Thoughts on TV: ‘Chef’ has been turned into a TV show

Looking for something fun and enjoyable to watch on TV one recent evening, my wife and I came upon The Chef Show, which reunites multi-talented producer/actor/director Jon Favreau with Los Angeles chef Roy Choi. It’s the latest foodie offering from Netflix, which in recent months has very nicely taken over food TV with Chef’s Table, which explores the discipline and culinary talent of world-renowned chefs such as Mashama Bailey and Dario Cecchini; Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, based upon Samin Nosrat’s book of the same name in which she travels the world to explore how these principles fuel good food; David Chang’s Ugly Delicious, in which the James Beard Award-winning chef uses food to break down cultural barriers; and the Great British Baking Show.

The Chef Show is all about bonding over the joy of cooking – in a kitchen – with friends. Each episode takes place around a place to eat or cook without being like a travelogue. Favreau described it for Grub Street as a “dinner party in the back of the house” kind of atmosphere. The series took its name from the 2014 film, Chef, which starred Favreau as Carl Casper, a chef who opens a Cuban food truck with his son in Miami. Choi, of Kogi Korean BBQ food truck fame, was the film’s food consultant and created all of the dishes that were featured – including the deliciously mouth-watering Cubano and grilled cheese sandwiches.

After watching the first three episodes of The Chef Show – there are eight in all and it’s quite easy to binge watch – it becomes evident from the beginning that Favreau and Choi have developed a deep and wonderful rapport in the kitchen – built upon mutual respect for one another – and they share a similar taste in food. Each episode always welcomes banter between hosts – taking with each other without looking directly at the camera – and celebrity guests such as actress Gwyneth Paltrow, Avengers actor Tom Holland and Sin City director Robert Rodriguez.

What viewers get to enjoy in this documentary-style series is the showcasing of Choi’s technique and enthusiasm for the craft of cooking and Favreau’s interest in absorbing this knowledge and wisdom while keeping things light and funny. Choi is the master chef and Favreau is both his student and best buddy.

One of the funniest bits that delivers a big laugh – and, thankfully, it didn’t wind up on the cutting-room floor – shows Favreau attempting to make New Orleans-style beignets made famous at Cafe Du Monde. After making the dough by just adding water, then cutting it into individual squares, deep frying them, and showering them with powdered sugar, Choi bites into one of them. He throws the rest into the garbage. Favreau deadpans, “It’s not quite like there.” Looking for the right response, Choi pauses for a moment, then with a serious look on his face that turns into a big grin, he looks at Favreau and says, “I can tell they were a year old.” Both burst out laughing. Choi adds: “I didn’t want to say it on camera, but f••k it, this whole thing isn’t about lying.”

In a recent story about The Chef Show, Eater’s Greg Morabito wrote: “This new series allows the chef to showcase his obsession with technique and enthusiasm for the craft of cooking in ways that we’ve never seen on TV before. In every kitchen sequence, he drops culinary knowledge like an older brother handing you a mixtape of his favorite jams. Favreau, meanwhile, manages to keep the spirit light, even as he tackles new culinary challenges at the encouragement of his friend. Part of the fun is watching (Favreau) gradually increase his skill level and build more confidence in the kitchen.”

As Favreau told Grubstreet.com in a recent interview, “I’ve watched all these episodes a dozen times in the process of making and defining the show. Every little thing, a lot of care went into it. The animation, the way we talk, there’s recipes in it, the way the food is filmed. It’s just incredibly personal and something we both like a lot. It’s just really nice to share.

“It’s like you cooked a meal you want to eat, and now you’ve invited people. It’s mind-boggling to me that there’ll be someone sitting on the opposite end of the world watching the most personal, specific story. I’m really interested to see who connects to it because if they do, there’s nothing else like it that they’ll find about people in L.A. cooking and talking about Korean food. It’s such a specific thing about what Roy and I geek out about.

“Hopefully, there’s some humanity and personalness. And then people who like to cook and want to just go and show people who cook for real, and not try to present it any other way. And what it’s like to be there by the side of someone who is really great at what they do and learning from them. I wanted to show what that was like.”

