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Video
Survey
1 Your books are pretty sophisticated—Shakespeare’s Kitchen, The Opera Lover’s Cookbook. Why do a talk about food and TV?
Food gives you an anchor into any topic—I’ve written books on food and ancient philosophers and food and film. And it’s a such a big part of so many television shows, whether it’s a meal the main characters are sharing or just something for the actors to do with their hands. The talk is divided into different segments—we’ll look at food as setting a time period, like on The Flintstones, and food as humor, like the I Love Lucy bonbon episode. And of course we’ll talk about all the cooking shows that have popped up.
2 What do you think of the current crop of TV chefs?
Someone I’m not really a big fan of is Sandra Lee, who does that whole semi-homemade thing. I’m sorry that Mario Batali isn’t doing his regular show anymore. He’s a great teacher and he has such a wonderful style—that combination of educational and entertaining. But, oddly enough, the research shows that most people don’t make the recipes they see on TV. They just like to watch.
3 Gotta love food porn. Sitcoms invariably revolve around the kitchen. Is there a TV-show kitchen you’d want for yourself?
The Brady Bunch had an army of kids traipsing through the kitchen, but it was always spotless. I’d love to have that sort of pristine, almost sterilized kitchen—sparkling silverware, pots hanging just right. Of course, it’s totally ridiculous.
—Dan Avery
Francine Segan presents “TV Dinners: Famous Television Food Scenes and Tasting” Tue 15 at 7pm at the 92nd Street Y.
