Paola Felix celebrates her 70th birthday. The singer retired from the limelight 30 years ago. What is the TV icon doing today?
Paola Felix is one of the most successful Swiss singers in Germany, and she is also celebrated as a cult presenter. She will be 70 years old on Monday (October 5th). Her music career began in the 1960s. At that time she took part in many music competitions, including the Eurovision Song Contest.
Paola was a multiple participant in the Grand Prix: She competed six times in the preliminary round, and twice in the final – even with a place in the top five. In 1969 in Madrid she took fifth place for Switzerland with her title "Bonjour, Bonjour" when she was just 18 years old. In 1980 she appeared again for Switzerland and made it to fourth place with the song "Cinéma" in The Hague.
"Do you understand fun?" with husband Kurt Felix
After the ESC she became a permanent guest at numerous music shows, including in the "ZDF Hit Parade". At the end of the 70s she landed another great success: The hit "Blue Bayou" (1978) became her biggest hit and is still one of her classics today. She made it into the "ZDF Hit Parade" seven times with the title. Three years later she also celebrated a great success with the single "The Devil and the Young Man" (1981).
She found her personal happiness in the same year of her mega hit "Blue Bayou". She and her later husband Kurt Felix met again and again in various TV shows, including the Swiss program "Teleboy", which Felix presented. After their wedding in 1980, the two became one of the most popular moderator couples in Germany, because Paola also made a name for himself on TV.
Together they performed the hit show "Do you understand fun?" For seven years. From 1983 to 1990 the show developed into a big Saturday evening show with the moderation of the couple and "assistant" Karl Dall (79). By 1990, by the age of 40, Paola had already had a remarkable career and retired from the limelight. She only appeared occasionally as a singer.
From singer and presenter to model
In 2012, the singer and presenter met a severe blow of fate: Her husband Kurt Felix died of cancer at the age of 71. "A year of endless sadness is behind me," said Paola in 2013 to "Schweizer Illustrierte". In 2019, she told SRF about her husband: "It was a great love that only exists once in a lifetime. Kurt and I were meant for each other. We were soul mates."
In December 2018, Paola also had a bigger appearance on television. In the traditional "Helene Fischer Show" on Christmas Day, she returned to the stage with her big hit "Blue Bayou". Today the singer and presenter has another passion: fashion. "I think you should stay interested in fashion. Whether 50+, 60+ or 70+," she told SRF in 2019. She discovered modeling for herself and even has her own clothing line.