BIO
By Adriana Rubio
Photograph: Courtesy of Angie Bowie
Photograph: Courtesy of Angie Bowie
Author… Actress… Model… Musician… Mother
Former Wife of David Bowie
She is the leading light of the present age!
THE EARLY YEARS OF A LEADING LIGHT WOMAN:
Angie Bowie was born on the island of Cyprus in 1949, the daughter of Colonel GM Barnett and Helena Marie Galas. Her father was a U.S Army veteran, a mining engineer and ran a mill for Cyprus Mines Corporation. Angie has a brother and grew up feeling like an only child in the family because her brother was 16 years older.
Angie Bowie received education in Cyprus first, and at the age of 9 she was sent to St. George’s School in Switzerland, a very well known international school for wealthy people, a place where she felt she did not belong to but helped her to learn how to survive as an independent-self-sufficient person.
“First I had to learn French --then get used to being away from home and having only my own resources to support me. My sense of humor rescued me from extreme alienation, but we were all outsiders at St. George’s.”
At the age of 16 Angie left Switzerland to attend the Connecticut College For Women in America where she began the journey of her own life. A lesbian relationship with a school mate started and resulted in college interference as was the way with many same sex relationships at that time.
“The psychiatrist at the college grabbed my girlfriend and I, and imprisoned us in the surgery. I had to convince a nurse to bring me my clothes, and then I leapt from the second floor window and ran back to my dormitory. I packed and left for Cyprus within a few days.”
In 1967 Angie went to England to study at Kingston Polytechnic, a notorious ahead of time College for advanced-thinking people. Angie Bowie is gifted with a remarkable intellect. She’s been always well read and well informed. England was definitely the place where she felt at home.
“I believe the only place I truly felt at home was in England.”
In 1969 and at the age of 19, Angie met David Bowie. He was trying to get signed to a record label- Mercury Records. Angie was working with LKou Reizner and Doctor Calvin Mark Lee, both executives for Mercury, so was able to get Mercury to release Bowie’s single SPACE ODDITY. Angie and David fell in love, married in 1970 and had a son who called Duncan Zowie Heywood Jones. He dropped Zowie when he began his professional life and is a well known film director.
THE STARMAKER AND POWER BEHIND DAVID BOWIE:
Angie introduced David to Tony DeFries when He wanted to divest himself of Ken Pitt his previous manager. Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane and Thin White Duke periods as the most productive and ground-breaking years. Angie and David Bowie looked curiously alike and they came together as a terrific package. She has often been referred to as the STARMAKER and the power behind David’s meteoric success. The cultural impact of David and Angie Bowie in the 70s led Angie to write emotively about in her books ‘Free Spirit’ and ‘Backstage Passes: Life on the Wild Side with David Bowie’. Angie won an award for Best Audio biography with her audio book of “Backstage Passes”. ‘Backstage Passes’ is rumored to be the inspiration behind the film “Velvet Goldmine”.
Angie and David divorced in 1980. And according to what has been said publicly, David Bowie has tried to edit Angie out of his life and deny her contribution to his tremendous success. As an ahead of time woman, Angie reacts in a very philosophical manner.
“Famous men frequently do that when they feel threatened by a woman’s influence. They like to be thought of as the sole genius. God forbid that any woman helped them to get where they did. Picasso did the same thing to his women -- he tried to write them off as insane.”
David Bowie’s songs “The Prettiest Star” and “Golden Years” are definitely about Angie. It is openly proven with her appearance in a backstage sequence from the D.A. Pennebaker concert film Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars where David Bowie calls her by the name “Star”. Angie Bowie accompanied her husband on the majority of his international concert tours and promoted him on radio and television as a celebrity guest on The Tonight Show in 1973 Russel Harty Show UK and also performed on The Mike Douglas Show in 1975.
ACTING TALENT AND FILM WORK:
Angie Bowie is also known for her acting talent. She performed at the Lausanne exhibition in 1964 playing Barberine in the Alfred de Musset play BARBERINE. She acted all through school and college in the Changeling, Jeanne D’Arc by Jean Anouilh and rejoined and auditioned for the leading role of the telefilm Wonder Woman which aired on March 12, 1974. As Linda Carter already had the role and the auditions were just to satisfy the acting unions, Angie approached Stan Lee in Hollywood and in late 1975, Angie Bowie bought the television rights for the Marvel Comics' characters: Black Widow and Daredevil for developing and selling purposes featuring the two heroes. Terry O’Neill photographed Angie and Benny Carruthers American actor and screenplay writer as the characters.
Angie Bowie’s film work includes acting roles in “Eat the Rich”, “Demented”, “Deadrockstar”, and “The Slayer Bureaucrat”. She took to the stage in Tucson with City Players to star as TINY ALICE in Edward Albee’s play.
MUSIC WORK OF A GODDESS:
As a musician, there’s a CD maxi-single, “The World Is Changing” where Angie receives full credit as composer with various co-composers including David Padilla, Morgan Lekcirt, Tom Reich, Jim Durban and D.J. Trance. The musical work was published by Angela Bowie Music in 1996 on the New York label Warlock Records. MOON GODDESS is the CD of her songs and spoken word. Obsession for Paul Zone, she covered the Ramones’ tune for BOSSA n RAMONES and The Last Time is a STONES cover with Jude Rawlins.
PROJECTS , WRITING AND MORE:
In 1980, Angie had her second child, daughter Stacia, with the punk musician Drew Blood. She settled in America concentrated mainly on Stacia’s education, but she has also been involved in a number of projects. Angie ran her own horse ranch, was a celebrity editor for the notorious Larry Flynt and has succeeded in book writing. She published, “Bisexuality: A Pocket Guide” and has productively lectured for it.
Angie Bowie currently resides in Atlanta, GA with her NON-musician partner and is working on her fifth book, “Pop Sex”. Her first solo album “Moon Goddess” was released in 2000. “Fancy Footwork” is her second album. Her collection of poetry and lyrics will be released in 2013.
Angie is the leading light of the present age!