Julia Child’s Influence 1 Frances Melvin 1 Child on set of Julia Child and Company. Photograph. http://juliachildfoundation.org/tv/. (April 4, 2017). TABLE OF CONTENTS Prologue ................................................... 1 About Julia ................................................ 3 Youth 3 Jobs 5 Family 7 Culinary Schools 9 Personality 13 Productions ............................................. 17 Television 17 Writing 21 Legacy ................................................... 25 Cooking 25 Recognition 27 Today 31 Bibliography ........................................... 35 Prologue Julia Child is one of the most well-known chefs of all time. Her name is constantly shows up on television, radio, and in cookbooks even today, years after her retirement and death. Her life spent travelling the world and living in France helped her grow to be a skillful and innovative chef. She turned her passion for French cooking into a career by teaching others, both in person, on television, and in books, reaching out to both professionals and amateurs. Her large personality popularized her shows and helped French cuisine become loved all over the world. Chefs still honor her and use her techniques today. With that being said, here is a deeper look into the influences and details in her life and career, showing why she is still revered today. It is all written in the format of a cookbook, just like what Julia Child was most known for. 2 ABOUT JULIA YOUTH INGREDIENTS: 1. Birth 2. Wealth 3. College Julia Child was born August 15, 1912 in Pasadena, California. Her parents, Julia and John McWilliams, were both from wealthy families, which led to her own “well-to-do” upbringing. The McWilliams had cooks and servants and were able to send Julia and her younger sister and brother to private schools. Upon high school graduation, Child attended Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. During this time, she was interested in writing but not yet cooking.2 Child ended up majoring 2 “Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1631001340. (Detroit: Gale, 1998. Biography in Context. Accessed January 27, 2017). 3 in history but studied everything except English. She thought she wanted to be a “great novelist” and would learn enough about writing as she actually wrote novels, rather than in classes. As she aged, her plans changed3 4 ABOUT JULIA 3 Sharon Hudgins, “A Conversation with Julia Child, Spring 1984.” (Gastronomica 5, no. 3 (2005): 104-08. doi:10.1525/gfc.2005.5.3.104.) 4 Julia Yearbook. Photograph. Smith College. https://www.smith.edu/news/2007-08/images/SmitHistory4- JuliaYearbook.jpg. (April 27, 2017). 4 JOBS INGREDIENTS: 1. Copywriter 2. CIA 3. Retirement After college, Child moved to New York City and got a job at W&J Sloane’s Furniture Company where she did public relations and advertising work. This job was her introduction into the publishing world. However, Child also realized she had a calling to go abroad.5 She joined the Office of Strategic Services which was the start of the CIA, as World War II began. The OSS first sent her to Washington, D.C. and then Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). After some time, she was transferred to China (where she lived in both Kunming and Chungking) under Chiang Kai-shek’s rule. However, Communists were beginning to gain 5 “Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 5 momentum in Northern China leading to fear but also fascination.6 While she enjoyed travelling new places, eventually meeting her husband, getting to know different cultures and people with varying political beliefs and jobs, the job had its drawbacks. When Child joined the OSS, she was hoping to be a spy, but most women were instead assigned to desk work. Child became a file clerk, but still had to “[travel] on troop ships, [sleep] on cots, and [wear] army fatigues.”7 Child did not get into cooking until after she 8 married and moved to France. 9 6 “Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 7 “Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 8 Sharon Hudgins, “A Conversation with Julia Child, Spring 1984.” 9 Buildings, W. & J. Sloane. 1917. Photograph. http://collections.mcny.org/Collection/Buildings,-W.-&-J.-Sloane,-575- 5th-Avenue. (Accessed May 8, 2017). 6 ABOUT JULIA FAMILY INGREDIENTS: 1. Meets Husband 2. Dating 3. Marriage 4. Moving 5. Settle down 6. Husband’s Death While in Ceylon, Julia Child met Paul Cushing Child, a cartographer who designed headquarters for Lord Mountbatten, an allied commander. Their relationship took off when they were both moved to China. But, P. Child was both ten years J. Child’s senior, shorter than her, and was Democrat. Julia Child’s father was a staunch Republican who supported the Red Scare and fighting communism, so he disliked P. Child. Both Childs were also reluctant to date during war 7 so they did not get together until they both returned to California.10 After that, they married quickly on September 1, 1946.11 P. Child was a member of the United States Foreign Service so they relocated to Washington D.C. In 1948, they moved to Paris. By the time of P. Child’s retirement, they had lived in Norway, Germany, and a multitude of other European countries.12 Upon his retirement, they settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Julia Child’s “lifelong friend and career partner” Paul died in 1994.13 14 10 Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 11 Ibid. 12 Sharon Hudgins, “A Conversation with Julia Child, Spring 1984.” 