Anthony Bourdain is in "Parts Really Unknown"

This is so sad, I'm at a loss for words. I am a big fan of his and will definitely miss his show, he's a unique personality and developed an interesting niche between off-the-beaten-path travel and food. He should be commended for his contributions and deep sense of curiosity and adventure, whether or not one clicked with his tv persona. I loved that memory of him sitting down with Obama sharing a simple meal in Vietnam, with both seemingly enjoying the other's company (what chef gets access to a US President like that? except the WH chef of course). I knew he's lived life on the rough side, but this is a surprise.

So, so sad. Thought he was looking a little thin and tired lately but whatever, it's just heartrending for his young daughter, his partner, his staff, family and friends. I'll miss him.

it was on our local radio news here in Edinburgh a couple of hours ago. Always enjoyed his shows,and we have eaten at the same sausage stand in Prague , an entertaining guy who liked to give the finger to conventionality.

He did what he wanted to do, ate what he wanted to eat, and drank a lot. It's a reminder that depression is not affected by success in some cases. Many very successful people have depression. It's a shame when it results in such actions.

I used a title of "Parts Really Unknown" as a tribute to Mr. Bourdain.

The news is shocking but I wouldn't call it sad. AB lived how he wanted and when he was done with life, he ended it on his terms. That's fine by me but I'll miss him.

This makes me sad and I will miss him, too. He was indeed a "big" personality and I enjoyed his tv shows so much. I am so, so sorry he felt he had to take his own life and I feel exactly the same way about Kate Spade. So tragic for them, their families and those who cared about them.😢

I read in the New York Times today that he took his life in Strasbourg. I wonder if he'd been making a show about the Alsace. If so, I'm very sorry that I'll never get to see it.

RIP you glorious hedonist; you were Hunter S. Thompson with a dinner fork and will be greatly missed by all of us who you inspired to try something new and different from the kitchen.

-- Mike Beebe

I liked his book "Kitchen Confidential", but didnt care for his TV show. But, I did respect the fact that he chose to do what he wanted, and not market himself in the celebrity chef pool.

wonder if he'd been making a show about the Alsace. If so, I'm very sorry that I'll never get to see it.

Yes, he was. He was in Strasborg with friend and fellow chef Eric Ripert. One of the greatest food programs you'll see on TV, is the trip he takes to Lyon with Daniel Boloud. The Alsac region is another gastronomic center in France and was hoping that it could rival that Lyon episode.

The irony to this, is Riper, while good friends with Bourdain, is in many ways the opposite of him. Ripert is a practicing Buddhist, he's very comfortable in his own skin and outwardly at least, seemed very content with life. Bourdain on the other hand would provide contestant commentary on everything, quipping odd/dark but funny thoughts. Watch enough of the programs and a pattern will develop regarding his commentary about torture, death, internal struggle.

Paul - I like the title - it is perfectly accurate

Bourdain was very much an acquired taste, but he was always unique and interesting. His show about the scientists and workers in Antarctica was one of the most fascinating pieces of television I've ever seen. Plus, we went to Da Romano on Burano after watching his Venice episode and had the best risotto ever. He'll be missed.

So sad news. I remember his book about Typhoid Mary for an interesting read: https://www.amazon.com/Typhoid-Mary-Historical-Anthony-Bourdain/dp/1582341338

AB lived how he wanted and when he was done with life, he ended it on his terms.

Are you sure he ended on his terms? If he took his life due to depression, he did not make a rational choice. He died due to illness.

I was both surprised and saddened to hear this news this morning.

What Laura said.

FYI Parts Unknown is on Netfix until June 19th. Loved the Viet Nam, Cuba, and Marseille episodes. So sad. RIP. So sad for his family and Eric Ripert... and him.

I loved his show "The Layover", in which he'd spend 24 hours in one place. My favorite show was when he was in London, and visited one of those green cabbie shacks that serves tea and bacon butties to cab drivers. He visited the one just outside the V&A Museum, which I went to a month after he filmed there. Marco Pierre White and Fergus Henderson were two chefs he visited in London.

Can't believe it. Will be waiting to hear more details tonight on NBC Nightly News. It is hard to accept that he's gone.

