Udo Walz

Udo Walz (28 July 1944 – 20 November 2020) was a German celebrity hairdresser. Considered the first German celebrity hairdresser, his clientele included politicians Gerhard Schröder and Angela Merkel, Red Army Faction cofounder Ulrike Meinhof, and international celebrities such as Julia Roberts. Walz promoted discretion with his celebrity clients, once saying "My motto has always been not to ask anyone who they are and what they do for a living."

Career

Beginnings Walz was born in Waiblingen, Baden-Württemberg. His parents divorced when he was young, and his father, a truck driver, moved in with another woman when he was six years old. Walz initially wanted to enter a hotel management school, but his mother didn't have the financial means, and so at 14 years old he began a hairdressing apprenticeship instead.

Rise In 1963, Walz moved to West Berlin due to the absence of conscription in the enclave, as opposed to the rest of the country. Originally intending for the stay in Berlin to be temporary before moving to New York City, Walz was pleased by the city and decided to remain. His lucky break came when Walz covered for a colleague who was meant to style a famous model's hair but fell ill. The photographer of the model's photoshoot, F. C. Gundlach, was fond of the model's hair and wanted to work with Walz, increasing his reputation. Walz styled the hair shown in multiple magazines, including Brigitte and Otto, as well as accompanying the aforementioned F. C. Gundlach internationally.

Celebrity hairdresser In 1985, Walz opened his own salon on Kurfürstendamm, a popular shopping street in Berlin.

In April 2002, Gerhard Schröder filed an injunction against the press agency for publishing an opinion saying that he "would be more credible if he didn't dye his gray hair". On ddp's contestation, Walz, due to being Schröder's hairstylist, took the stand. He stated Schröder's hair "has never been coloured or tinted, but [is] always in a natural state."

Walz claimed to have transformed Angela Merkel's haircut in the run-up to the 2005 German federal election, which hairdresser Martina Acht contests. Walz replied, "Martina Acht might have used a blow-dryer on my client's hair, but she did not cut it... There are always people around who want to jump on the bandwagon."

Other ventures Walz was an ambassador for Dianiño, a childhood diabetes foundation. In 2005, he joined the Christian Democratic Union of Germany, with the hope that "the CDU would clear out the bureaucracy."

Walz starred in a five-part docusoap named "Typisch Udo" (Typical Udo), which premiered in 2004 on RTL.

Personal life In July 2008, Walz entered a civil union with Carsten Thamm-Walz, his partner since 1993. After same-sex marriage in Germany was legalised in 2017, Walz stated his opposition to converting his civil union to a marriage and reiterated his position on same-sex marriage in general, saying "I think only a man and a woman should get married, if they want to start a family." Walz lived in Schmargendorf, an Ortsteil of Berlin.