Bourdain mourned locally, worldwide
Graduated from Culinary Institute in 1978, attended Vassar College
Anthony Bourdain, the celebrity chef and citizen of the world who inspired millions to share his delight in food and the bonds it created, was found dead in his hotel room Friday in France while working on his CNN series on culinary traditions. He was 61.
CNN said Bourdain was found unresponsive Friday morning by friend and chef Eric Ripert, and the company called the death a suicide.
A prosecutor in eastern France said Bourdain apparently hanged himself in a luxury hotel in the ancient village of Kaysersberg on the Alsatian wine route. French media quoted Colmar prosecutor Christian de Rocquigny du Fayel as saying that “at this stage” nothing suggests that another person was involved.
Bourdain had several ties to the Hudson Valley.
He attended Vassar College in Poughkeepsie for two years and was a 1978 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park.
He spoke at a Culinary
Institute graduation ceremony just six months ago, and was presented with an honorary doctorate. At the ceremony, CIA President Tim Ryan called Bourdain “possibly the most recognizable food personality on the planet.”
Bourdain, upon receiving the honorary degree, said he was “very grateful” for having attended the CIA.
“It was incredibly important to me,” he said.
Bourdain also spoke at the Ulster Performing Arts Center in Kingston in 2010.
In a prepared statement Friday, the Culinary Institute said the school “extends its heartfelt condolences to Tony’s family, loved ones, and friends,” and it described Bourdain as having “opened the world of food and different cultures to all through his brilliant storytelling.”
“Chef Bourdain often came to campus to speak with students about food and world cultures, his career, and the importance of authenticity in being a chef,” the statement continued. “Episodes of his television programs ‘A Cook’s Tour’ and ‘Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations’ were taped at the CIA’s New York campus, during which he spoke fondly of his time as a CIA student and how much the college shaped his success.”
Bourdain told the Freeman in 2010 that he “fell” into the restaurant world, initially as a dishwasher, which he called the lowest and least appreciated job in the kitchen.
But “I fell in love with the subculture, the heady mix of order and chaos,” he said.
He also told the Freeman the restaurant world is “not what the customer sees — the glamorous front of the house. It’s very, very hard work, painful work, physical work in high temperatures, with a lot of other people milling around and in your way.”
Widely loved and rarely afraid to speak his mind, Bourdain mixed a coarseness and whimsical sense of adventurousness, true to the rock ‘n’ roll music he loved. Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown” seemed like an odd choice for CNN when it started in 2013 — part travelogue, part history lesson, part love letter to exotic foods. Each trip was an adventure. There had been nothing quite like it on the staid news network, and it became an immediate hit.
“We are constantly asking ourselves, first and foremost, what is the most [messed] up thing we can do next week?” he said in a 2014 interview with the AP.
Bourdain’s breakthrough as an author came with the 2000 publication of his “Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly”, The book created a sensation by combining frank details of his life and career with behind-thescenes observations on the culinary industry.
Within hours of his death, “Kitchen Confidential” was in the top 20 on Amazon.com.
Colleagues, friends and admirers shared their grief Friday. CNN chief executive Jeff Zucker sent a company letter calling Bourdain “an exceptional talent. A storyteller. A gifted writer. A world traveler. An adventurer.”
As president, Barack Obama sat down for some bun cha in Hanoi, Vietnam, with Bourdain in an episode of “Parts Unknown” in 2016. On Friday, he shared a photo of the interaction on Twitter: “‘Low plastic stool, cheap but delicious noodles, cold Hanoi beer.’ This is how I’ll remember Tony. He taught us about food — but more importantly, about its ability to bring us together. To make us a little less afraid of the unknown. We’ll miss him.”
As he left the White House for the G-7 summit in Quebec, President Donald Trump, whom Bourdain had sharply criticized, offered his “heartfelt condolences” to Bourdain’s family, which includes his 11-yearold daughter, Ariane. Jamie Oliver wrote on Instagram that Bourdain “really broke the mould ... he leaves chefs and fans around the world with a massive foodie hole that simply can’t be replaced.”
Others noted Bourdain’s strong defense of the #MeToo movement. His girlfriend was actress Asia Argento, who has accused Harvey Weinstein of rape. After Mario Batali was accused of sexual assault, Bourdain published an essay in Medium in which he wrote that “one must pick a side.”
“I stand unhesitatingly and unwaveringly with the women,” he wrote.
Argento posted this note on Twitter: “Anthony gave all of himself in everything that he did. His brilliant, fearless spirit touched and inspired so many, and his generosity knew no bounds. He was my love, my rock, my protector. I am beyond devastated. My thoughts are with his family. I would ask that you respect their privacy and mine.”
Bourdain’s death came three days after fashion designer Kate Spade killed herself in her Park Avenue apartment in New York. Spade’s husband and business partner said the 55-year-old business mogul had suffered from depression and anxiety for many years.
Bourdain was born in New York City and was raised in Leonia, N.J. He had written that his love of food began as a youth while on a family vacation in France, when he ate his first oyster. He was candid about his personal struggles, saying that drug use led to his dropping out of Vassar after two years.
Working in restaurants led him to the Culinary Institute, and then he began working in kitchens in New York City. He became executive chef at Brasserie Les Halles in 1998.
CNN is currently airing the 11th season of “Parts Unknown,” and Bourdain was in France shooting an episode for the 12th season. CNN said it has not made a decision yet on whether it will proceed with the current season.
Bourdain was twice divorced and has a daughter from his second marriage. Funeral arrangements were not immediately available.