Bourdain comments on the Food TV Awards

[dvs]

http://blog.ruhlman.com/

sorry for the non post when i added this...

i watched all of 5 minutes of the show and it was so painful i went to bed early. i see AB agrees.

Edited April 16, 2007 by dvs (log)

[Peter Green]

I just read this with my son, Scud.

He's now interested in food reporting.

[zoe b]

I wonder if they'll show it again--I was flipping last night and saw Emeril's head looking flushed and slightly desperate at the podium and I kept going.

[Andrew Fenton]

Ah yes. It's always good fun to watch Bourdain serve up a delicious dish of snark, using as ingredients only the hand that fed him...

Edited April 16, 2007 by Andrew Fenton (log)

[srhcb]

I'll admit that when I tuned into the show during a lull in the ESPN telecast of the Dodgers Padres game, I could only bear to watch a couple of minutes before acute embarrassment for the "presenters", (Nigella and some guy I didn't recognize), caused me to hit the Return button on my remote.

Still, I doubt if the show actually rent the very fabric of our civilization, and having Tony Bourdain review it was like using a sledge hammer to squash an ant.

SB

[rancho_gordo]

Still, I doubt if the show actually rent the very fabric of our civilization, and having Tony Bourdain review it was like using a sledge hammer to squash an ant.

SB 

←

That's one way of looking at it. Another is that if you want to present crappy programming, people are going to criticize it.

Who is biting whose hand? The network was made popular and valid and on to so many cable systems because of the Batalis, Bourdains and Saras.

I say let him rant until Unwrapped! is replaced by Cassoulets with Paula Wolfert.

[Tess]

Oh, good. There's butt-ramming. I hate it when he forgets to include butt-ramming.

[JAZ]

I just tried to read this, and I couldn't do it. I mean, I couldn't wade through the flaws in spelling, punctuation and grammar to actually find out what Bourdain was saying. I know it's a blog, and I know that he has devoted readers who love everything he writes, but I'm appalled at the lack of care he took.

For example:

The production itself--above and beyond the witless, ill-considered, just-plain stupid "concept" of an Awards show where most of the "awards" went to inanimate objects (accepting the award for Best Comfort Food is...Macaroni and Cheese!!), appliances or cities (Portland's mayor wisely did not bother to show),--the production values--were lower than whale shit.

or

But who green lit this monstrosity?

or

The answer, apparently arrived at the taping in Miami--where the Awards were perhaps the lone under-attended event of the South Beach Food and Wine Fest. . They couldn't even hold on to a LIVE audience--ordinarily mesmerized simply by proximity to Sandra and Paula.

That's not even a sentence.

It's such a shame -- Bourdain is a talented, witty, sharp writer when he tries. I guess he didn't feel the need to try.

[cdh]

A fun rant. I don't see the glaring grammatical issues that JAZ brings up... those three examples read just fine to me with the insertion of an obviously elided comma here or there. It's a little snarky, a little jargony, but otherwise quite witty.

Edited April 16, 2007 by cdh (log)

[FoodMan]

A fun rant.  I don't see the glaring grammatical issues that JAZ brings up... those three examples read just fine to me with the insertion of an obviously elided comma here or there.  It's a little snarky, a little jargony, but otherwise quite witty.

←

Neither can I. It was a fun read, I'm sure it is more fun than the show it makes fun of. Did I say fun too many times? . I doubt he'll spend time sweating over every little comma before posting a blog entry.

[tan319]

I just tried to read this, and I couldn't do it. I mean, I couldn't wade through the flaws in spelling, punctuation and grammar to actually find out what Bourdain was saying. I know it's a blog, and I know that he has devoted readers who love everything he writes, but I'm appalled at the lack of care he took.

For example:

The production itself--above and beyond the witless, ill-considered, just-plain stupid "concept" of an Awards show where most of the "awards" went to inanimate objects (accepting the award for Best Comfort Food is...Macaroni and Cheese!!), appliances or cities (Portland's mayor wisely did not bother to show),--the production values--were lower than whale shit.

or

But who green lit this monstrosity?

or

The answer, apparently arrived at the taping in Miami--where the Awards were perhaps the lone under-attended event of the South Beach Food and Wine Fest. . They couldn't even hold on to a LIVE audience--ordinarily mesmerized simply by proximity to Sandra and Paula.

That's not even a sentence.

It's such a shame -- Bourdain is a talented, witty, sharp writer when he tries. I guess he didn't feel the need to try.

←

The books are edited pretty well?

I enjoyed the rant very much, especially since all of these RR's, Paula Deens, etc. stare out from every bookshelf.

[divalasvegas]

Well if you missed the original airing the awards show is scheduled to be re-aired on April 19th at 9:00 pm EST. I enjoyed his rant as well although I thought his comments about the show "Dinner: Impossible" and the chef, Robert Irvine as "Can four professional cooks make onion dip for 40-- in time?!!!" was a complete mischaracterization. One of the few shows on FTV I enjoy actually.

