Recently, radio DJ Patrick Kicken interviewed Chimène van Oosterhout for his podcast "Leven Zonder Stress" (available on PODNL/Radio.NL). A YouTube video of this talk was posted on June 11th and an article about it was posted on the Radio.NL website on June 18th.
The fans all know that Chimène is a multi-talented media personality: TV presenter since the 1990s, briefly involved on the radio, actress, a former photo model, psychologist, yoga teacher, writer, an ex-Luv' singer, host for public events, PR manager...Her résumé is impressive.
Following the announcement of the new programming of Veronica, Patrick Kicken talks with professionals who worked for this broadcaster in the past. The latest episode of his podcast features Chimène who was a host on Veronica between the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Here's how Chimène described her debut on the small screen: "I started to apply for a job as a TV host on TROS in 1991 after my studies in psychology. At first, I didn't succeed. But then years later I said to myself: "I sent a letter which is one-dimensional and it was not successful. I should better send them a videotape mentioning my hobbies as it has got to do with television. A TV executive at TROS got my tape and the following day I had screen tests. And then I was hired. I stayed three years on TROS as a host. Then I wanted to be more involved on TV. In late 1998, I moved to Veronica and I started to present my own shows in addition to my regular job as a host. I did a program on a motorbike riding on Route 66 in America".
As she hosted Motor TV on Veronica in the early 2000s, she briefly got in touch with the Hell's Angels.
Chimène also expressed her love for horse riding and she was shortly involved on Talk Radio 1395 AM. "I prefer radio to television. It's more magical. You are more relaxed because on TV there are cameras and lighting. I would love to do radio again but to this day I haven't received any proposal yet. It's strange," she told.
When asked what she thought about the Veronica trademark and history, she answered: "The magic has gone. When I started to work on Veronica, the pirate years on the boat were over. It was already commercial. I did "The Young One" campaign on Veronica and later Yorin. Then it became a mess. What a pity! I spent a good time on Veronica. My image matched the channel. I was 3 or 4 times on the cover of Veronica magazine. I was a Veronica babe."
The experienced media personality explained that she used to find pictures of herself on Google and was shocked by the reactions of some people: "When I did "Vliegende Hollanders: Sterren van de Schans" (a celebrity ski jumping competition on SBS6), I was 49 years old. Some mean viewers wrote: "She looks good. It's because she had botox injections. Actually, I never had plastic surgery. I have good genes. People can be stupid and cruel. I tried to forget their remarks".
Chimène refused to pose nude for Playboy magazine: "They asked me five times to do it and I refused. It's maybe ridiculous but I am too emancipated for that. It was too sexist even if I was flattered that they wanted me. This kind of pictures can easily be found on the internet. It leaves an indelible mark. I have an 18-year old son and I don't want people to bother him with that. However, if Playboy asked me to do it as part of an item about female cancer patients, I would do it as a tribute to women who suffer from this disease. Recently, I did a photo shoot as I was shirtless with marks on my breast".
Despite her illness, Chimène tries to be positive. Last year, due to the Covid-19, her cancer treatment took six months to start as her situation was not urgent enough.
The courageous lady told her years in Sweden: "I studied communication. That's why I learned Swedish so I could bond with people there. I went there because I had a Dutch boyfriend named Olaf. He went there to work and I followed him. It was 10 years ago. My TV career was at a standstill...The Swedish people are bipolar and racist. I know I don't have to generalize. In the daytime, people were walking the dog and were depressive. At night, they were drinking a lot of alcohol. It was Sodom and Gomorrah. There is a lot of alcoholism there".
Chimène also talked about narcissism. Last last year she was busy writing a book about this issue. She had to shelve this project due to her cancer. She lost her creativity and focused on her health.
Here's what she said about Curaçao where she was born: "It has changed a lot over the years. It used to be a nice place but now it's more commercial. I prefer to go to Bonaire because it's more relaxed".
Moreover, she took yoga lessons after her first breast cancer was diagnosed thirty years ago. She later became a yoga teacher.
Chimène mentioned Luv': "It was stressful. José was the first to have health problems. When I arrived, I was very energetic. I had a lot of ideas for the group. I said: "We are going to do this and that! We are going to vlog. We are going to film a documentary. We are going to record a podcast". I didn't realize the situation within the group. Marga is very ambitious and she wanted to go on. But José could not follow due to her severe health issues. I took the place of Patty who didn't like it. Patty doesn't appreciate Luv'. But now it's over. Everybody said I was a good member of the group".
She also told a sad story that happened to her one year and a half ago on Bonaire: "As I was partying with friends on New Year's Eve on Bonaire, a drama occurred. We were dancing and jumping. We had fun. But then I fell from the dancefloor. I suffered a concussion. I was unconscious for several minutes. The next day, I had two scans. A nurse named Chimène like me took care of me".
The former Luv' singer was surprised when the tabloids got in touch with her to know if she had cancer: "One day, a journalist from a celebrity gossip magazine called me and asked: "So you are ill? What's going on? We've heard you were not okay. Someone talked to us". I replied: "Do you know what you are going to do? You're going to talk to the person who contacted you and ask him/her what happens. If you publish something wrong, I'm going to respond". I felt betrayed. I know it wasn't someone from my entourage as my friends know I had cancer twice before. It must have been someone from the hospital".
Chimène also discussed the breast cancer of Dutch actress Sylvia Millecam. Her death in 2001 caused nationwide controversy as she had refused treatment that could possibly have saved her life. In doing so, she was advised by Dutch healing medium Jomanda.
The larger-than-life celebrity referred to discrimination and inclusivity: "I'm about to take part in the "Share the Mic" campaign with Fabienne de Vries. Black and white women talk about discrimination and racism. When I listen to Sylvana Simons, I say: "Girl, when you talk like that, it brings more violence!" When I look at you, I see a person, a human being. No matter if you are white, brown, yellow, purple...The last time I felt discriminated against, it happened in Sweden. Before 1992, when Apartheid existed, I refused to go to South Africa. It was abolished on my birthday on February 11th. What a coincidence! Visiting the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg was very emotional. I rarely suffer from racism in the Netherlands. In Sweden and South Africa, it happened often. My son doesn't suffer from racism. He looks like a Moroccan boy. I'm not allowed to say it. Haha".
When asked what the reason for her victory on celebrity TV competitions was, Chimène answered: "I want to win! On Pekin Express, you have to be clever and you don't need much to win. As for the ski jumping competition, I am very sporty!"
Source: Radio.NL, PODNL, Facebook (Official Luv')
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