13 “Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 14 Julia and Paul on Their Wedding Day. Photograph. Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and Culinary Arts. (April 27, 2017). http://juliachildfoundation.org/timeline/#. 8 ABOUT JULIA CULINARY SCHOOLS INGREDIENTS: 1. Culinary School in Beverly Hills 2. Cordon Bleu 3. L’École des Trois Gourmandes 4. American Institute of Wine and Food 5. Boston University Julia Child’s interest in cooking started after meeting her husband who was a passionate home cook. Before they married, she took cooking classes in Beverly Hills.15 After they moved to Paris, J. Child’s love of French culture and food expanded. She claimed her first meal in Rouen (sole meunière, oysters, and crème 15 “Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 9 fraîche with tasteful wine) made her fall in love.16 She then enrolled at le Cordon Bleu. Meanwhile, she took French lessons at Berlitz School.17 With her extensive training, Child opened l’École des Trois Gourmandes with friends who inspired her to pursue cooking as a profession, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, from le Cordon Bleu.18 Multiple cookbooks and television shows later, Paul Child’s health was deteriorating and he retired, so they moved back to the United States. Julia Child, as she had been doing whole life, still had more to give to the cooking world. To spread technical knowledge and skills, she founded the American Institute of Wine and Food in 1981. This organization was devoted to improving the quality of food and wine in America.19 Ten years later, with renowned chef and friend Jacques Pépin, they created a Master of Liberal Arts in Gastronomy at Boston University and taught classes there. Her ambition and 16 Sharon Hudgins, “A Conversation with Julia Child, Spring 1984.” 17 Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 18 Ibid. 19 Ibid. 10 drive to do so much was all just a part of her personality.20 21 20 Jacques Pépin, “My Friend Julia Child.” (Gastronomica 5, no. 3 (2005): 9-14. doi:10.1525/gfc.2005.5.3.9.) 21 Julia with Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle. Photograph. Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study Harvard University. (April 27, 2017). https://www.radcliffe.harvard.edu/schlesinger- library/item/simone-beck-julia-child-and-louisette-bertholle-cooking- fish. 11 22 22 Julia Child's Coq au Vin. Photograph. http://littleferrarokitchen.com/2012/05/julia-childs-coq-au-vin- 2/. (May 14, 2017.) 12 ABOUT JULIA PERSONALITY INGREDIENTS: 1. Desire for success 2. Drive 3. Humbleness 4. Pride 5. Cooking Knowledge 6. Honesty 7. Advice Julia Child’s personality is comprised of varying layers. In fact, Jacques Pépin described her with a long list of adjectives: “direct, tough, gentle, competitive, generous, opinionated, optimistic, funny, serious, informative, demanding, frustrating, eloquent, and vibrant and – more than anything – full of life, always fun, and living to the fullest until her last breath.” Many of these are contradictory, but they shone through her 13 personality at different times depending on the situation.23 Ultimately, the reason for her television and cooking success is attributed to her desire. Knowing the effort it took to gain achievements, Child devoted time and passion, even when going through tough situations. For instance, even as she approached her late 70s, she travelled across the country promoting a new cookbook of hers (The Way to Cook) because she knew she knew advertising was a part of success. After her husband had a stroke later in 1989 and moved to a nursing home, she continued to lecture, write, work on television shows, and voice a children’s video since she was so used to staying busy due to her strong drive.24 In addition to her personal success, Child always wanted to share her passion and knowledge with others. Whether it was friends, colleagues, or people watching her shows, she was always giving advice, often honestly. A frequent question of hers was, “What are we teaching here? What are the people going to get out of this?”25 23 Jacques Pépin, “My Friend Julia Child.” 24 Julia McWilliams Child.” In Encyclopedia of World Biography. 25 Jacques Pépin, “My Friend Julia Child.” 14 Child was known for being blunt and direct, always telling the truth.