Adds Choi: “It’s really honest and tender. It’s really funny, too.”

Indeed, it’s funny – an absolute delight.

Note: The Chef Show (eight episodes) debuted via Netflix on June 7.

Ways of Grace: How sports can bring us together

James Blake left Harvard to become a professional tennis player in 1999, playing until he retired at the U.S. Open in 2013. He received the Comeback Player of the Year Award in 2005 following a horrific injury, and was named the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of the Year in 2008.

In his newly published book, Ways of Grace: Stories of Activism, Adversity, and How Sports Can Bring Us Together written with Carol Taylor (which I recently checked out from my local branch of the D.C. Public Library), Blake reflects on his experiences as a professional and shows how athletes have long been at the forefront of social change throughout our history. He pays tribute to those who were willing to raise a fist, take a stand or take a knee.

From Olympians Muhammad Ali to John Carlos and Tommie Smith; from trailblazing female athletes Billie Jean King to Brittney Griner; and from outspoken professional football players Chris Kluwe to Colin Kaepernick, many athletes have used their public roles not only to overcome adversity but also to effect social change and to advocate for a broader social justice. We learn through the stories Blake uncovers how athletes have used sports to unite rather than to divide – and how "simply being in the game," these activists fought against the barriers of oppression, discrimination, inequality and bias, in whatever form they might take.

In praising Ways of Grace, Wimbledon champion Venus Williams wrote that Blake "reminds us all of the power of sports." And John McEnroe said that in Ways of Grace, Blake "proves the vital role athletes have played in further discussion around society's most pressing issues. It is an inspiring and important work."

The 36-year-old Blake's journey to becoming an activist athlete – and the impetus for writing Ways of Grace – came to him when in August 2015, he found himself standing outside his high-rise hotel on a busy Manhattan sidewalk preparing to head to the U.S. Open – he's the chairman of the United States Tennis Association Foundation – and, soon, was tackled and handcuffed by a police officer in a case of "mistaken identity."

Although the feeling of rage would have been totally justified, instead, Blake faced the incident with a sense of dignity. He used this experience as an opportunity to raise awareness about the dangers of racial profiling.

James Blake

"It should not matter that I am a tennis star, or a public figure with access to the media, to be treated respectfully and not have my rights taken for granted by law enforcement," wrote Blake.

"All people, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or perceived socioeconomic standing, should know that police officers will treat them respectfully and issue an accurate and timely report of any incident or altercation between them and law enforcement.

"That I have a platform and access to the media should not make what happened to me any more significant. No one should be manhandled without due process and definitely not because of a vague likeness to someone else."

In this age of social media, where 140-character tweets can have an immediate and lasting impact, many well-known professional superstar athletes such as LeBron James have not been afraid to further dialogue about our most pressing issues, "despite the risks that have often accompanied that self-expression." Rather, they are "leading the charge to preserve a diverse and tolerant world."

Not only is winning on the court and playing field important, but so is standing up for their beliefs off of it – and Blake wanted to use his voice and his role as an athlete to make a difference, to turn a very unfortunate incident into a catalyst for change in the relationship between the police and the public that they serve, "in a way that would be helpful to both."

In writing Ways of Grace, Blake was inspired by Arthur Ashe's memoir, Days of Grace. "Illuminating and insightful, his life story is a testament to how moments of adversity can actually move you in a direction of grace, and how you can respond to life in a graceful way as opposed to a reactionary, divisive way," wrote Blake. "Ashe showed us you can use adversity to heal and not hurt; we can use it to unite and not to divide."

As a Wimbledon champion, Ashe also fought apartheid, fought for those who were less fortunate, fought for those who were in bad situations. He had the ability and resources to help. Towards the end of his life, when he had HIV, when he contracted AIDS, Ashe was helping others who did not have the means to the same treatment he had, who did not have the money he had. Even as he struggled physically, Ashe sought to help the cause of HIV/AIDS research.

