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Nothing Personal
Everybody wants a piece of "The Body"
Nevada brothel to commemorate governor's visit; Brooke Shields' biological clock's a-rockin'; Stiller and Garofalo didn't do it -- really. Plus: Exciting results of Gore vs. Bradley cockroach race.
By Amy Reiter
[08/20/99]

Nothing Personal
Of plummeting pants and racing roaches
Charlize Theron: "I drop trou all the time ..."; a couple of cockroaches named Gore and Bradley; Hef sez: Thumbs down on Nick Cage. Plus: Newt spares no expense on his horn-blowin' honey.
By Amy Reiter
[08/19/99]

Rogues' Gallery
Tony: Portrait of a cereal killer
When hot tubs are outlawed; what if God was a doper? Son of Sam killer not lookin' back; and the importance of knowing where your wallet is at all times.
By Douglas Cruickshank
[08/19/99]

Nothing Personal
Gulp! Deep Throat disclosure hard to swallow
Limelight-lovin' 19-year-old uses anagrams to "unmask" mysterious Watergate source; Marilyn Quayle disses Dubya. Plus: Busted! "Dick" star's fans defend breast boasting.
By Amy Reiter
[08/18/99]

Nothing Personal
In the eye of the Newt storm: Thar she blows!
Gingrich affair heating up D.C. Exactly when did it begin? Somebody say "blackmail"? Finally, some good news: Cher definitely not involved; and more good news: Experts say Prince Philip is not an idiot!
By Amy Reiter
[08/17/99]

Complete archives for People

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At the age of 34, Julia Child began learning to cook for her new, food-loving husband. As was the custom for new brides, Child referred to Irma Rombauer's bestselling "The Joy of Cooking" for direction. Ever the optimist, she was not discouraged by her early failures in the kitchen.

Paul Child soon accepted a government post in Paris and his wife's life was transformed. Upon arriving, the couple immersed themselves in the national French pastime: eating. For Julia Child, to taste the food that had been so articulately described to her years before was a revelation. Diving into French culture, she shopped the markets, learned the language and got to know her neighborhood butcher. With her Michelin guide in hand, she explored Paris. She learned about cheese and drank wine. She later described herself as being "in hysterics for months" as her love affair with food became all consuming. Finally, at the age of 37, Child enrolled in Paris' famed Cordon Bleu cooking school.

The only woman in her class, she worked tirelessly. She tried out new dishes on her husband and outfitted her home kitchen with the tools of her new trade. Her family fortune kept the couple supplied with truffles, and she entertained often, sometimes incapacitating friends with epic amounts of butter and cream. The owner of the Cordon Bleu thought she lacked natural cooking ability but had extraordinary stamina.

In collaboration with two French foodies, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, Child formed "L'ecole des Trois Gourmandes" and began teaching French home cooking to American women in Paris. The students started early in the morning and worked until lunch, at which point they'd eat their lessons with wine. As she taught the classes, Child came to recognize the importance of dependable and accurate master recipes that would enable the students to produce consistent dishes. Taking recipes already assembled by her French partners, she began the arduous task of structuring, testing and rewriting them to fix flaws. As her husband's career moved the couple around Europe, Child remained in constant contact with Simone Beck (known as Simca) by mail, working toward their goal of publishing a new and comprehensive French kitchen manual for an American audience. After nearly a decade, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume I" was complete.

The book made approachable a formerly intimidating and unpronounceable cuisine. The textbook format, complete with diagrams, offered the "servantless American cook" an opportunity to adapt professional French techniques to the home kitchen. Child translated not only methods, but names -- French Baked Beans sounded much more achievable, though less sexy, than the foreign and mysterious "cassoulet." The book was a sensation and, along with more accessible airline travel, was significantly responsible for the American embrace of all things French that took hold in the 1960s. Soon after the book's release, the Childs bought a house in Cambridge, Mass., and Paul Child, who possessed an all-consuming adoration for his wife, devoted himself to supporting her booming career, which was about to get even bigger.

Child had been invited to appear on public television to promote her new book. With the idea that she'd demonstrate a dish from the book rather than just talk about it, she arrived at Boston's WGBH studios toting eggs, a whisk and a hot plate. The studio had no cooking facilities, but Child proceeded to whip up an on-air omelet, which happens to be the perfect starring dish for TV: familiar, one main ingredient, and, in the hands of a trained professional, pure showmanship. Taking only a couple of minutes to prepare, the illustrious omelet commanded a full 10 pages of text and detailed illustrations in Child's book. The audience went wild. WGBH received letters demanding more of Julia Child and quickly asked her back to shoot a pilot. "The French Chef" series turned out to be public television's greatest success, winning an Emmy in 1965. Child, always a staunch supporter of educational television, accepted payment of $50 for each show, donating the balance of her salary to the station.

She's an unlikely TV star, to say the least. Perpetually sounding as though she'd just gotten off the tennis court, and with an implacable, reedy accent, she fluttered about her TV kitchen. But her enthusiasm and can-do attitude were infectious, and the frequent gaffes offered opportunities to show the home cook how to repair a dish if it should stick or spill. Child had fun. Given to imagery ("the dough should feel like a baby's bottom") and colorful language ("use the electric mixer and go whole hog"), she preached the advantages of a modern, well-stocked kitchen.

"The French Chef" was equal parts cooking instruction and performance art and it had wide appeal. Housewives, college professors, foodies and non-foodies: Everyone loved Julia Child. Vogue magazine food writer Jeffrey Steingarten remembers rushing home from class at Harvard Law School to his black-and-white television and jotting down ingredients and instructions on his legal pad. Right after the show, he'd go to Savenor's market "and I'd see Julia there. I'd stalk her in the aisles," he says, his eyes twinkling.

Child has starred in eight television series since then and published 11 books. She founded the American Institute of Wine and Food, an educational center devoted to the culinary arts. She has won too many awards to list. She is a unique American treasure who succeeded in a time when women supposedly couldn't prosper in her notoriously sexist field. And, as with everything she has done, she did it all with great style and humor.

Next page | She taught us how to cook, and what's more, how to eat