Awesome Student
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Mr. Pagtakhan
Sophomore English, Period 4
February 28, 2007
She Made Cooking Wild, The Famous Julia Child!
It was sliced into perfect segments, sautéed to the ideal texture, and basted to a
magnificent essence. As the morsel melted in the mouth, the tremendous flavor hit the
palate, immediately stirring the senses. The aroma and savor of delicious food can alter
your senses, just as particular individuals have the altered world. That individual who sets
himself apart from the normal realm of society, and beneficially aids and advances
civilization is a catalyst of change. Her values and passions overcome the past and are the
backbone of what directs them to their future. In the absence of these individuals,
technology may have never been born, lives may have been lost, several professions may
have never been discovered, and overall the efficiency of life never would have been
revealed. Catalysts of change come in all areas of life, and as time continues to pass,
communities continue to evolve by these sole few. During the 1960’s, Julia Child
significantly transformed the way Americans view the cooking scene. While generating
excitement and simplicity in her recipes along with her savvy presence in the media, Julia
Child led America into an era of fine culinary cuisine.
Throughout Julia’s youth, her gregarious nature and sociable personality became
evident through her spontaneous and risky decisions. Julia Carolyn McWilliams was born
in an affluent family, August 12, 1912, in Pasadena, California (Byers 519). After
graduating High School, the six foot, two inch tall, Julia followed in her mothers’
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footsteps, by attending Smith College in Massachusetts where she majored in history
(ibid). Afterwards, Julia moved to New York, where she worked as a marketer for a
furniture company. Although, she began to ascend in marketing industry, Julia wanted a
profession with additional adventure and exhilaration (Julia Child Encyclopedia
Americana). Therefore, just at the outbreak of World War II, Julia volunteered into the
Office of Strategic Services (ibid). She was sent abroad, and was a key role in the
communication of covert messages between U.S. intelligence and government officials
(ibid). While Julia was stationed in Sri Lanka she met Paul Cushing Child and the two
fell in love (Julia Child Newsmakers). Once the couple traveled back to California, Julia
married the cartographer September 1, 1946 (ibid). The love that the two shared was
passionate and infinite; Julia even spoke of him as if he was her everything,“ Paul Child,
the man who is always there: porter, dishwasher, official photographer, mushroom dicer,
and onion chopper, editor, fish illustrator, manager, taster, idea man, resident poet and
husband” (Green). According to Paula Byers, Paul’s career required a great deal of
traveling and while based in China, Julia’s interest in cooking and eating became
especially apparent (519). Julia was even later quoted, “ I was 32 when I started cooking,
up until then I just ate.”(Green) As a result of Julia’s experiences in multiple careers, she
eventually discovered her two true passions in life: her husband and food.
As Julia Child became further involved with culinary techniques and cuisine, the
greater she grew as an icon in the cooking industry. While living in Paris, Julia began to
appreciate the French way of life, especially the style of cooking (Byers 519). To satisfy
her curiosity of the intricate fashion of French cooking, Julia attended the famous
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culinary school, Cordon Bleu, where she was one of the few women in the class (Green).
With the assistance of two additional chefs, Ms. Child formed a small cooking school
named “L’Ecole de Trois Gormandes” or School of Three Gourmets, where the three
directed a class out of a small apartment (Byers 519). Along with her partner Louisette
Bertholle, Julia gathered her recipes and began a collection that eventually formed her
first cookbook (ibid). According to the documentary, Julia Child: An Appetite for Life,
after being rejected by a publishing company, Julia made revisions, and at age 47 finally
held the three-pound, 734 page, Mastering the Art of French Cooking cookbook. To
promote her book to the public, Julia appeared on a WGBH television special, where she
was to prepare a recipe (Green). There was so much response from the audience, WGBH
invited her back in 1962 to star in her own television series, “The French Chef” (Julia
Child: An Appetite for Life). Julia even described her experience on WGBH television
network: “There was this women tossing French omelettes, splashing eggs about the
place, brandishing big knives, panting heavily as she careened about the stove…and
WGBH lurched into educational television’s first cooking program”(Green). At the age
of fifty, Julia Child became an overnight celebrity.
Julia’s comical and entertaining persona as well as her comprehendible recipes,
gained the attention of viewers far and wide, building a ladder that led her to the top of
the food industry. Julia’s show was unique and differed in many ways from other
educational shows. First, Julia’s goal of the series was to elucidate step by step how to
create a simple yet delicious French meal, start to finish (Julia Child Encyclopedia
Americana). Her tricks of the trade caught the eye of the experienced chefs as well as
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amateurs of the kitchen (Julia Child: An Appetite for Life). Audiences loved Julia’s rare
ability to have joy in the kitchen. She made cooking a pleasurable experience rather than
a chore (ibid). According to Ms. Olsen the culinary instructor at Amador Valley High
School, Julia’s show “was always an entertaining experience.” She recalled an episode
when “Julia was playing with raw chickens, each had their own name and were part of
what she called the Chicken Sisters!” Just as any chef, Julia made mistakes, yet these
flaws allowed her audiences to relate to her and understand the reality of cooking (Julia
Child: An Appetite for Life). By 1965, ninety-six different stations aired “The French
Chef,” and Julia was the author of additional cookbooks including, From Julia’s Kitchen,
and Recipes from a Lifetime of Cooking, and The Way to Cook, plus over 12 other titles
(Byers 519). Throughout her later years, Julia continued to star in her own television
shows including “Baking with Julia” and “Master Chef Series” with Jacques Pepin (Julia
Child Encyclopedia Americana). Julia’s devotion to cooking continued until her death at
age ninety-one, she followed her heart, did what she loved, and unintentionally altered
the food scene forever.
Although Julia had passed in 2004, her zeal for cooking and educating others in
the culinary field continues through the success she had achieved. Ms. Child was a
cofounder of the American institute of wine and food, and in 1965 was awarded with a
George Foster Peabody Award (Green). Ms. Child was the first educational TV
personality to win an Emmy in 1965, along with two additional Emmy’s in 1996 and in
1997 (Julia Child Encyclopedia Americana). In November 1966, Time Magazine
commemorated Julia for leading America into a time of better cooking and eating (ibid).
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In 1993, she was the first woman to be inducted into the Culinary Institute Hall of Fame,
and her original kitchen is set up for visitors at the Smithsonian in Washington DC
(Green). Julia Child’s contributions to the American food scene are visible through reruns
of her groundbreaking show,” The French Chef”, the idea of an educational cooking
series, which led to the creation of a food network on television, and most importantly,
Julia proved that cooking can be simple, fun, and tasty, rather that a responsibility.
Julia Child once said of her kitchen, “It is the beating heart and social center of
the household.” In a similar sense, Julia is the beating heart and soul of the food industry.
In the absence of Ms. Child, the love and ease of cooking may not have been exposed.
Julia Child demonstrated that it is never too late to accomplish your dreams. She verified
to America the simplicity of French cooking, starred in successful educational
entertainment, and further pushed an idea of a food network. She lived life to the fullest
by performing what she loves and was a role model up until the day she died. Julia Child
is the perfect example of how an average individual--through her passions, personality,
and risk taking-- altered the entire food industry and clearly was a catalyst of change.
Julia Child will forever be recognized as The Master Chef of French Cuisine. Bon
Appetit!