TV Dinners

The very first television cooking show appeared in 1946, featuring a large, owlish actor-turned-cook named James Beard. The venerable Borden company was the sponsor and the shows were relatively short. The next year, Dione Lucas followed on CBS with a program called To The Queen's Taste. Beard and Lucas were the pre-eminent American cooking personalities until Julia Child whisked her way onto Boston public television in 1963. Though she is not a chef, Julia Child is still the reigning queen of television cooks. She's been joined by a legion of competitors since cooking became one of America's newest spectator sports.

For many years, cooking shows were the almost the exclusive province of public television and still account for one third of their well-respected how-to programing. Today, food programing has its own cable network (TVFN), cooking segments are standard on talk and general interest shows, and cooking instruction can be found on cable everywhere from the Learning Channel to Discovery to Lifetime. The field becomes more crowded daily but the key elements for success still are solid sponsorship, a personality that engages the public, and interesting subject matter.

The proliferation of venues has created stiff competition for good sponsors but the demographics of cooking show viewers appeal to underwriters such as Jenn-Air, Starbucks Coffee, and Farberware. Most Nineties cooking series are package deals which come with companion cookbooks and videos, making them a win-win situation for sponsors, publishers, and personalities. Geoffrey Drummond of A La Carte Communications, the company that produces programs for both Julia Child and Frugal Gourmet Jeff Smith explains that "Publishers see television as a great vehicle to promote their products, and cooking programs with top talent are a good deal for sponsors." Though chefs are not likely to get rich appearing on cooking programs, the chef/personality gets name recognition, promotion for book sales, and marketing opportunities.

Now that food preparation has become a form of live entertainment, showmanship is every bit as important as cooking skill. "Just because you're a really terrific chef doesn't mean you're going to be a top TV personality," advises A La Carte's Drummond, "people respond to energy, empathy and confidence." Drummond identifies Louisiana chef Emeril Legasse as a television comer. "He's the most popular chef on TVFN. Audiences are excited by his energy and enthusiasm."

Chefs with an interest in breaking into TV are forking over $3,000 for two days of media training seminars from Lou Ekus, who co-owns a Boston area public relations firm called Lisa Ekus Public Relations/AirTyme with his wife. According to Dallas chef/restaurateur Stephan Pyles, "Lou is very good at assessing where you stand in terms of media experience and then tailoring the seminar to fit your needs. He was a great help to me." Pyles is putting his Lou Ekus training to good use as he develops a 13-part series based on his 1993 cookbook The New Texas Cuisine. While attending the recent Texas Hill Country Wine & Food Festival, Pyles discussed the current status of his TV project. "We've completed the travel segments of five shows and we're looking for the rest of the sponsorship money so we can complete them. I think the series will be a good vehicle for getting people to try Star Canyon, selling my books, and promoting our product line."

There's good news for foodies who just can't get enough of cooking shows on TV. Local cable provider Time Warner Communications reports that the Television Food Network will soon be available to Austin subscribers. -- V.W.