James Beard Essay Example for Free

James Beard Essay James Beard was one of the most famous chefs of the 20th century. He was born May 5, 1903, and died January 21, 1985. Beard was well known for bringing French cuisine to the American middle and upper class population, and being the first to bring cooking to television. Julia Childs once described James â€Å"Beard was the quintessential American cook. Well-educated and well-traveled during his eighty-two years, he was familiar with many cuisines but he remained fundamentally American. He was a big man, over six feet tall, with a big belly, and huge hands. An endearing and always lively teacher, he loved people, loved his work, loved gossip, loved to eat, loved a good time. † This is what made him so renowned in the field of cooking, his love, passion, and willingness to learn as much as possible about culinary arts. James Beard will forever be in history though his 20 books, numerous writings, his personal foundation and the many awards and scholarships that go out named after him On May 5, 1903, James Beard was born in Portland, Oregon. His mother, Elizabeth Beard ran the Gladstone hotel, and his father, John Beard, was employed at the city’s customs house. Both his parents also had a love for cooking. The family spent many summers vacation at the beach in Gearhart, Oregon. This is where James was first introduced to the unique local foods of the North West. His family would fish, gather shellfish and wild berries, and then prepare their meals with whatever the found or caught in the area. Beards recalled his earliest memory of his interest in food was the Lewis and Clark Exposition of 1905, when he was only two years old. Beard reminisced in his memoir saying: I was taken to the exposition two or three times. The thing that remained in my mind above all others, I think it marked my life, was watching Triscuits and shredded wheat biscuits being made. Isnt that crazy? At two years old that memory was made. It intrigued the hell out of me. At only two years of age, Beard developed a love for cooking. When James was three, he got malaria and had to stay in bed. His mother and their Chinese helper took care of him and fed him. This gave him time to really enjoy the food. This is when he began to be influence by Chinese culture and there cooking habits, along with his mother’s cooking abilities. Both of these would help him later in life in culinary arts. Once he was out of bed he was back to his normal life, vacation at the beach, and spending time with his family. Another spot that James liked to go to was Seaside, a town only 3 miles away by train. There was an ice cream stand there, West’s Dairy, which was a popular hangout among the kids his age at the time. They had five cent milkshakes, and 28 flavors that included tutti fruity of course, along with cherry, wild blackberry, and blue huckleberry. Beard once said â€Å"It was probably the best five cents worth of anything I have ever had†. There were even times when James would walk the 3 miles so he could save his five cents on the train fare and use it for spending at the ice cream stand. Later on in his life, Beard went to college briefly at Reed College in Portland, from which he was expelled due to homosexual activity. Beards memoir states: By the time I was seven, I knew that I was gay. I think its time to talk about that now. † The James Beard Foundation said says in 1923 Beard went on the road with a theatrical troupe. † In the 1920’s, Beard briefly lived in France. There he observed French cuisine at their many bistros. He became a Francophile due to the influence the French culinary culture had on him. The James Beard Foundation said â€Å"he lived abroad for several years studying voice and theater, but returned to the United States for good in 1927. Initially training for being a singer and actor, for years Beard tried to get into the movie and theatre business but had no success. In 1935 he gave up and realized that was not the route he needed to take. This is when he and his friend, Bill Rhodes, decided that they need to capitalize on the cocktail party trend that was sweeping the nation and they opened their own catering company. In 1937, he opened up a small shop for his business, called Hors dOeuvre, Inc. † At that moment, Beard realized that his future was in culinary arts. This then led to the publication of Beards first cookbook in 1940, Hors DOeuvre and Canapes, a collection of his catering recipes based on cocktail foods. Then World War 2 came around, and rationing problems brought his business to a halt. Beard spent most the years during the war in Puerto Rico, Rio de Janeiro, Marseilles, and in panama with the United Seaman’s Service setting up sailors’ canteens. He also spent some of this time in cryptography. In 1945, Beard returned to New York City and completely devoted himself to his work in culinary arts. In 1946, James Beard starred in the first cooking show ever aired on television, I Love to Eat, on NBC, which began his rise to infamy. He started appearing on other television shows, and the radio. He started contributing the writing of many famous articles and columns such as Womans Day, Gourmet and House and Garden. He ran his own restaurant, and began consulting other restaurant owners and food producers. In 1955, he opened The James Beard Cooking School. For the next 30 years, he taught men and women the art of cooking. He didn’t only teach at his own schools in New York City and Seaside, Oregon, but around the world to culinary groups and other schools. The main lesson that he tried to instill in upcoming American chef was the preparation of truly good food using fresh American ingredients. James Beard died at the age of 82 on January 1, 1985. He was cremated and his ashes were spread over the beach at Gearhart, Oregon, where he spent his summers as a kid. Beard started out with nothing but a catering company and a love for food, and became one of the most famous Chefs in history. He was known as â€Å"The Dean of Cuisine† and â€Å"The Father of Gastronomy†, and the name James Beard will always be in culinary arts history.