De Leeuw gained national fame in the late eighties and early nineties with television shows for the public broadcasting company VARA. Though satire was only a part of these shows and much of its humour was essentially harmless he came into publicity with satire about Dutch show business personalities who were often ridiculed.
Besides, many obscure musical acts were featured in his shows, many of which managed to gain national fame after they had been in De Leeuw's programme (e.g. Twarres and AIDS suffering singer Rene Klijn). VARA has since continued his shows apart from a few interruptions, often with considerable success.
In the early nineties, Paul de Leeuw also had some shows celebrating the new year. In the 1993-1994 show he ridiculed the new commercial television channel RTL 5 by announcing another new channel, "RTL 6" (RTL six, beter dan niks (at least better than nothing)). This led to a trial by the RTL company, who demanded that De Leeuw withdraw his joke.
He and his partner, Stephan Nuger, have adopted two children: son Kas (adopted in October 2001) and son Tobey (adopted in December 2002).
Paul de Leeuw has had many hit singles in The Netherlands. He is most famous for: Vlieg met me mee (#2), Ik wil niet dat je liegt / Waarheen, waarvoor (#1), and 'k Heb je lief (#3). Since the beginning of his television and singing career he released albums and singles, always becoming a big success.
In 2006, he recorded the song "Mijn Houten Hart" (My Wooden Heart) with Raffaela, which was later released as a single and peaked at #18 in the Dutch Singles Top 100, becoming one of his smallest hits.
Eurovision Song Contest 2006 incident
De Leeuw is, despite being famous for a long time in the Netherlands, best-known internationally for presenting the results of the Dutch televote in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. De Leeuw was supposed to present the televote by simply thanking the presenters, performers and fans, before giving the result but instead the openly gay De Leeuw gave his mobile number to the male presenter Sakis Rouvas live on-air, and made other comments which somewhat lengthened the Dutch results.
De Leeuw also made a reference to gay culture when he remarked that Rouvas and his female co-presenter Maria Menounos reminded him of Will & Grace. As the results were live and required for the contest to continue, De Leeuw could not be cut off until he finished giving the voting results.
De Leeuw's actions resulted in negative comments from the commentators, with the BBC's Terry Wogan calling the act "pathetic" and asking "Who selected this eejit?" during the United Kingdom coverage of the contest. Other commentators, like the Portuguese Eladio Climaco, didn't translate properly the gay remarks and said he was saying that they really look like Greeks. Parts of the dialogue were also shown on the German comedy show TV total.
The dialogue between De Leeuw and Rouvas
Rouvas: Hello Netherlands! Paul...
De Leeuw: Hello Greece, kalisperma everybody! [note that sperma means sperm in many languages, at least both in Dutch and Greek]
Rouvas: Kalispera Paul. [kalispera means 'Good evening', which was supposed to be said]
De Leeuw: You look like Will... [stops, likely due to the cheering of the crowd behind him] You look like Will & Grace, you two. So here are the votes, the Dutch votes. Let's come. [In an extremely high tempo] One, Ukreene (sic), two, Russia, Germany, three, Ireland, four, Greece, five, Lithuania, six, Finland, seven points! [resumes normal tempo]] Now the eight points. Are you ready Chaci, tzatziki, cichaci?
Rouvas: Yes, haha.
De Leeuw: Are you ready? Eight points... I like your blouse... The eight points are for Bosnia-Hoshegovina (sic). Yeah.
Rouvas: Bosnie-Herzegovine, huit points.
De Leeuw: Yes, I say. And the ten points, Zhacki, Zhicka, Chucka, are from (sic) Armenia!
Rouvas: Armenie, dix points.
De Leeuw: Ok, and Chacki, do you have my mobile number now or after twelve points?
Rouvas: Give it to me now. I bet it's 69 69 69. [In Greece, mobile numbers always begin with 69, but the rest of the 69's are a sexual innuendo, since Rouvas did not seem to like Paul's lines.]
De Leeuw: Ok, 00... [interrupted by Rouvas' remark] no no no no no... I'm not the French guy! [Probably refers that Rouvas was once interviewed for a French magazine, in which the interviewer assumed that Rouvas was gay and directed his questions accordingly.] Its 00 31 6 24 74 44 32 10 dial 1. Twelve points goes to, I'm very proud to say, Turkey! Twelve points.
Rouvas: Turquie, douze points.
