RIP Anthony Bourdain at 61 (suicide)

[bayonetbrant]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/08/us/anthony-bourdain-obit/index.html

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. His close friend Eric Ripert, the French chef, found Bourdain unresponsive in his hotel room Friday morning.

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.

Season eleven of "Parts Unknown" premiered on CNN last month.

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. Spade was found hanged by a scarf she allegedly tied to a doorknob, an NYPD source said.

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.

[Jarhead0331]

Celebrities have it so hard. Tragic.

[mirth]

Very sad news. RIP, Anthony.

[OJsDad]

RIP Anthony

[Dammit Carl!]

Damn.

Just....damn.

[Gusington]

I loved his shows. I guess he never really got over his earlier demons - drug abuse, depression, etc...RIP.

[WallysWorld]

Very sad. I really like watching his travel/food shows. RIP Anthony.

[Staggerwing]

RIP Anthony.  :(

According to the CDC the suicide rate in the USA is up 30%, no doubt bolstered by the continued stigmatizing of depression and related forms of mental illness.

[Toonces]

Celebrities have it so hard. Tragic.

Man, this was an unexpected bummer.  I only highlight Jarhead's quote because the idea of suicide for some of these people just really confuses me.  My wife and I were just talking about this a bit ago.  Robin Williams, Chris Cornell, this Spade lady, and now Anthony Bourdain...any one of them I'd say had cracked life's code.  They seemingly had plenty of money, a successful career, and everything us mere mortals strive for.  I just wonder, what could have been so bad for them?

It makes me realize that whatever demons these folks have, money and fame doesn't address them.  Sometimes I think my life is hard, but it's not that bad.  How hard could it be for them, then?  It's just so hard to understand...Suicide is a real bitch.

[Steelgrave]

Neither money nor fame is a shield against mental health issues, addictions, or the numerous personal demons that drive someone to do this. I'm sad Bourdain's journey ended this way, but what crushed me most when I read this news was remembering he leaves behind a young daughter. I bought my wife his most recent cookbook last Christmas, one he wrote with his daughter where he described the joy of them cooking together and how he shared his passion with her. To us, he was a celebrity; to her, he was dad. That's messed up.....

[OJsDad]

Very well stated Steelie.  :'(

[Barthheart]

Having had a very close friend for more than 30 years take his own life after years of struggling with depression, I can tell you there is no understanding from our point of view. We fought with/for him through it all and still it was not enough...
I have no idea what the solution is but we must find one......

[Gusington]

Good posts Steelie and Barth. Was trying to explain it to my daughters tonight along with The Wife and had a hard time with it. Best we could come up with is that a brain can be sick just like a body can.

[mirth]

Good posts Steelie and Barth. Was trying to explain it to my daughters tonight along with The Wife and had a hard time with it. Best we could come up with is that a brain can be sick just like a body can.

Well, as someone who has tried to end his life several times, I can assure you reason or logic has nothing to do with it. When you are hurting enough to contemplate suicide all you want is to end the pain. People can sit back and debate that pain, but it is real and it drives people to difficult ends.

[Barthheart]

Having talked with my friend for many long drunken hours over the years I get that.

There just has to be a way we can help though.....