She was a German singer, songwriter, musician, model, and actress. Nico had roles in several films including Federico Fellini’s la Dolce Vita(1960)and Andy Warhol’s Chelsea Girls(1966).

She was a daughter of Wilhelm and Margarete Paffgen. Her father come from a wealthy Paffgen Kolsch master brew family dynasty in cologne and was Catholic while her mother came from a lower-class background and was Protestant.

Nico and her mother moved to downtown Berlin in 1946, where her mother worked as a seamstress. She attended school until the age of 13 and then started selling lingerie in a department store KaDeWe. Later she secured a chance and started modelling in Berlin.

The following are the Top ten unknown facts about Nico;

1. Nico was her Nickname

Her original name was Christa Paffgen. At the age of 16, Herbert Tobias gave her the nickname “Nico” while working together at the KaDeWe fashion show in Berlin. Tobias gave her the name “Nico” after a man he loved who was a filmmaker in France Nikos Papatakis. She later used the name for the rest of her life and many People never recognized her as Christa but Nico.

2. She Started her Career at a Young Age

While still a teenager Nico stopped schooling and began selling lingerie in the exclusive department store KaDeWe and later got modelling jobs in Berlin. Since she had well-developed body features and pale skin, Nico became famous as a fashion model when still a teenager. She also worked as a temporary employee in the United state Air Force.

She moved to Â鶹APP where she began working with fashion magazines such as; Vogue, Elle, Camera, Tempo, Mascotte Spettacolo, and Vie Nuove among others. She was invited to the set of Federico Fellini’s Satirical comedy-drama La Dolce Vita, where she attracted the attention of the acclaimed director, who gave her a minor role in films like herself.

3. She Worked with Different Producers and Directors

Nico at Lampeter University Photo by GanMed64

In 1959, she was invited to the set by Italian film director and Screenwriter, Federico Fellini for the satirical comedy-drama film, La Dolce Vita and was given a minor role in the film. She also worked with Jean-Paul Belmondo a French actor and producer who was a major French film star for several decades from the 1960s onward.

In 1963, worked with Jacques Poitrenaud a French film director and actor in strip-Tease, where she got a lead role. In New York, she worked with Andy Warhol, an American visual artist, film director, and producer, and Paul Morrissey, an American film director (best known for his association with Andy Warhol) on their Experimental film including Chelsea Girl, Sunset, The Closet, and Imitation of Christ.

4. Started Singing at Early age till Time she Died

Nico at Lampeter University Photo by GanMed64

Nico met Rolling Stones( an English rock band formed in London in 1962) guitarist Brian Jones who was an English Multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and founder of the Rolling Stones in 1965, and she recorded her first single, “I’m Not Sayin”. She was introduced to Bob Dylan, an American singer-songwriter by Benito F.Carruthers, who was an American film actor. In 1964, Nico recorded Bob Dylan’s song “I’II Keep It With Mine” for her first album, Chelsea Girl.

5. She Dyed her Hair

When Nico moved to Â鶹APP and began working for fashion magazines such as Vogue, Mascotte, Camera, and Elle among others, is around that time she dyed her brown hair blonde and later claimed she was inspired to do so by Ernest Hemingway, an American novelist, short story writer, and journalist.

In 1968, The Marble Index Album was realized, Nico wrote the lyrics and Music. The album marked a radical change in Nico’s appearance and image. She started dressing mostly in black and at this time she dyed her hair from blonde to red.

On December 13, 1974, Nico opened for Tangerine Dream’s(German Electronic music band founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese) popular concert at Reims Cathedral in Reims, France. During this time she let her hair return to its natural brown colour.

6. Led a nomadic life

The German songwriter, singer, model, and actress led a nomadic life by living in different countries. Apart from German where she was born and raised by her parents Wilhelm and Margarete.

In the 1950s she lived in Italy and France and spent most of her 1960s in the United State and lived in London in the early 1960s. She moved between London and Manchester in the 1980s.

7. She was Never Married

Nicol was never married however she had an affair with Alain Delon a French actor and filmmaker, known as one of Europe’s most prominent actors In the 1960s.On August 11, 1962, she gave birth to their son, Christian Aaron Boulogne, whom she called Ari.

Alain Delon refused to admit paternity of the child and Nico had difficulties raising Ari by herself. The boy was raised by Delon’s parents and later became a photographer and actor, and had a son and daughter.

8. Inspired Many Singers

Nico at Lampeter University Photo by GanMed64

Nico was an inspiration to many musicians due to her successful work. Some of the musicians she inspired include, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, Elliott Smith, Bjork, and Morrissey. In 1978, Siouxsie and the Banshees invited her as a special guest on their first major United kingdom tour and later covered “All Tomorrow’s Parties”. Robert Smith, The Cure’s leader has cited Desertshore as one of his favourite records.

9. Nico’s Father’s Death is Mysterious

Her father, Wilhelm, was a soldier during the war, but there are several conflicting accounts as to when and how he died. According to biographer Richard Witts in his 1995 book, Nico: The Life and Lies of Icon, Wilhelm Paffgen was gravely wounded in 1942 after having been shot in the head by a French sniper.

Without certainty that he would survive, his Commanding officer, following standing orders, ended his life by gunshot. Other Source says that he sustained head injuries and ended his life in a psychiatric institution as per some source. However, according to other sources, he died in a concentration camp or to have faded away as a result of shell shock.

10. German Model was a Heroin Addict

The German singer used to take heroin. She was addicted to heroin for more than 15 years; she even introduced her son Ari to the drug usage. The drug made her lose interest in singing for some years. However, shortly before her death, she had stopped using Heroin.