"Ashe taught me that despite the situation you are in, no matter how grave, how embarrassing, or how devastating, you can try to find a positive way to affect the world. As I considered Ashe and his profound impact on not only sports but also the world, I considered other sports figures who have sparked change, on the field and off," wrote Blake.

"I wanted to bring to light their stories of activism, advocacy, and courage even as they faced a harsh personal, societal, and financial backlash. As I researched, I was struck by how many athletes – past and present – have championed causes they are passionate about and have created change in positive and uplifting ways, publicly and privately. I want to tell their stories."

To read a sample of the book:
https://sample-1948d0a6fd79f1c5d308464b4b9df2f7.read.overdrive.com/?p=ways-of-grace-d7f2cc

Cover photo: Courtesy of HarperCollins.com.

Resolved: It's time to READ more books

We're a week into March – spring is almost here – and although I didn't formally jot down any New Year's resolutions for 2017, if I had, one that would have been near the top of my list is my desire to read more. "So many books ... so little time," reads the slogan printed on one of my tattered, well-worn navy-colored t-shirts that I bought a few years ago at The Elliott Bay Book Company, situated in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington. It happens to be one of my favorite independent booksellers in the entire country – and it's always on my things to do list whenever I visit Seattle.

When I say to you that I want to "read more," by that I mean read more books. While I stay abreast of current events by reading The New York Times daily, both in print and online, and give a good read to periodicals like The New Yorker and Monocle, the London-based monthly that covers world affairs, culture, food and design, now, every day is like engaging in an American Civics class thanks to the narcissist behavior and dystopian actions of our current president. And, I should mention that perusing my Facebook news feed has become a necessity in order to stay current on what's trending with POTUS 45, too.

But, what about books, you ask? Yes, books, remember them? Books are the foundation behind what made Amazon.com one of the most successful online retailers. Before Twitter, before Facebook, before Netflix, before texting sapped all of our intellectual energy, there were books. I have several bookshelves at home that are lined with hundreds of titles that I've bought or received as gifts over the years. Let's see, I'm proud of my collection of books by The New Yorker writers Roger Angell and Calvin Trillin, among many, and I enjoy reading books about baseball, my favorite sport. However, a few years ago, in a space-saving and budget-cutting effort, I trimmed back on the number of new titles I bought and, instead, decided to start making better use of my local public library.

Looking back on 2016, I can say without boasting that I made good use of my Oakland Public Library card. I checked out about a book a month. One thing I've learned about libraries is this: If you're willing to wait for a popular best-seller or a new title to become available, checking out library books is a good way to save money (and, I might add, bookshelf space) while also showing support for our public libraries.

Both Comedy Central's The Daily Show and the New York Times Book Review are pretty good indicators for learning about good books to read. Before he left The Daily Show, former host Jon Stewart always brought out the best in authors. You could judge by his interest in a book if it was worth reading. New Daily Show host Trevor Noah is carrying on the tradition begun by Stewart.

Among the books which I read during 2016 were:

• Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few by Robert Reich.

• I'd Know That Voice Anywhere by Frank Deford.

• Jackson, 1964: And Other Dispatches from Fifty Years of Reporting on Race in America by Calvin Trillin.

• Goodbye: In Search of Gordon Jenkins and Shop Around: Growing Up with Motown in a Sinatra Household, both by Bruce Jenkins.

• Indentured: The Inside Story of Rebellion Against the NCAA by Joe Nocera.

• Federer and Me: A Story of Obsession by William Skidelsky.

Among the ties that bind these titles are my interest in non-fiction, memoirs, sports, and music. And, of course, good writing and good stories always garner my attention.

Looking ahead, I ask: Is it possible that I can increase my output this year so that I'm reading an average of a book a month? Let's see, I've already started Writings on the Wall: Searching For a New Equality Beyond Black and White by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and I'm nearly finished with the current Michael Lewis book, The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds. 

Also, I received Eat Drink Delta: A Hungry Traveler's Journey Through the Soul of the South by Susan Puckett as a Christmas gift from my brother, and I recently bought an autographed copy of Trevor Noah's Born A Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood. 

