"Well, we don't have an average viewer. We have people who want to learn how to cook, which is quite different from people who just want to be amused by cooking. But our shows are definitely teaching shows, and they're not going to look at a teaching show unless they're interested in the subject. I don't think -- at least, I would direct myself to people who want to learn to cook. And that's quite different than just being, having fun." -- Julia Child in an interview on June 25, 1999. From Julia Child: The Last Interview and Other Conversations, p. 134.
Loving Julia Child as I do, I was interested to read this slender book of interviews conducted at various times during her career as a cookbook author. I photographed my copy in front of the shelf with a few of my other Julia Child books. I've been using these books for my entire life as a cook.
The quote above is, to me, a perfect explanation of how Julia Child's approach to TV differed from that of the Food Network, and by extension differs from almost all food shows on any network right now. Child's personality was always so strong that one forgets that her main force was as a teacher, and that was how she always identified herself throughout the interviews.
A number of topics came up in the several interviews dating from 1961 through 2004. These included Child's political views, her work in the Far East for the US government during World War II, her very loving and admiring feelings for her husband Paul Child, and of course many memories of her creation of a new kind of cooking show, beginning in 1963 and continuing for nearly 40 years.
I suspect that biographers -- who have written quite a few volumes about Child -- used these interviews, because I found much (maybe most) of the material to be pretty familiar. Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading the book. I would especially recommend it to a reader who has enjoyed Child's cookbooks or reruns of her many TV shows, but who hasn't read biographies of her. I also recommend her own memoir, My Life in France (published posthumously in 2006).
This blog post copyright © 2019 by Mae E. Sander for mae's food blog.
Love her too! Hopefully I could get the book in Kindel version.
ReplyDeleteI adore Julia. I think this book would be right up my alley. She was simply amazing and her recipes work. What a fascinating life. (I loved the memoir.)
ReplyDeleteI have a lot of Julia's cookbooks too and that quote is perfect for her. I could still kick myself for not going into Chicago to see her one day years ago, instead of going to work. I've regretted it many times, she was a unique woman who loved life and knew her way around the kitchen. I'll be looking around for the interview book! Great post about a great lady!
ReplyDeleteI love Julia Child. I’ve read her biographies, My Life in France, and own several of her cookbooks. I’m going to see if our library has this book.
ReplyDeleteOne day I’d love to see her kitchen at the Smithsonian.
Julia taught me how to think about food and how to think about cooking. And how to actually DO cooking -- she quite literally taught me how to cook. Glad you published this post -- thanks.
ReplyDeleteJulia has had such an influence on cooking in this country, and is well loved by most everyone!
ReplyDeleteI would definitely be interested in reading this book. I didn’t know about this Julia book.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely adored Julia Child as a cook and a person. She was very inspiring and could really teach cooking - I'd enjoy reading these interviews!!
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a great book. My Life in France is a favorite of mine too.
ReplyDeleteLove her spirit ... but that voice.... Cheers
ReplyDeleteI too love Julia!!
ReplyDeleteI love Julia too. I think I would enjoy reading her interviews.
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