Bart Chabot

Chabot went to the University of Leiden to study Dutch language and literature.[1] During that period, he befriended the artists and drug users Jules Deelder[2] and Herman Brood.[3] Chabot's parents thoroughly disapproved.[4][5] Soon after, Chabot decided to abandon his studies.[1] In 1979, he made his debut as a poet with Als u zó gaat beginnen followed by Popcorn in 1981.[6] Chabot did not want to cater to the world of literary critics, and attempted to write poetry everybody could understand with references to McDonalds, supermarkets, and rock-and-roll.[6] Of his 1993 poetry collection Genadebrood, a reviewer in World Literature Today noted Chabot's cynical philosophy and commented on the depressing nature of many of the poems.[7]

In 1996, Chabot wrote his first biography called Broodje gezond (Healthy sandwich) about Herman Brood. The book became a bestseller selling 50,000 copies by 2003, and received sequels as Broodje halfom (2001),[6] Brood en spelen (2002) en Broodje springlevend (2003).[8] In 2007, Chabot received the Johnny van Doorn Prize for literature.[1] The biography even received critical acclaim from Arjan Peters of de Volkskrant for showing the degeneration of the elderly rock and roll singer while keeping a good sense of humour. The critic did show his prejudice for having to write about a common subject.[9]

In 2014, Chabot composed the Grand Dictation of the Dutch Language which was an annual spelling contest organised by De Morgen, de Volkskrant and NTR.[10] Chabot was a prominent participant in the previous editions of the spelling contest, and wanted to make it more accessible to normal people using familiar words.[11] In 2020, Chabot published Mijn vaders hand, about his youth.[12][13] Hebban expected a gloomy book, but Chabot's cynical irony managed to make them laugh once in a while. Hebban did question the commercial motivation of a television personality writing about his youth.[14] Carel Peeters of Vrij Nederland observed that Chabot is always somewhere else, and that triggered him to go beyond acceptable and normal patterns.[15]

Chabot is also a columnist for Oor and Playboy,[16] and a television personality making frequent appearances on Pauw & Witteman and Barend & Van Dorp.[17]

In 1989, Chabot embarked on a theatre tour with Remco Campert and Jan Mulder.[1] In 1999 he decided to go on the road again this time with Jules Deelder and Herman Brood.[16]

In autumn 2006, Chabot participated in the television program De Slimste Mens, which aimed to find the smartest person in a group of celebrities. Chabot won.[18]

Bart Chabot married Yolanda in 1987.[5] The couple has four sons whom he taught to write. "Writing starts with empathy, you don't put yourself in the centre, but the world around you," according to Bart.[19] The writing muse got passed on, and Sebastiaan and Splinter are columnists in their own right.[19] Splinter had even gone beyond that, and has, after graduating from the University of Amsterdam, become a television presenter for NPO 3.[20]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bart Chabot.

• Official site (in Dutch)
• Bart Chabot at Digital Library for Dutch Literature (in Dutch)
• Bart Chabot at IMDb