Finally, I've got Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink, the acclaimed 674-page memoir by Elvis Costello that spans his almost four-decade music career left over from last year's reading list that I would like to start this year.

There's plenty to look forward to reading while trying to forget everything that's going bad with our democracy, thanks to a certain POTUS. Now, if I can just remember to stop turning on the TV.

Photo: Stained glass sign at The Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle, courtesy of Google Images.

My New Year's resolution? Read more books!

To read or not to read / So many books ... so little time.

Happy New Year everyone!

We're less than a week into 2016, and just as everyone is writing out their New Year's resolutions, I've jotted down a few of my own.

One resolution that's near the top of my list each year is to read more. "So many books ... so little time," reads the slogan printed on one of my tattered, well-worn navy-colored t-shirts that I bought a few years ago at The Elliott Bay Book Company, one of my favorite independent bookstores in the country, located on Capitol Hill in Seattle, Washington.

Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle /
One of my favorite independent bookstores in the country. 

When I say "read more" I mean books. Oh, sure. I stay abreast of current events by reading The New York Times, both in print and online, on a daily basis, and I enjoy giving a good read to periodicals like Monocle, the London-based monthly that covers world affairs, culture, food, and design. 

And, of course, there's always perusing my Facebook news feed, to stay current on what's trending, too.

But, what about books, you ask?

Roger Angell / This Old Man: All in Pieces.
This book is on my reading list for 2016.

Yes, books, remember them? It's the foundation behind what made Amazon.com one of the most successful online retailers. Before Twitter, before Facebook, before Netflix, before texting sapped all of our intellectual energy, there were books. I have several bookshelves at home lined with hundreds of titles that I've bought or received as gifts over the years. I'm proud of my collection of books by The New Yorker writers Roger Angell and Calvin Trillin, among many. However, a few years ago, in a space-saving and budget-cutting effort, I trimmed back on the number of new titles I bought and, instead, decided to start making better use of the local public library.

Looking back on 2015, I can say without boasting that I made good use of my Oakland Public Library card. I checked out seven books at our local branch library. One thing I've learned about libraries is this: If you're willing to wait for a popular best-seller or a new title to become available, checking out library books is a good way to save money (and, I might add, bookshelf space) while also showing support for public libraries.

Watching Comedy Central's The Daily Show, I've found, is a pretty good barometer about good books to read, and before he left the show last summer, former host Jon Stewart always brought out the best in authors. You could judge by his interest in a book if it was worth reading. Fortunately, new Daily Show host Trevor Noah is carrying on the tradition begun by Stewart.

Among the books which I read during 2015 were:

Mark Bittman on food / A Bone To Pick 

Where Good Ideas Come From by Steven Johnson
Midnight in Siberia by David Green

A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power by Jimmy Carter

The Children of Willesden Green: Beyond the Kindertransport: A Memoir of Music, Love, and Survival by Mona Golabek

Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation by Michael Pollan

Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

You Can't Make This Up by Al Michaels

Mona Golabek / The Children of Willesden Lane:
Beyond the Kindertransport:
A Memoir of Music, Love, and Survival

A Bone to Pick: The Good News and Bad News About Food by Mark Bittman

Leap: Leaving a Job with No Plan B to Find the Career and Life You Really Want by Tess Vigeland

Among the ties that bind these titles are my interest in non-fiction, memoirs, sports, food, travel and public radio personalities, as well as interest in world religions. And, of course, good writing and good stories always garner my attention.

Looking ahead, I wonder if it's possible that I can increase my output to 12 books, thus reading an average of a book a month? Let's see, I've already started a wonderful memoir by the gifted New Orleans actor Wendell Pierce, The Wind in the Reeds: A Storm, a Play, and the City That Would Not Be Broken, and I received Dispatches from Pluto: Lost and Found in the Mississippi Delta by award-winning adventure writer Richard Grant as a Christmas gift from my brother. Plus, I can't wait to begin reading Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink, the acclaimed 674-page memoir by Elvis Costello that spans his almost four-decade music career. So, yes, reading a book a month seems like a reasonable goal.

