Author, chef, TV personality Anthony Bourdain has been found dead at 61, CNN has confirmed. The apparent cause was suicide.
CNN media columnist and host Brian Stelter wrote an obituary of Bourdain, whose Peabody-award winning show, Parts Unknown, was on the cable network:
“It is with extraordinary sadness we can confirm the death of our friend and colleague, Anthony Bourdain. 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 Strasbourg, France working on an episode of his Parts Unknown series with his production crew. He was reportedly found in his hotel room by his long-time friend, the chef Eric Ripert, on Friday morning.
Bourdain, one of the original “celebrity” chefs, rose to fame as a writer and commentator when his best-selling book about the gritty underbelly of the restaurant business, Kitchen Confidential, became a runaway bestseller, following a piece he wrote for the New Yorker. He went on to write several books and host numerous TV shows, including No Reservations, The Layover, and Parts Unknown.
Bourdain had been candid about his past struggles with drug addiction, which he detailed in a no holds barred manner in Kitchen Confidential.
In the many worlds he touched—food, travel, media, entertainment, politics—and in countries he had visited and highlighted the cuisine of around the world, there was an outpouring of grief over the news of his death:
Bourdain is survived by his teenaged daughter with former wife Ottavia Busia. Prior to his death, he’d been dating Asia Argento, an Italian actress who had been central to the #MeToo movement, which Bourdain was very vocal about backing.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline can be contacted at 1-800-273-8255 in the US. Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. Here is a list of crisis lines around the world.