As to the manner of his passing, I am going to assume that he was in full command of his senses. I have my name on a number of papers about suicide, and have been a member of a Department of Psychiatry. I am conversant with depression and its results.

However, it is possible, even likely, that we reduce the man to his illness. He lived a full life, a life that many of us here really envied. He traveled!! He wrote!!! He drank and did drugs!!

Don't call him simply a "depressed suicide". Give him the credit of being a full person.

I'm glad you have the academic credentials, Paul, which gives you the healthy distance. However, I'm not sure family members who have had a suicide in their family are celebrating his well-lived life as blithely. These suicides are opening people's eyes. However, there are family survivors reading and posting here, too, people for whom these suicides are very difficult to hear about.
Did anyone here refer to Anthony Bourdain as a depressed suicide? Does anyone know his state of mind? I think your original words "He lived a big life, RIP, Mr. Bordain" tied it up very nicely.

We don't know if depression was the cause. He may have had some other type of serious illness that he was hiding and didn't want to deal with. It may have been something else. But whatever it was, I don't imagine his young daughter, his only child, is able to rationalize the loss of her father right now, whatever sort of life he led.

Yes, I agree - we will never know what his thoughts were in that moment of decision. Many people do end their lives, for reasons that only they really know - Robin Williams is an example of that.

Was it depression? I really don't know, and did not know the man. Despite my comment about my knowledge, I am not a psychiatrist, but am rather a humble statistician. I don't wish to overstate my expertise.

I merely believe that a person shouldn't be reduced to a single decision made in at the end. He seemed to have a pretty good life, doing stuff that most of us would enjoy doing, filming it, probably doing it all on an expense account. Wow!! What's not to like?

But the effect on those close to him, especially a young daughter, must be important, especially now. I know people who committed suicide, 50 years ago. To this day, siblings of that person still think about the suicide, every day. It's a terrible thing.

I too was truly saddened to hear the news this morning about Anthony Bourdain. This came as a real shock as he seemed to be so upbeat and happy with his life, and it would seem that he had so much to live for. It's so tragic that his daughter will grow up not knowing her father.

No one should be defined by his or her manner of death. And I do not believe this will happen with Anthony Bourdain. He is too famous and too much loved and admired. And some will approve of his handling his end of life “his way”.

As one who has a family connection with suicide, I can only say that I agree with my husband (a physician) who says it is a very selfish choice. And often one made at the spur of the moment, when things look particularly dark, when a bit of patience or reaching out for help could have changed things. His daughter will have to live with this for the rest of her life. I know my own mother never recovered from her parent’s suicide.

Sorry to be so negative. Feeling a bit contemplative now, perhaps because I am in Ketchum, Idaho, home of one of the most famous suicides of all.

Bourdain had an 12 year old daughter. To act as if there's anything rational or OK with him choosing to end his life and leave that girl, who by all accounts he was very close to, fatherless is ridiculous.

I have to agree Sarah. One of my professional comrades was also a personal friend. He left adolescents when he took his life and I've spent as much time as I can with them. His children tend to internalize these events and wonder why they themselves weren't important enough or interesting enough to keep their father interested in living. An easy solution for the adult becomes an unfair burden for minds that haven't fully developed.

What lucid mind would choose that experience for their children?

Anthony Bourdain was a nice guy, apparently, according to many reports.

"MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A North Dakota newspaper columnist who received
online vitriol in 2012 for her glowing review of an Olive Garden in
Grand Forks said Saturday she was grateful that Anthony Bourdain came
to her defense as others ridiculed her prose about the town's hottest
new Italian restaurant.

Marilyn Hagerty catapulted to internet fame after her Olive Garden
review, in which she marveled about the chain restaurant's chicken
Alfredo, crisp greens and "two long, warm breadsticks."

Then, she learned what it's like to go viral.

Bourdain, who died Friday in France in an apparent suicide at age 61,
was among those who stood up for her on Twitter. The celebrity chef
and TV host asked to meet her for coffee while she was on a media tour
in New York, and he ended up publishing a book of her columns, "Grand
Forks: A History of American Dining in 128 Reviews."

