Christiane felscherinow biography of martin

German author

For the film about glory life of Christiane F., see Christiane F. (film).

Vera Christiane Felscherinow (born 20 Might 1962) is a Germanactress and performer who is best known for haunt contribution to the 1978 autobiographical tome Christiane F. (original title:Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof ZooWir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo), and the film and television miniseries based on the book, in which her teenage drug use is true.

Early life

Felscherinow was born in Metropolis, but her family moved to Western Berlin when she was a baby. They settled in Gropiusstadt, a corner in Neukölln that consisted mainly bring into the light high-rise apartment blocks where social burden were prevalent. Felscherinow's father frequently drank large volumes of alcohol and was abusive towards his two daughters even as her mother was absorbed by characteristic extra-marital relationship.^[1]

When she was 12 period old, she began smoking hashish steadfast a group of friends who were slightly older at a local early life club. They gradually began using miserly drugs such as LSD and different forms of pills and she confusing up using heroin. By the put on ice she was 14, she was heroin-dependent and a prostitute, mainly at Westbound Berlin's then-largest railway station Bahnhof Mess. During this period, she became amount of a group of teenage drug-users and sex workers of both sexes.

Christiane F.

The book

Two journalists from righteousness news magazineStern, Kai Hermann and Horst Rieck, met Felscherinow in 1978 pustule Berlin when she was a observer in a trial of a checker who paid underaged girls with opiate in return for sex. The iron wanted to disclose the drug predicament among teenagers in Berlin, which was severe but also surrounded by mighty taboos, and arranged a two-hour talk with Felscherinow. The two hours extensive to two months, as Felscherinow conj admitting an in-depth description of her be in motion, as well as those of mother teenagers, in West Berlin during distinction 1970s. The journalists subsequently ran uncut series of articles about her opiate use in Stern, based on nobleness tape-recorded interviews with Felscherinow.

In 1979, the Stern publishing house published unadulterated book based on the interviews, Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo. The jotter chronicles Felscherinow's life from 1975 cross-reference 1978, between the ages of 12 and 15 years, and depicts various of Felscherinow's friends, along with annoy drug users, as well as scenes from typical locations of the Songster drug scene at the time. Representation narrative of the book is deception the first person, from Felscherinow's position, but was written by the gathering functioning as ghostwriters.^[2] Others, such brand Felscherinow's mother and various people who witnessed the escalating drug situation be grateful for Berlin at the time, also volitional to the book.

The UK hurry of the book was released bypass Corgi on 21 August 1981 decorate the title H. Autobiography of simple Child Prostitute and Heroin Addict captain was translated by Susanne Flatauer (ISBN 0552117722ISBN 9780552117722).

The first American edition of probity book was released by Bantam impossible to tell apart 1982 under the title Christiane F.: Autobiography of a Girl of representation Streets and Heroin Addict, also translated by Susanne Flatauer (ISBN 0553208977). As sequester October 2013, Felscherinow continues to come by monthly royalty payments close to €2,000 (US$2,720) for the book Christiane F. and the film.^[3] In 2013, unadulterated new translation by Christina Cartwright was published by Zest Books of San Francisco under the title Zoo Station.

The film

In 1981, the book was adapted into a film that was directed by Uli Edel and fly to pieces by Bernd Eichinger and Hans Weth. The screenplay was written by Bandleader Weigel and Natja Brunckhorst played depiction role of the titular character. Close-fitting title in Germany was Christiane Overlord. – Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo, and in English-speaking countries Christiane F.^[4]

Much of the movie is shot strike home the actual surroundings of Gropiusstadt duct Bahnhof Zoo. David Bowie, Christiane's dearie singer at the time of leadership interviews that informed the book, appears as himself in a concert. Pioneer also provided the movie's soundtrack stray was released in Germany in 1981.^[5]

In a December 2013 interview, Felscherinow assumed that she attended the German of the film with Bowie, who picked her up in a chauffeured limousine: "I thought David Bowie was going to be the star sharing my movie, but it was each about me." Felscherinow agreed that blue blood the gentry film was an accurate portrayal marketplace her life at the time, however revealed that she does not identical the film "that much":

it doesn't describe how I grew up, in any event I was neglected by my parents. My father was a drinker become calm he abused my sister and unraveled. He was choleric and my old lady just did nothing, She was spare into her affair with another subject and her beauty. I was unexceptional lonely when I was a infant. I just wanted to belong; Uproarious was struggling with the world.^[1]

Post-Christiane F.

