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At a recent appearance in California, Anthony Bourdain revealed that the first article he ever wrote was supposed to appear in an alternative paper, the New York Press. According to the Santa Barbara Independent story:
After finishing the op ed that would later inspire Kitchen Confidential, Bourdain remembered aloud how he sold his first piece to the New York Press. “Week after week after week I kept getting bumped,” he recalled. “And in some moment of drunken hubris I called up [The Press] and was like, “Fuck you man! I’m pulling the article. I’m going to the New Yorker.'” For reasons still unbeknownst to him, the New Yorker snagged the article up and ran it soon after. From there, it was a quick hop to best seller list status and worldwide fame.
For those who say Jason Sheehan takes his lead from Bourdain, well, there’s more evidence.
By the way, the New York Press was founded by Russ Smith, who spent some time in Denver in 1976 — and whose comments on the death of the Rocky Mountain News are now drawing fire. You can read all about it here — and don’t miss Mike Littwin’s response.