I'm optimistic.

Now, if I can just somehow find a way to unplug my TV set and turn off my iPhone.

Photos of Elliott Bay Book Company by Michael Dickens © 2015. Book illustrations: Courtesy of Google Images. 

Wendell Pierce: A soaring and eloquent voice speaks out about the redemptive and healing power of art

Wendell Pierce's memoir, 'The Wind in the Reeds:
A Storm, A Play, and the City That Would Not Be Broken'
is about the redemptive and healing power of art and
about New Orleans, a city he loves so dearly.

From his leading roles in HBO's The Wire and Treme to his feature film appearances in Selma, Ray and Waiting to Exhale, I've admired the work of the Tony Award-winning actor and producer Wendell Pierce for many years.

When I learned a few months ago that Pierce would be coming to the Bay Area to speak at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco on October 30, I marked it on my calendar and bought tickets to this Arts & Ideas lecture. For more than an hour last Friday evening, Pierce spoke in both a soaring and eloquent tone of voice about the redemptive and healing power of art and about New Orleans, the city of his birthplace and the origin of his creativity. It is a city that he loves so dearly.

Pierce has written a new memoir, The Wind in the Reeds: A Storm, A Play, and the City That Would Not Be Broken, that is truly a page-turner.

'The Wind in the Reeds' is truly
a page-turner.

Both poignant and redemptive, in The Wind in the Reeds, Pierce tells the stories of his family, his city and his creative journey in the arts, and how they are all connected to one another. And, just as importantly, how they are "precious and worth saving, and how art has been critically important in revitalizing this unique American city."

On the back of the book's dust jacket, James McBride, author of The Color of Water and The Good Lord Bird, writes:

"This is more than a memoir. It's an adventure in history, encompassing the timeless elements that propelled this fourth-generation grandson of a slave into one of the most important dramatic actors of our age: family, art, truth, religion, and of course a mother's love. This is a story of sacrifice and blood struggle, of victory and selflessness, told with deep humility and grace by one of the most important American artists of our generation."

Pierce, 51, writes in his memoir: "We know who we are by the stories we tell about ourselves and our world. We know who we are through the family and community of whose stories we are a part.

"We make our stories. And our stories make us.

"I am not sure the stories of my family are art, exactly. After all, they came down to me not as objects to be admired for their beauty. Then again, they contain so much truth and goodness that they cannot help being beautiful as well. Their trials, their triumphs, the virtues that gave them the strength to overcome -- all of these things live in the stories my family shares as an inheritance that grows as we invest in it each successive generation.

"I draw creative strength from my roots buried deep in south Louisiana. Until the storm, I did not appreciate how much those roots were the veins connecting my heart to the body of historical experience that gave birth to the man I am today, and the man -- and the artist -- I am becoming every day."

Since Hurricane Katrina devastated his native New Orleans in 2005, Pierce has devoted much time and energy helping to rebuild the flood-ravaged Pontchartrain Park, a black middle-class neighborhood which became the first African-American post-war suburb, where was raised by his parents -- his father retired from the military and became a photographer and his mother was a school teacher. "In my family, we have a motto: Don't ever tell me you can't do something."

Throughout the evening, Pierce kept returning to the themes of a love of family and community in describing what brought him back to his roots and the need to do something positive to help in the city's recovery, to pick up the pieces. He so very much wanted to see his city to come back. So, he became a community rebuilder.

Wendell Pierce (right) performing in 'Waiting for Godot'.
The actor said it was a cathartic experience for him
and it reminded him of the power of art.
"It was an awakening."

"After Katrina, there were miles and miles of destruction and nothing there, nothing was right. And yet, we stagger onward rejoicing," said Pierce. One of the ways the actor helped his community rebuild -- and by extension his city -- was by performing in what became a legendary production of Waiting for Godot, which was staged in two of the neighborhoods that were most damaged by Hurricane Katrina. It became a chance for the city of New Orleans to come together and to celebrate "the human capacity for resilience."

