It is a sad day for CNN as one of its popular host,
Anthony Bourdain reportedly committed suicide.
Anthony Bourdain, a gifted storyteller and writer who took CNN viewers around the world, has died. He was 61.
It is a sad day for CNN as one of its popular host,
Anthony Bourdain reportedly committed suicide.
Anthony Bourdain, a gifted storyteller and writer who took CNN viewers around the world, has died. He was 61.
CNN confirmed Bourdain’s death on Friday and said the cause of death was suicide.
“It is with extraordinary sadness we can confirm the death of our friend and colleague, Anthony Bourdain,”
the network said in a statement Friday morning.
“His love of great adventure, new friends, fine food and
drink and the remarkable stories of the world made him
a unique storyteller. His talents never ceased to amaze
us and we will miss him very much. Our thoughts and
prayers are with his daughter and family at this
incredibly difficult time.”
Bourdain was in France working on an upcoming
episode of his award-winning CNN series “Parts
Unknown.” His close friend Eric Ripert, the French chef,
found Bourdain unresponsive in his hotel room Friday
morning.
“Tony was an exceptional talent,” CNN President Jeff
Zucker said in an email to employees. ” Tony will be
greatly missed not only for his work but also for the
passion with which he did it.”
Bourdain was a master of his crafts — first in the
kitchen and then in the media. Through his TV shows
and books, he explored the human condition and
helped audiences think differently about food, travel
and themselves. He advocated for marginalized
populations and campaigned for safer working
conditions for restaurant staffs.
Along the way, he received practically every award the
industry has to offer.
In 2013, Peabody Award judges honored Bourdain and
” Parts Unknown” for “expanding our palates and
horizons in equal measure.”
“He’s irreverent, honest, curious, never condescending,
never obsequious,” the judges said. ” People open up to
him and, in doing so, often reveal more about their
hometowns or homelands than a traditional reporter
could hope to document.””
The Smithsonian once called him “the original rock
star” of the culinary world, “the Elvis of bad boy chefs.”
In 1999 he wrote a New Yorker article, “Don’t Eat
Before Reading This, ” that became a best-selling book
in 2000, ” Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the
Culinary Underbelly.”
The book set him on a path to international stardom.
First he hosted “A Cook’s Tour” on the Food Network,
then moved to “Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations” on
the Travel Channel. “No Reservations” was a breakout
hit, earning two Emmy Awards and more than a dozen
nominations.
In 2013 both Bourdain and CNN took a risk by bringing
him to the news network still best known for breaking
news and headlines. Bourdain quickly became one of
the principal faces of the network and one of the
linchpins of the prime time schedule.
While accepting the Peabody award in 2013, Bourdain
described how he approached his work.
“We ask very simple questions: What makes you happy?
What do you eat? What do you like to cook? And
everywhere in the world we go and ask these very
simple questions,” he said, “we tend to get some really
astonishing answers.”
Bourdain’s death happened after fashion designer Kate
Spade hanged herself in an apparent suicide at her
Manhattan apartment on Tuesday.
Suicide is a growing problem in the United States. The
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
published a survey Thursday showing suicide rates
increased by 25% across the United States over nearly
two decades ending in 2016. Twenty-five states
experienced a rise in suicides by more than 30%, the
government report finds.
