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Angie Bowie has claimed the late David Bowie had to “present as heterosexual with bisexual tendencies” to make it in America.
The ‘Starman' hitmaker's ex-wife – with whom she had 50-year-old son Duncan Jones – assisted in the creation of Ziggy Stardust, Bowie's androgynous alien stage persona, and she has recalled how in the 70s in the US, they had to carefully consider how Bowie's sexuality came across.
She said: “He had to basically present as heterosexual with bisexual tendencies to get by the American censors.”
One way they could prove this was by having a child.
Angie – who gave birth to Duncan in May 1971 – continued: “I figured if I had a child they're not going to argue that he is hetero.
“And David had such a good relationship with his father, I could tell he was going to have a great relationship with Zowie (Duncan).”
The 72-year-old glam rock icon recalled how she always wanted David to dress like “a star” no matter what time of day it was.
However, Angie – who managed her then-spouse – insisted it was a working relationship they shared and she claims David started to develop an ego, which led to their demise as a couple.
She recalled: “At a certain point the applause starts to make them think they're something more than they really are.
“And it's like, no, you are not God.”
Angie says the ‘Let's Dance' hitmaker had vowed to help with her career too, but he failed to deliver his half of the promise.
She claimed: “I had done a deal with David that first, we would work on his career, and then we would work on mine.”
And she ultimately got “fed up” with being his “trouble-shooter”.
The pair divorced in 1980, after a decade of marriage, and David went on to tie the knot with widow Iman in 1992.
David died in January 2016, aged 69, following a private battle with liver cancer, and Angie – who has penned candid biographies about her relationship with the music icon, including 1993's ‘Backstage Passes: Life On the Wild Side with David Bowie' – says it's only now that she is getting the credit she deserves for the creation of Ziggy.
She added to MOJO magazine: “That's the response I get now on social media – people are giving me my credit.”
