Nicole Richie

Nicole Richie
File:Li2.jpg Nicole Richie in 2007
Born	Nicole Camille Escovedo
Height	5 ft 1 in (155 cm)

Nicole Camille Richie (born September 21, 1981) is an American socialite, actress, author, entrepreneur, style icon, model, and singer. The adopted daughter of Lionel Richie, she is known for her role in the reality show The Simple Life and her turbulent personal life.

Early life

Nicole Richie was born Nicole Camille Escovedo in Berkeley, California. Her biological mother was a backstage assistant for Lionel Richie. Lionel Richie ran into Nicole first as a little girl playing on stage at a Prince concert, her mother was part of the wardrobe group. Nicole was playing a tamborine. Lionel became a guardian first for Nicole and later adopted her.

At age two, Nicole went to live with Lionel and his wife Brenda Harvey-Richie, who began to raise her as their daughter. When she was three years old, Nicole started attending weekly sessions with a psychotherapist and remained in therapy throughout her childhood. When she was nine, the Richies legally adopted Nicole. Shortly after the adoption was formalized, Lionel's affair with another woman became public knowledge. Nicole told Ryan Seacrest that she learned about Lionel's adultery when she read about it in a tabloid. The Richies went through a highly-publicized, bitterly acrimonious split, and, apparently feeling guilty about the end of their marriage, indulged Nicole's every whim. "Their way of making me happy was to say yes to everything I wanted, but I don't think a little girl should have that much freedom", said Richie in an interview with Vanity Fair magazine. In an interview with Nylon magazine [2007] Richie said that her childhood was very dramatic and "I think my struggle right now is to try and find comfort in things not being so chaotic. I'm so used to high drama and high energy all the time - I always sleep TV on."

Her parents' divorce was hurtful and Nicole said: "When my dad divorced my mom it was kind of like him leaving me also. I just really didn't understand why he wasn't returning my phone calls, or why I couldn't see him whenever I wanted to. That was the most hurtful thing to me."

Richie still speaks with her biological mother but has no contact with her biological father. The identity of her biological father is the subject of much speculation. In a November 15, 2005 CNN interview with Seacrest, Richie stated that her birth father (whom she declined to identify) was not a member of Lionel's band. According to an April 2006 Tatler magazine interview with Richie, it is rumored that her biological father is musician Peter Michael Escovedo (brother of musician Sheila E.), but Richie denied this in a November 2005 Jane magazine interview.

Richie has one godmother, Nancy Davis, daughter of Marvin Davis, mother of Brandon Davis; Nancy was related by marriage to Paris Hilton. Richie's godfathers are Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones. Jones said in a People magazine interview that he has "known her since she was a baby. She's a very smart girl. When she was younger she worked eight hours a day for eight years to become an Olympic figure skater. She's a very talented girl."

In addition to figure skating, Richie studied the guitar, cello, violin, and piano. In 1986, she started Kindergarten at The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks, California where she met Paris Hilton. Richie graduated from Montclair College Preparatory School in 2000. After high school, she studied Arts and Media for two years at the University of Arizona. She dropped out because: "I went to the University of Arizona. I stopped because I went there for two years and I felt like I experienced college or whatever. I'm over it. I like Hollywood better," she says.

Richie says of her heritage that she is a "mix of everything", and self-identifies as African American.

Career

The Simple Life

Main article: The Simple Life

File:Simplelife1.jpg

Nicole and Paris 'The Simple Life Goes To Camp'

Richie and heiress Paris Hilton starred in 2003 in Season 1 of the reality series The Simple Life, in which they lived for a month with a family in the rural community of Altus, Arkansas.
The show started airing on Fox December 2, 2003, to surprisingly well received ratings. The premiere episode drew 13 million viewers, increasing Fox's Adults 18-49 rating a phenomenal 79%.

In Season 2, The Simple Life 2: Road Trip, the girls traveled the American South driving a pink pick-up and living in a trailer. They have no money, credit cards or cell phones. They stay with families or in trailer parks. On one occation a nudist resort. Their jobs include farmworkers, mermaids in an under water show, hotel cleaners, sausages makers, crawfishers, working for a baseball team, working in a Beauty Salon, Deputy Sherrifs, and working on a cattle ranch.
In Season 3, The Simple Life 3: Interns, the girls traveled the East Coast on a bus, staying at 15 different families' houses. But unlike Season 2, this time around the girls did not have a swanky home on wheels and instead were travelling around the north-east in a regular Greyhound bus that was also ferrying normal members of the public that are travelling to the same destination.

