Jeff Smith

Jeffrey L. "Jeff" Smith (January 22, 1939 – July 7, 2004) was an American chef. He wrote several best-selling cookbooks. Smith was the host of "The Frugal Gourmet", a long running American cooking show. He was called "the most visible gourmet" of the 1980s by Time Magazine.
Career.
Smith was born in Tacoma, Washington on January 22, 1939. He grew up in a close family, and learned some of his first lessons in food. and in frugal cooking from his mother. His love of wine; one of the most elements in his cooking came from his friendship, with a doctor named Lester Baskin. Dr. Baskin introduced Smith to wine while studying to become a minister. Smith graduated from the University of Puget Sound with a degree in philosophy and sociology in 1962. When he graduated from Drew University in 1965, Smith began teaching cooking classes to his students called "Food as Sacrament and Celebration", and was ordained as a minister in the United Methodist church. Smith returned to the University of Puget Sound to become a chaplain of Aldergate Methodist Church. In 1966, the TV chef married his wife Patricia "Patty" Smith, and had two sons named Channing and Jason. In 1972, Smith left the university, where he and his students opened and ran a deli and kitchen supply store in Tacoma, Washington, called the Chaplain's Pantry Restaurant and Gourmet Shop, where he offered cooking classes to the public. In 1973, Smith began his television career with his first cooking show, "Cooking Fish Creatively", on a local Tacoma, Washington PBS station, KTPS-TV, which ran from 1973 to 1977. The first six episodes of "Cooking Fish Creatively" were broadcast in black-and-white, and then, the station began using federal grant for color cameras, because Smith asked to change the title for the cooking show, he called it "The Frugal Gourmet". The name was suggested by his wife, Patty. In 1983, Smith appeared on "The Phil Donahue Show" to promote his paperback cookbook. "The Frugal Gourmet" went national in 1984, and moved to WTTW-TV in Chicago, and in 1991, Smith took the show to KQED in San Francisco, and Natan Katzman's production company A La Carte Communications, airing on PBS from 1984 to 1997. Known himself as "The Frugal Gourmet", Smith's nickname quickly became "The Frug". Smith always appeared wearing his "trademark" blue and white striped apron. His first cookbook, "Recipes from The Frugal Gourmet", was published in 1977. The theme music for "The Frugal Gourmet" was the Bourree movement from "Water Music" by George Frideric Handel. When Jeff Smith released his first hardcover cookbook in 1984, he hit the talk show circuit.
In 1981, Smith suffered from heart disease and had heart valve surgery. He sold the Chaplain's Pantry in 1983 to pay the huge medical costs. In each each episode, Smith and assistant chef Craig Wollam travel to different places to show food from different cultures, tells food-related stories, and shows you how to prepare a variety of food dishes. The show aired for 11 seasons, a total of 261 episodes. At the end of each episode, Smith was known for saying something akin to "...until I see you again, this is the Frugal Gourmet. I bid you peace, bye-bye...". Smith was also quoted as saying "frugal does not mean cheap." He explained, "A frugal gourmet is a thrifty person who enjoys good food."
Smith became the spokesman for Columbia Crest Wines in 1990, and "The Frugal Gourmet on Our Immigrant Ancestors" was the last series produced by WTTW in Chicago. In 1995, Smith hosted "The Frugal Gourmet Keeps the Feast" for the Odyssey Television Network, and then, he retired from television, leaving behind a legacy of loyal of fans, with lots of garlic. That same year, he acted in the movie "Grumpier Old Men".
Scandal.
In 1997, seven men filed lawsuits against him for alleged sexual abuse. Six of the men said they were abused when they were younger and worked at the Chaplain's Pantry. The case never went to court. Smith said the abuse never happened. The "Frugal Gourmet" empire ended with the scandal.
Personal life.
Smith married his wife Patricia in 1966. They had two sons, Channing and Jason. Patricia is credited by originating the nickname "Frugal Gourmet".
Death.
Smith died in his sleep in Seattle on July 7, 2004 at the age of 65. He had suffered from heart disease for a long time. Smith was survived by his wife Patricia, and sons Channing and Jason, as well as daughters-in-law Yuki and Lisa.