50 facts about Nicole Richie: rose to prominence for her role in the Fox reality television series, The Simple Life

Nicole Richie's 50 things you didn't know.

1. Nicole Camille Richie (born Nicole Camille Escovedo) is an American fashion designer, author, actress and television personality.

2. Nicole Richie rose to prominence for her role in the Fox reality television series, The Simple Life, alongside her childhood best friend and fellow socialite Paris Hilton, which lasted five seasons.

3. The Simple Life was a hit for the Fox network, premiering with 13 million viewers, and brought Richie and Hilton to international recognition.

4. Richie's personal life attracted significant media attention during The Simple Life's five-year run and she was a constant fixture of tabloid journalism before and after her appearance.

5. Hilton and Richie are often given the distinction of being the first pair of socialites to become "famous for being famous" through reality television.

6. Afterwards she turned her focus on other projects including charity work and environmental issues.

7. Nicole Richie is married to musician Joel Madden and they have two children, Harlow and Sparrow.

8. Nicole Richie and Madden founded "The Richie Madden Children's Foundation" in 2010.

9. Richie has starred as one of the three mentors on NBC's Fashion Star.

10. On July 17, 2014, Richie's reality show Candidly Nicole premiered on VH1.

11. Nicole Richie was born in Berkeley, California, and has Mexican, Creole, and Spanish ancestry.

12. Her biological father is Peter Michael Escovedo, a musician who briefly played with Lionel Richie, and her biological mother Karen Moss was the executive assistant for Nicole's aunt, Sheila E.

13. When she was three, her parents agreed to let her move in with Brenda Harvey and Lionel Richie because they could not afford to provide for her financially. "My parents were friends with Lionel," she told People in 2003. "They trusted that they would be better able to provide for me."

14. Initially, Lionel Richie became her guardian.

15. Brenda and Lionel legally adopted Nicole when she was nine.

16. Shortly after the adoption was formalized, Lionel's affair with another woman became public knowledge. Lionel and Brenda went through a bitter public split; as a result, they 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.

17. Richie's godmother is Nancy Davis, daughter of Marvin Davis and mother of Brandon Davis.

18. Michael Jackson was Richie's godfather.

19. Nicole Richie graduated from Montclair College Preparatory School in 1999, then attended the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, alongside Kourtney Kardashian and Luke Walton, where she studied Arts and Media.

20. Nicole Richie did not have a definitive study plan in Arizona, and eventually dropped out after two years and returned to California.

21. In 2003, Richie and her then-best friend Paris Hilton starred in the reality series The Simple Life, in which they lived for a month with a family in the rural community of Altus, Arkansas. The series premiere debuted on Fox on December 2, 2003, to 13 million viewers, increasing Fox's Adults 18-49 rating to 79%. The series continued for a second and third season, and Richie achieved superstardom for her out-spoken, comedic persona.

22. Fox subsequently cancelled the show after a dispute between Hilton and Richie, but it was aired by E! Entertainment Television for its fourth season, which was a hit for E!, drawing nearly one million viewers and a relatively unsuccessful fifth season.

23. More complications arose during the production of a fifth season. Both Richie and Hilton faced major charges for DUI, and were at risk of serving jail time.

24. In 2005, Richie made her acting debut in the comedic drama Kids in America.

25. Nicole Richie has guest starred in television series including Eve, Six Feet Under and American Dreams, 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, and playing the recurring character Heather Chandler on Chuck.

26. In July 2008, plans were announced to turn Richie's 2005 novel, The Truth About Diamonds, into a television series.

27. On January 1, 2010, it was announced that Richie would appear as a guest judge on Project Runway.

28. In 2005, 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. In early January 2006, The Truth About Diamonds peaked at number No. 32 in Hardcover Fiction on The New York Times Best-Seller List.

29. Richie's second novel, Priceless, was released on September 28, 2010. It tells the story of a girl who loses everything and then learns about what really matters in life.

30. Richie's own personal style has become popular among fans and fashion critics and has led to her status as a fashion impresario and icon.

31. Nicole Richie has been the face of Bongo Jeans and Jimmy Choo advertising campaigns.

32. In April 2007, Richie announced plans to start a jewelry, accessories, and sunglasses line along with a perfume and style book.

33. In October 2008, she debuted a jewelry line, House of Harlow 1960. The line became available at Kitson's online boutique.

34. In spring 2010, the line was extended to include apparel and shoes.

35. In 2009, Richie joined maternity store A Pea in the Pod to create the new collection maternity clothes. The line was titled "Nicole" which had pieces that she would wear as an expectant mother.

36. In February 2010, Richie expanded her fashion business with a women's line called Winter Kate, her daughter's two middle names. The collection was inspired by timeless prints and shapes, beautiful paisley and florals.

37. In 2010, she won "Entrepreneur of the Year" for her House of Harlow 1960 brand at the Glamour Women of the Year Awards. House of Harlow 1960 was also nominated in the category "Celebrity Fashion Line" at the 2010 Teen Choice Awards.

38. In July 2011, it was reported that Richie's House of Harlow 1960 line has unveiled a 14-piece handbag collection. The House of Harlow 1960 handbag collection will be available at Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom and Shopbop.com.

39. In July 2011, it was announced that Richie would be one of the three mentors in NBC's new reality show Fashion Star alongside Jessica Simpson. Richie guided aspiring designers who hope to become the next big brand in fashion.

40. She launched a collection for Macy's Impulse line in September 2012, which was sold in 100 Macy's stores as well as online.

41. Her first fragrance, Nicole, was also launched in September 2012.

42. Nicole Richie made her musical debut in February 2005 with a live appearance on ABC's The View playing the piano.

43. In February 2010, Richie was featured on the charity single "We Are the World 25 for Haiti". "I was four years old in a studio, watching my dad record "We Are the World" and today I get to do it again. Excited to help make a change," she later said of the experience.

44. In 2004, she auditioned for the part of Maureen in the popular Broadway hit, Rent, but did not get the part.

45. In September 2013, Richie made a cameo appearance in Christina Aguilera's music video for the song "Let There Be Love".

46. Nicole Richie dated DJ Adam Goldstein from 2003 to 2005, but broke up after a nine-month engagement.

47. Nicole Richie began dating Good Charlotte lead singer Joel Madden in December 2006. They have two children, daughter Harlow Winter Kate Madden (born 2008) and son Sparrow James Midnight Madden (born 2009).

48. In February 2008 the first photos of Harlow were sold to People magazine for $1 million.

49. The couple confirmed their engagement in February 2010, and married on December 11, 2010.

50. Because of Madden's commitments to The Voice Australia Richie re-located to Sydney, Australia with her husband and children in 2012.

Source: Wikipedia.org