In the foreword, Bourdain wrote: "Anyone who comes away from this work
anything less than charmed by Ms. Hagerty — and the places and
characters she describes — has a heart of stone. This book kills snark
dead.

There is only one thing about Mr. Bourdain that annoyed me considerably - his weight. He was a cook, bon vivant, and professional eater. He looked like a fashion model, and he retained his girlish figure until the end. As a man 4 years older than Mr. Bourdain, who has not retained his girlish figure, that is a little annoying. He probably spent 3 hrs a day in the gym. I saw a video of him walking around, and he was a good-looking guy with a really fit body.

RIP, Mr. Bourdain.

He looked like a fashion model

That may be pushing it a bit (there were times that he did not look physically healthy, at least to me). Remember that he's also about 6'5" or taller and smoked a lot. Smoking, drug use, and genetics are likely responsible for his physique.

Edit: thank you to others for reminding me about the ju-jitsu. That too, I'm sure. I thought the ju-jitsu was a positive turn in his life of sorts.

Agnes, you obviously didnt follow him. He did in fact have incredible genetics and has always been tall and thin. If you watch his earlier episodes when he did smoke you would see that he did have a bit of a pot belly. However for the past decade or more he has been into jujitsu and has not smoked. Have you seen his abs? Google it. You’re welcome.

Anthony got into Jiu-Jitsu and healtier diet during his 2nd marriage. That probably accounted for losing the bit of tummy he had earlier on.

https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a19536189/anthony-bourdain-abs-brazilian-jiu-jitsu/

"It's so tragic that his daughter will grow up not knowing her father."

Ken, because of his fame his legacy will live on in his books and reruns of his TV show, so at least in this way, his daughter will be able to 'know' her father. It's good that she will have that. Many children of suicides aren't that lucky and really can't know their deceased parents.

"I can only say that I agree with my husband (a physician) who says it is a very selfish choice."

Lola, I also agree with your husband that it's the ultimate selfish act - though the choice is not always a rational one. And it's funny you should mention Hemingway's suicide as he was also 61 at the time.

For what it's worth, I think this posted video by Beantown14 was very interesting and worth checking out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUEFdWAKpf0
It's an interview of Bourdain and I really enjoyed listening to it.

I am watching a Bourdain retrospective on CNN right now; I am going to miss that guy and show.

Why don't we all just relax and not jump on every new bit of information.

We don't know what really happened, what was the cause, and what was going on in his mind. We don't know the extent of his psychological issues if he had any at all. Did some event set him off? Was there a chemical I'm balance in his brain? Was he doing something else and accidentally killed himself?

According to the most recent reports he had missed a scheduled dinner and breakfast before being found and the authorities believe the act was impulsive.

Until the toxicology report is out and we have a final investigative report, everything else is speculation.

Good advice, Frank
Namaste, ya'll, and peace out. ✌️

Yeah, gotta admit a little surprise at the last 20 postings.

Folks, one word of advice on the Inter-tubes: When you read something, TONE is hard to convey, and it is very easy to conclude that a statement is harsh when it is not. So, rather than getting all huffy, read statements with a little bit of leeway - assume that others are good-natured, just as you are.

Note also the absence of pointing fingers here. This is a general statement, rather than a specific criticism.

The posts Paul just referred to have been removed. His advice is also spot on.

I wasn't aware of this web series, Raw Craft with Anthony Bourdain. (14 episodes, each from 6 to 16 minutes long)

Anthony Bourdain joins The Balvenie (a whisky distillery) to celebrate some of America’s most talented and dedicated craftspeople. From hand-tailored suits to cast iron skillets, Raw Craft is an online film series documenting the lives and works of the committed individuals at the forefront of the American craft movement.

I liked the way AB experienced the places he traveled. So many people love to travel , but do so from cruise ships, or tour buses, or surrounded by a group of fellow tourists not even from the area they are visiting. But AB dug right into the heart of the places he traveled - getting off the beaten tourists routines to find the real culture of that place. I like to travel solo and I try to incorporate his travel spirit into my trips - it's really the way to build the greatest experiences.