File:Tsldvd2.jpg

Season 2 DVD Cover, a parody of the original Easy Rider movie poster

In late 2005, FOX chose not to renew The Simple Life, explaining that they didn't see a place for it in their schedule. A month later, cable network E! picked up Season 4, The Simple Life 4: 'Til Death Do Us Part, in which the girls traveled around California, acting as the mother of the family, raising kids for a day and acting as a wife to the father, though both would do tasks separately and not be seen together on screen.
Season 5, The Simple Life 5: 'The Simple Life Goes To Camp, debuted on E! on May 28, 2007, with Paris and Nicole making up on Nicole's birthday. In this season, Paris and Nicole work as counselors at Camp Shawnee. The camp will be host to five different specialty groups: Wellness Camp, Pageant Camp, Couples Camp, Survival Camp and Drama Camp, with two episodes focused on each specialty group. Although Season 4 was a hit for E!, drawing nearly one million viewers per episode, Season 5 saw a sharp decline in ratings. While the premiere episode and ones that followed during this season drew about the same viewership, by the the 7th episode the ratings had declined to around 650-700 thousand viewers. It was announced on July 30, 2007 that the show will not be renewed for Season 6. Despite the initial hopes for continuation, E! announced they had cancelled the show on July 30, 2007, due to personal problems overshadowing the show. Another network may pick up the series, MTV being a strong possibility.

In an interview in the August, 2007 issue of Nylon - magazine Richie talked about The Simple Life: "It's not a reality show, though. It's unscripted television; that's what the audience likes. No one wants to see a show of Paris and I talking about the war or who we think the next President should be. That's not what the show is about. The show is for one purpose only: to keep people laughing."

Richie is also a producer on The Simple Life and she has a control over what airs and what doesn't.

Acting

• Music videos
  • 1998, Richie appeared in Tamia's music video for "So Into You" Richie plays one of Tamia's friends in this music video.
  • 2006, appeared in father Lionel's music video for "I Call It Love", opposite Adam Rodriguez.

• Movies
  • 2005, acting debut, supporting role as cheerleader Kelly Stepford, 2005 movie Kids in America.

• Television
  • 2003, 2005, Punk'd
  • 2004, 2005, MADtv
  • 2004, Six Feet Under
  • 2004, Rock Me Baby, Amanda
  • 2004, Eve, Karen
  • 2004, American Dreams, Brenda Reid
  • 2004, Nicole Richie: Her Simple Life. E! News Live explores the complicated life of Nicole Richie.
  • 2005, 8 Simple Rules, Ashley
  • 2005, appeared in Meet the Barkers MTV's reality tv show, which tells about Travis Barker and Shanna Moakler.
  • 2006, Overrated in '06
  • 2007, appeared in one episode of America's Next Top Model with Paris Hilton. She got into a fight with one of the models at a party.

Music

Richie was a member of the rock band Darling in 2004, along with model Josie Maran and socialites Soleil and Sofia Alberti were members.

She played the piano on her musical debut through a live performance on ABC's "The View" in February 2005. In the same year (2005) Richie promised that her debut solo album would hit shelves before the end of the year. She said, "I've just been trying to put my whole heart in it because I have so many projects, so it's taking a little longer than I expected."

It was rumored that Paris Hilton and Richie recorded a song together, You Don't See Me. It can be heard in YouTube and Last.fm, which also classifies the song by Richie.

As of August 2006, Richie had six out of ten tracks finished for her record. The songs reported to be done so far are a mixture of rock, soul and dance. One track, called "Dandelion", which is her first single recording and a cover of a song by boy band LFO, was leaked early; it is a melodic pop-track. In recent magazine articles, Richie said the demo "Dandelion" will not appear in her debut album. According to TMZ Richie attended vocal lessons in August 2007, amid years of rumors that she has an album in the making. She has recently been spotted with a cd in her hands and some notebooks.