In a recent NPR interview, Pierce said performing Waiting for Godot was a cathartic experience for him and it reminded him of the power of art. "It was an awakening. Waiting for Godot, this existential play about two men in this void with only a tree and a road, with no sense of who they are, where they've been, where they hope to do -- a real sense of desperation and loss, awaiting for something to help them something to guide them, to find who they are. They're waiting for Godot. They don't even know what or who Godot is.

"And it's in that moment that they come to the realization in this play that the power that they truly have is within themselves. And Vladimir says, 'At this place in this moment of time all mankind is us.  Let us do something while we have the chance.'"

In his book, Pierce writes of the "collaborative potential that art has to heal ourselves, our families and our communities." On Friday, Pierce reminded us of this, saying: "We reflect on who we are as a society and community. The legacy of New Orleans can be seen through the arts. Everything comes together as we deal with life."

Photo of Wendell Pierce at JCCSF Arts & Ideas: © Michael Dickens, 2015.
Photo of Wendell Pierce in 'Waiting for Godot': Courtesy of Google Images.

The Roosevelts: An Intimate History

The Roosevelts: An Intimate History /
Ken Burns in conversation at San Francisco's Castro Theatre.

Why do we cry when we see a Ken Burns documentary? Perhaps, it's because the documentary filmmaker has a remarkable talent for telling stories through real people.

"History is sharing the process of discovery," said Burns, whose 1990 film The Civil War brought him to the forefront of documentary filmmaking in the United States. He is known for his style of using archival footage and photographs. "Preserving the past is one of the greatest things you can do for the future."

Burns, 60, has also directed films about other subjects familiar to Americans, including: Baseball (1994), Jazz (2001), The War (2007), The National Parks: America's Best Idea (2009), Prohibition (2011) and The Central Park Five (2012).

This fall, the Emmy Award-winning Burns returns with a new film that depicts the monumental saga of an exceptional American family whose impact is still felt across the nation.

The Roosevelts: An Intimate History, a new seven-part, 14-hour documentary directed by Burns and written by Geoffrey C. Ward, will debut nationwide on PBS on September 14. The film weaves together the stories of Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, three members of one of the most prominent and influential American political families.

Recently, I had the chance to preview The Roosevelts: An Intimate History during an evening with Ken Burns at San Francisco's Castro Theatre, which was sponsored by KQED, in partnership with Kraw Law Group and Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. Burns was in San Francisco not only to promote The Roosevelts in front of a captive and enthusiastic audience, but also to interview legendary San Francisco Giants baseball player Willie Mays for a future documentary he is currently working on about Jackie Robinson, who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball in the 1947.

In The Roosevelts: An Intimate History, said Burns, for the first time we truly get to veer into the private lives of the most public of people. And, it's the first time their individuals stories have been interwoven into a single narrative.

Over 20,000 archived photos went into the making of The Roosevelts. We see Theodore, who was once a sickly boy, storm into Washington like an officer charging into battle. We learn of Franklin, struck down by illness, and how he pulls himself back up while at the same time lifting the U.S. out of the Great Depression and World War II. And, we see how Eleanor redefines the role of First Lady while inspiring millions of Americans. The documentary follows the Roosevelts for over a century, from the birth of Theodore in 1858 to Eleanor's death in 1962.

"You can't expect people like that to happen all the time," said historian David McCullough, who appears on camera throughout the documentary. Adds fellow historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, who also appears on screen in The Roosevelts: "It's an extraordinary story. The drama is unmatched in our history."

According to Burns, the story of the Roosevelts raises many questions, such as: "What is the role of government in society?" and "What is heroism?" While it may be impossible to sum up in a sentence or two what Burns learned from working on The Roosevelts, one thing he said he took away from his work is this: FDR had an extraordinary ability to communicate.

The only thing we have to fear ... is fear itself.

"History is a rising road," said Burns. "Human nature is always the same. There at times has been incivility, but what's interesting is what's the same."

To learn more: The Roosevelts: An Intimate History

Photograph: Michael Dickens ©2014.