The "Red Carpet" slide show here demonstrates that the show is indeed as cringe-worthy and bizarre as he described.

[NYC Mike]

I say let him rant until Unwrapped! is replaced by Cassoulets with Paula Wolfert.

I'm with you Sr. Gordo.

-Mike

[chefAZ]

The "Red Carpet" slide show here demonstrates that the show is indeed as cringe-worthy and bizarre as he described.

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cringe-worthy indeed!

except Giada, she's smokin hot!

[lancastermike]

I did not see one second of this show. That was on purpose. But please, Tony. They dumped your show when they switched formats. We all know the story. So stop grinding that axe and move on to something else. Tony really can write. This was just him jerking off. I sure hope he felt better

[fiftydollars]

I just tried to read this, and I couldn't do it. I mean, I couldn't wade through the flaws in spelling, punctuation and grammar to actually find out what Bourdain was saying. I know it's a blog, and I know that he has devoted readers who love everything he writes, but I'm appalled at the lack of care he took.

For example:

The production itself--above and beyond the witless, ill-considered, just-plain stupid "concept" of an Awards show where most of the "awards" went to inanimate objects (accepting the award for Best Comfort Food is...Macaroni and Cheese!!), appliances or cities (Portland's mayor wisely did not bother to show),--the production values--were lower than whale shit.

or

But who green lit this monstrosity?

or

The answer, apparently arrived at the taping in Miami--where the Awards were perhaps the lone under-attended event of the South Beach Food and Wine Fest. . They couldn't even hold on to a LIVE audience--ordinarily mesmerized simply by proximity to Sandra and Paula.

That's not even a sentence.

It's such a shame -- Bourdain is a talented, witty, sharp writer when he tries. I guess he didn't feel the need to try.

←

He's no William Safire, but Big Tone is definitely not phoning it in. You may want to consult your sources, but unless there has been some editing since you first read the post, the grammar and spelling are not bad. His usage of punctuation, italics, and odd tenses are part of what makes him so fun to read... well, that and the constant references to various forms of sodomy and McFunsters.

[Peter B Wolf]

Paula Dean reminded me of this ' Preachers " wife, who went to Jail,

Tammy ..something ?

[prasantrin]

I haven't watched The Food Network in years, but what the heck are Aaron Eckhart and Catherine Zeta-Jones doing at that awards show? Do they have a show? If not, how much were they paid to make an appearance? Must have been big bucks in order to stoop to something so low (seriously, foodtv awards? Lame-o)

[eldereno]

I haven't watched The Food Network in years, but what the heck are Aaron Eckhart and Catherine Zeta-Jones doing at that awards show?  Do they have a show?  If not, how much were they paid to make an appearance?  Must have been big bucks in order to stoop to something so low (seriously, foodtv awards?  Lame-o)

←

I think they were there to hype a new movie about chefs and cooking that they did and will be released soon.

[menon1971]

I enjoyed his rant as well although I thought his comments about the show "Dinner: Impossible" and the chef, Robert Irvine as "Can four professional cooks make onion dip for 40-- in time?!!!" was a complete mischaracterization. One of the few shows on FTV I enjoy actually.

←

Never seen the show, but I know people who have been on it. Perhaps we should compare the resumes of Irvine and Bourdain. Although I heard the ceremony was horrible, I am pretty much over Tony. I will most likely still read his books, but the rants are becoming increasingly predictable and histrionic.

Edited April 18, 2007 by menon1971 (log)

[Marlene]

[i am pretty much over Tony. I will most likely still read his books, but the rants are becoming increasingly predictable and histrionic.

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Bingo.

[Eden]

I haven't watched The Food Network in years, but what the heck are Aaron Eckhart and Catherine Zeta-Jones doing at that awards show?  Do they have a show?  If not, how much were they paid to make an appearance?  Must have been big bucks in order to stoop to something so low (seriously, foodtv awards?  Lame-o)

←

I think they were there to hype a new movie about chefs and cooking that they did and will be released soon.

←

Isn't she doing the remake of Mostly Martha?

[SheenaGreena]

the movie is called "no reservations" (I think) and it's about catherine zeta jones falling in love with her sous chef - aaron eckhart.....BORING

I won't pay to see it, but I will probably get it on netflix when it comes out

[rancho_gordo]

[i am pretty much over Tony. I will most likely still read his books, but the rants are becoming increasingly predictable and histrionic.

←

Bingo.

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Happily, you don't have to read them!

For the rest of us, who else is saying that the emperor has no clothes? And making us laugh out loud at the same time.

Sports fans wouldn't put up with a show about how shoelaces are made when they came to see a football game. Why should we accept this drivel and remain quiet?

[Peter Green]

Oh, how can you deprecate the good Mr. Bourdain's prose so?

My son has adopted him as his new culinary hero and icon of letters. An example to be held up for his language arts class.

hmmmm......maybe that explains the angry messages on my answering machine form his teachers?

Peter

P.S. - I'm waiting for the road trip buddy novel/tv series with Tony Bourdain and P.J. O'Rourke traveling across the 'Stans.