'The French Chef' Julia Child- Born: 15 August 1912
- Birthplace: Pasadena, California
- Died: 12 August 2004 in her sleep at her home in Santa Barbara, California
- Birth Name:Julia Carolyn McWilliams
- Best Known As: American TV chef, lecturer, and cookbook author
Julia Carolyn McWilliams was born in Pasadena, California, on August 15, 1912. At age four, Julia was enrolled at the local Montessori school. When Julia was nine she began attending The ploytechnical school where she excelled as an athlete and a student. Julia wrote in her diary that she was, "like no one else," the possessor of "unique spiritual gifts" and "meant for something" special.
The McWilliams family was wealthy and aristocratic, and they had a number of cooks throughout Julia’s childhood that did all the culinary work.
The teenage Julia headed off for boarding school in San Francisco. It was here she studied French and developed her writing skills. Later she would attend Smith College, where she graduated with a major in history in 1934.
During World War II she served with the Office of Strategic Services in Washing- ton, D.C., Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and China. It was during this assignment when she met her future husband, Paul Child. He was several inches shorter than her, and was the one who introduced her to gourmet cooking. After the war, her husband was assigned to the U.S. Information Service at the American Embassy in Paris. It was in Paris that Julia began her culinary career at the prestigious culinary school, Cordon Bleu.
After her formal training, Julia opened "L'Ecole des Trois Gourmandes," a cooking school In 1951, with Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle. Their techniques and recipes reached a larger audience with the 1961 publication of Mastering The Art of French Cooking , which is still on bookstore shelves today. This book was originally written by French master chef Curnonsky. Although she was only supposed to rewrite the recipes for American Kitchens, she ended up re-writing the book. Her book was a book for American home cooks that would present cuisine bourgeoisie using the techniques of haute cuisine. With dozens of cookbooks to her name, Julia Child's last book was Julia and Jacques Cooking At Home .
Upon returning to the U.S., Julia participated in a television interview at WGBH-Boston. The interview was so engaging that the station proposed a series of TV cooking shows. And so, on February 11, 1963, "The French Chef" was born, enlivening the kitchens and expanding the palates of Americans forever. After some 200 programs on classical French cooking, Julia explored contemporary cuisine with "Julia Child and Company," "Julia Child and More Company," "Dinner at Julia's," "Baking with Julia," the "Master Chefs" series and "Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home" with Jacques Pepin.
When Martha Stewart came on the scene, Julia receded from the limelight, but was still popular. Julia then shifted her focus more to teaching and began giving commencement addresses at world renowned colleges. She received an honorary degree from Harvard. She also had her own CD-ROM, and video series. She had a variety of master chefs on her show, and wrote a cookbook, titled cooking with master chefs.
Julia Child was an active member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, which, reflecting her years of involvement, gives an annual Julia Child cookbook award. Julia also was a co-founder of The American Institute of Wine and Food. Still going strong, her classic programs now appear on Food Network, reaching a new generation of cooks.
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