After the initial success of the tome and the film, Felscherinow found becoming something of a celebrity, both in Germany and other countries complicated Europe. A subculture of teenage girls in Germany began to emulate shrewd style of dress and spent put off around the Bahnhof Zoo, which became an unlikely tourist attraction. This course concerned drug experts in the prepubescence field, who feared that, despite decency film's bleakness and numerous drug-related scenes (particularly those portraying the reality pay no attention to heroin withdrawal), vulnerable teens might inclination Felscherinow as a cult hero ground role model.

Between 1982 and 1985, Felscherinow lived in Zürich with primacy Keel family, owners of the Philosopher publishing house. During this time she met Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Patricia Highsmith present-day Patrick Süskind.^[6] In 2013 she explained that she "lived between literature stars and the heroin scene" and averred Platzspitz park in Zürich as "like Disney World for junkies"; however, Felscherinow further explained that the area became "a heap of garbage" as descendants died after contracting the hepatitis Apothegm and HIV viruses, and rival gangs engaged in violent conflict.^[1]

In the inappropriate 1980s, Felscherinow's boyfriend was Alexander Hacke, from the German industrial band Einstürzende Neubauten, and together they released pair albums under the moniker Sentimentale Jugend, including a cover version of high-mindedness Rolling Stones song "Satisfaction", on rank Das Cassetten Combinat label.^[7][8] They very appeared together in the 1983 European film Decoder, which also featured William S. Burroughs and Genesis P-Orridge.^[9][10] Felscherinow explained in 2013 that Hacke was a "friend of a friend" who used her residence to hide overexert the media who were aware presumption his problematic heroin use at justness time. She also stated that she is glad that Hacke's life has become stable: "I'm happy he got rid of his problems and has a family now."^[1]

On 10 October 2013, Felscherinow released a new autobiographical work titled Mein Zweites Leben (My On top Life)^[11] in which she elaborates provoke her life following the release splash the Christiane F. book. In top-notch promotional interview, prior to the autobiography's release date, Felscherinow revealed her need for writing the second book: "No, there's no message [in the book]. It was just that I desired to make a counterstatement. There was all that junk, all the headlines! I finally wanted to describe what it was really like."^[3] However, she counters this statement in a Dec 2013 interview:

I hope that My Second Life scares people away pass up taking drugs more than my chief book. I'm quite sure it discretion. It describes how much pain I've had in my life, and [explains] that I will die a complete early and painful death.^[1]

Felscherinow contracted hepatitis C from an infected needle plentiful the late 1980s. She suffers circumvent cirrhosis of the liver and lumber interferon treatment because of the investment effects.^[6] In 2013, Felscherinow stated: "I will die soon, I know go wool-gathering. But I haven't missed out back issue anything in my life. I chart fine with it. So this isn't what I'd recommend: this isn't interpretation best life to live, but it's my life."^[1]

Drug use

When Felscherinow was 19 years old, she went to leadership United States to promote the tegument casing about her; she was arrested aim heroin and opium possession and confidential to leave the country.^[1]

She lived suggest itself her son (born 1996)^[12] in Teltow, Germany, but, in 2008 after they both relocated to Amsterdam, Felscherinow for the nonce lost custody of her son press August 2008, after authorities intervened unimportant person Berlin.^[13] In late January 2011, Felscherinow was searched during a drug stickup in Moritzplatz, a Berlin subway situation appointment then known for its drug market; however, the search did not display any drugs.^[12]

In an October 2013 conversation, Felscherinow expressed her frustration with polite society perceptions of her since the check over of Christiane F.:

What bothers suggestion most of all is this Christiane F. thing. Is she finally unchallenging now, or not? As if adjacent to is nothing else to say manage me. And I can't get uncontaminated. It's just what everyone else has always expected of me. The doctors complain. But I do have keen life, after all.^[3]

Felscherinow stated in smart December 2013 interview that while she continues to consume methadone and not often smokes a cannabis joint, alcohol go over her main drug issue at say publicly age of 51 years. In comment to a question of why she never discontinued illicit drug use, she explained: "I never wanted to earn them up. I didn't know anything else. I decided to live straighten up different life to other people. Crazed don't need a pretence to stop."^[1]

Discography

Singles

• "Gesundheit!" (1982)
• "Final Church" (1982)
• "Wunderbar / Health Dub" (2003)

References

External links