Richie told Harper's Bazaar in May 2007:

"My plan was not to be a celebrity. My plan was to be a singer and an entertainer. I wanted to go to NYU, major in musical theater, do Broadway, and come out with an album. Unfortunately, I started fucking up when I was in my teens."

Author

Nicole Richie on the cover of her book, The Truth About Diamonds.

Richie wrote a semi-autobiographical novel, The Truth About Diamonds, which was released by Bharell Jackson Publishing. The novel is loosely based on her life, but is mostly fictional. It chronicles Chloe Parker, the adopted daughter of a singer who makes her way through all of the hottest nightclubs and parties in Hollywood and battles a drug addiction. It was rumored that a character in the book, Simone Westlake, was based on Paris Hilton. The first sentence of the book is: "Chloe Parker would be a terrible role model if she were famous."

Her book was one of the best selling books of 2005.

Richie said in a Nylon magazine, in 2007 that she has been working on her second book, a style guide which has its main focus "the fact that a lot of my inspritation for what I wear is pulled from many different decades," to be published later this year by Simon & Schuster. In an interview in the March 2007 issue of OK! magazine, Richie said: "I have a style book that I'm working on."

Model

• Former model for Bongo Jeans. She appeared in one of the ads with ex-fiance DJ AM.
• Former face of Jimmy Choo.
• She was also signed to be the 2005's face of promotion for Green M&M's in Australia, however the candy company behind M&M's were worried that Richie's slender appearance was not right for the promotion of candy, and instead signed actress Pamela Anderson.
• In 2006 Richie landed herself the position of promotional face for Diet Dr Pepper, and has been seen promoting the soft drink in several locations.
• Appeared on the catwalk with Lindsay Lohan and Nicky Hilton in charity event Race to Erase MS in 2006 and 2007.

Products

• Richie has a makeup line in Japan.
• She is working on an accessories line; it includes jewelry, neck and head scarves, and sunglasses.
• In an interview in the March 2007 issue of OK! magazine, Richie said: "I'm launching a jewelry-and-accessories line, a sunglasses line and doing my own perfume."

Awards and recognition

• 2005, Richie was nominated in Kids Choice Awards for Choice TV Personality: Female.
• 2005, Richie received the Young Hollywood's Style Icon award from Hollywood Life magazine. "I get ready pretty fast," she said. Her then-stylist Rachel Zoe said: "She's so low-maintenance because she's so beautiful naturally. Like her skin, it's so perfect that she doesn't need a lot of makeup. She never ever wears makeup during the day."
• Was number one in US Weekly Magazine's list of Fashion Winners of early September 2005 edition.
• Was named #37 on the Maxim magazine Hot 100 of 2005 list.
• September 2006, Richie was voted Beauty Icon of the Month in a visitor survey conducted by BeautyRiot.com.
• 2006, Richie was named the Worst Dressed Celeb by PETA.
• Was the 3rd Best Dressed Woman according to a poll conducted by UK Glamour Magazine in January 2007.
• Ranked 5th in Life & Style's "Hot Hair" poll of tinsel town's leading ladies in August 2007.

Personal life

She has done some charity work in the past. In 2005 she visited the children of Camp Heartland, a camp for kids with HIV/AIDS. When the Hurricane Katrina hit, she offered her support to the victims and participated in the "Fashion for Relief" show on September 16, 2005.

In November, 2006 Richie fired a long time stylist and a friend Rachel Zoe. Reportedly Richie did not trust Rachel anymore. Harper's Bazaar published an article about Mischa Barton, Zoe and Richie all together. Rachel and Nicole even kissed in one of the pictures.

Health

In the spring of 2006, Richie made media headlines with a dramatically thinner appearance, after spending two seasons of "The Simple Life" slightly heavier than her usual. In May she told Vanity Fair, "I know I'm too thin right now, so I wouldn't want any young girl looking at me and saying, 'That's what I want to look like." She also said, "I started seeing a nutritionist and a doctor. I was scared that it could be something more serious." During this time it was reported that she had also sought the help of a psychiatrist and a personal trainer. Later that year, in September, Richie stated "I am not anorexic. I am not bulimic. I do not have an eating disorder." In Elle Girl's 2006 Prom issue, in which Richie appeared on the cover, she said that it upsets her when people come up to her and ask her if she has a problem. She maintained that skinny was her natural body type and there wasn't anything she could do about it.