De Kleine Dingen
Paul de Leeuw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
U weet wel, dat kinderduo dat al 15 jaar bijna hardstikke dood is
Hahahaha grapje
Dat kleine beetje zon waar je al wekenlang op wacht
Die uitgestoken klauw, had je van hem dus niet verwacht
Dat kleine bosje preien en precies op dat moment
Die onverwachte lozing, als je alleen of eenzaam bent
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen
Ja boppers, horen jullie die belletjes?
Die kinderstem die kleur geeft aan een saaie grijze dag
Dat onverwachte hoertje toen je het allemaal niet meer zag
Het was even net als vroeger en je kreeg weer een ballon
Het geeft je leven kleur, er is ineens een beetje zon
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het belletjes, die het doen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Het zijn de kl...
We leven in het groot, we maken veel te veel misbaar
We praten wel maar luisteren te zelden naar elkaar, luisteren
We kijken naar een punt, veel te weinig om ons heen
We zien geen kleine dingetjes, we blijven dus alleen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, Tatjana Simic
Het zijn de kleine dingen oh die het doen, oh die het doen ohhhh
Het zijn de kleine dddddingen ddddie het dooooennnnn
Ohoh he heumm... doekje!
The song "De Kleine Dingen" by Paul de Leeuw talks about how we tend to overlook the little things in life that bring us joy and happiness. The lyrics mention the small moments that may seem insignificant but can make a big difference in our lives. Whether it is a little bit of sunshine that we have been waiting for, a child's laughter on a grey day, or unexpected kindness from a stranger, these small things can brighten up our day.
The song encourages us to appreciate the smaller details in life and to see the beauty in the things that surround us. The lyrics also point out how we tend to focus too much on the grandeur and miss out on the small but significant moments. The song ends with the realization that we need to pay more attention to these little things that make life worth living and acknowledge their value.
Line by Line Meaning
Ja boppers, dit is dan weer een liedje van Saskia en Serge
Introduction to the song, mentioning the artist.
U weet wel, dat kinderduo dat al 15 jaar bijna hardstikke dood is
Jokingly mentions the longevity of the artist Saskia and Serge.
Dat kleine beetje zon waar je al wekenlang op wacht
Refers to the small things in life that help in difficult times.
Die uitgestoken klauw, had je van hem dus niet verwacht
Unexpected kindness from someone who you wouldn't expect.
Dat kleine bosje preien en precies op dat moment
Finding joy in something small and insignificant like a bunch of leeks.
Die onverwachte lozing, als je alleen of eenzaam bent
Appreciating simple pleasures when feeling lonely or isolated.
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, die het doen
Reinforces the idea that small things can have a big impact in one's life.
Ja boppers, horen jullie die belletjes?
Another introduction to a new section of the song, referencing the bells in the music.
Die kinderstem die kleur geeft aan een saaie grijze dag
The voice of a child can bring joy to an otherwise bleak day.
Dat onverwachte hoertje toen je het allemaal niet meer zag
Unexpected help or support when everything seems to be going wrong.
Het was even net als vroeger en je kreeg weer een ballon
Feeling nostalgic and reminiscent of a simpler time.
Het geeft je leven kleur, er is ineens een beetje zon
The small things in life can make a big difference in one's outlook and mood.
We leven in het groot, we maken veel te veel misbaar
People often focus on the big things and miss out on the small things that really matter.
We praten wel maar luisteren te zelden naar elkaar, luisteren
In our society, people talk too much and don't listen enough to one another.
We kijken naar een punt, veel te weinig om ons heen
We often focus on one narrow thing and miss the bigger picture of the world around us.
We zien geen kleine dingetjes, we blijven dus alleen
If we don't appreciate the small things in life, we will end up feeling isolated and alone.
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het belletjes, die het doen
Repetition of the idea that small things can make a big difference.
Het zijn de kleine dingen die het doen, Tatjana Simic
Name-dropping the Dutch model Tatjana Simic for comedic effect.
Het zijn de kleine dingen oh die het doen, oh die het doen ohhhh
Reinforcing the central theme of the song - that small things are important.
Het zijn de kleine dddddingen ddddie het dooooennnnn
Further emphasizing the idea that small things are powerful.
Ohoh he heumm... doekje!
An abrupt and nonsensical ending to the song for comedic effect.
Contributed by Ryan Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.