On October 27, 2006, it was announced that Richie was seeking treatment for "an inability to put on weight", though it is not treatment for an eating disorder.

Page Six published a blind item implying that Richie had undergone gastric bypass surgery, in November 2006. The next she denied it, on her MySpace page. She said: "Its pathetic of Page Six to insinuate I have done this. Anyone that knows anything about this surgery would know that legally, you must be at least 100 pounds overweight to even have the surgery done, and is a serious, life changing procedure; not one to throw around as a joke or a rumor."

In March 2007, Richie was taken to the hospital for dehydration and on March 21 her reps announced she was diagnosed with hypoglycemia. In a March OK! magazine interview, Nicole said: "I don't care about any other rumor except the one that I have an eating disorder. That really bothers me because there are people who truly have eating disorders and it is a serious disease. To put that title on someone when it is not true is disrespectful. I've repeatedly said, 'No, I don't have an eating disorder,' and it has fallen on deaf ears."

In an interview with UK Marie Claire in August, 2007 Richie said: "I'm not obsessed with my weight. Everyone else is."

Legal problems and arrests

The booking photo of Richie from December 2006

February 2003, Richie was arrested in Malibu, California and charged with possession of heroin while driving with a suspended driver's license.

On December 11, 2006, Richie was arrested by the California Highway Patrol after she failed a field sobriety test. She was charged with driving under the influence on California State Route 134 in the Burbank/Glendale, California area. Several motorists had reported a black Mercedes-Benz G-Class entering the SR134 freeway on the exit ramp and traveling in the wrong direction. She admitted to using marijuana and Vicodin before the incident. July 27,2007, Richie was sentenced to four days in jail, but served about 82 minutes of the sentence as Richie checked herself into the the Century Regional Detention Center in Lynwood, California on August 23, 2007 at 15:15 PDT and was released at 16:37 PDT.

Kerri Webb, a spokeswoman for the sheriff's department told People magazine that Richie "was released early due to overcrowding in the jail system. This is standard procedure for nonviolent offenders." After spending 82 minutes in jail Richie was "Of course pleasantly surprised to be released so quickly," said her attorney.

Friendship, feud and reconciliation with Paris Hilton

Nicole was best friends with Paris Hilton since the age of two.

On April 20, 2005, amid media reports that their friendship was in trouble, Paris Hilton, released a statement saying, "It's no big secret that Nicole and I are no longer friends", and "Nicole knows what she did, and that's all I'm ever going to say about it." A circulating rumor was the story that Richie had shown Hilton's sex tape at a party; though Richie has denied this. Richie, however, said "There's nothing that really happened, we've just grown apart." In an interview Richie also said that "When I got out of rehab, I had to figure out what path to go down and part of that included taking certain people out of my life. It’s not like I hate Paris and it’s war - I just don’t want to be her best friend any more. You can’t threaten people into being your friend. You can’t bribe them into being your friend."

In October 2006, Richie and Hilton reportedly reconciled their friendship.

In an interview in the March 2007 issue of OK! magazine, Richie said: "It got so blown up that at the VMA's in August, the woman who was looking after me was having this intense vibe with her walkie-talkie, like, 'Okay, come to the stairs, go through this back door.' I didn't understand why I was doing this maze, and finally Paris and I crossed paths. The escorts were really trying to make it so we didn't see each other. It was ridiculous. When we ended up talking again, we recapped that night and laughed."

Romantic relationships

Richie has previously dated Brad Salyn, Elijah Blue Allam, Adam Goldstein and Brody Jenner

Richie began a relationship with club DJ, Adam Goldstein, also known as DJ AM, in 2004. In February of 2005 they became engaged. The nine-month engagement was broken off on December 7, 2005. Speculation of a reconciliation began when they were seen together again in public in March 2006 the speculation was dismissed by Richie's publicist, Cindy Marguenti.

Richie is currently dating Joel Madden of the band Good Charlotte. After months of speculation, Richie announced her pregnancy on July 31, 2007 in an interview with Diane Sawyer saying that she was nearly 4 months pregnant and Madden is the father. Madden and Richie are reportedly engaged.

External links

• Nicole Richie at IMDb
• Nicole Richie at People.com