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Graham Kerr (born 22 January 1934) is an English cooking personality who is best known for his television cooking show ''The Galloping Gourmet'' from December 30, 1968 to September 14, 1973.


Early life

Kerr was born in
Brondesbury Brondesbury (), which includes Brondesbury Park, is an area in the London Borough of Brent, in London, England. The area is traditionally part of the Ancient Parish and subsequent Municipal Borough of Willesden, one of the areas that merged to fo ...
,
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. His Scottish parents were established hoteliers. As a result, much of his childhood was spent among European chefs. On the pronunciation of his family name, Kerr wrote in ''The Graham Kerr Cookbook'' that "my name is pronounced "care" — not "cur" or "car" as in the case of
Bill Kerr William Henry Kerr (10 June 1922 – 28 August 2014) was a British and Australian actor, comedian, and vaudevillian. Born in South Africa, he started his career as a child actor in Australia, before emigrating to Britain after the Second Wor ...
and Deborah Kerr. As a youth, he attended Michael Hall School, a Waldorf (
Rudolf Steiner Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (27 or 25 February 1861 – 30 March 1925) was an Austrian occultist, social reformer, architect, esotericist, and claimed clairvoyant. Steiner gained initial recognition at the end of the nineteenth century as ...
education) school situated at Kidbrooke Park in Forest Row, East Sussex. Although he dropped out of school at age 14 and began training in kitchens, he returned years later and attended the independent school Brighton Technical College and another school in
Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
.


Career


Early career

Kerr became trainee manager at the Roebuck Hotel in
Forest Row Forest Row is a village and a large civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England. The village is located three miles (5 km) south-east of East Grinstead. History The village draws its name from its proximity to the Ashdow ...
, East Sussex, England, when he was 15 years old. After five years in the British Army as catering adviser, he became general manager of the Royal Ascot Hotel.


New Zealand and ''Entertaining With Kerr''

Kerr moved to
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
in 1958, becoming chief catering adviser for the Royal New Zealand Air Force. He moved into television in New Zealand when being recruited by
NZBC The New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation (NZBC) was a publicly owned company of the New Zealand Government founded in 1962. The Broadcasting Act 1976 then reformed NZBC as the Broadcasting Corporation of New Zealand (BCNZ). The corporation was ...
producer
Shirley Maddock Shirley Frances Whitley Maddock (7 December 1928 – 10 October 2001) was a New Zealand producer, television presenter, author and actress. After early work in theatre and radio, she became a pioneering figure in early New Zealand televisio ...
. In 1959, he began hosting the television show ''Entertaining with Kerr'', in which he appeared dressed in military uniform. His recipes were also delivered on radio and in magazines, and the first edition of a related book, ''Entertaining with Kerr'', was sold out in eight days. During these early years Kerr won a Penguin Award as 'Personality of the Year'.


Australia

Shortly after the NZTV series was launched, promoter Anthony Hollows introduced Kerr to his business partner, rising New Zealand entertainment promoter and artist manager Harry M. Miller. Miller was at first sceptical of taking Kerr on, having just lost heavily on a disastrous promotion of a folk music concert, but Hollows was insistent, and after seeing Kerr in action, Miller immediately saw his potential. Miller (who was well established across the Tasman Sea as a concert promoter) was confident that he could launch Kerr in Australia. Kerr signed on as Miller's first management client, and the relationship proved enormously important and financially rewarding to both men. Miller was instrumental in launching Kerr in Australia, and Kerr's breakthrough in turn laid the foundation for Miller's own success as a leading player in the Australian and New Zealand entertainment industry over the next 20 years. In 1964 Kerr moved to Sydney, and through his Australian contacts, Miller was soon able to sign Kerr to present a regular cooking show on Channel 10, also called ''Entertaining with Kerr'', as part of the
TEN Network Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of fi ...
, Australia's recently established third commercial television outlet. Although Kerr's initial fee was modest, Miller wisely balanced that against the value of the exposure, certain that Kerr would make an impact. The show quickly became a huge national success, leading to daily radio spots, newspaper and magazine columns, personal appearances, and lucrative product endorsements. Miller also cited winemaker and critic Len Evans as being especially helpful to Kerr in these early days. Miller soon scored another coup when he signed the multinational food company
Nestlé Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other metrics, since ...
as Kerr's first major sponsor. At some point, Kerr's television ratings took a dive, and the series was cancelled. However, his radio show continued. On the recommendation of the wife of a board member, who listened to Kerr's radio show, the Australian Dairy Board signed Kerr to what Miller described as an endorsement contract "of staggering proportions," and Kerr was soon back on national television. In his autobiography, ''My Story'', Miller recounted that "the sweetest contract I offered Graham was one he refused to sign." In the mid-1960s
Union Carbide Union Carbide Corporation is an American chemical corporation wholly owned subsidiary (since February 6, 2001) by Dow Chemical Company. Union Carbide produces chemicals and polymers that undergo one or more further conversions by customers befo ...
, the manufacturers of Glad Wrap approached Miller with a lucrative offer for Kerr to become its national endorser. All Kerr had to do was make a few commercials, pose for a few photos, and use the product on his cooking show. Sensing the huge potential of the new product, Miller cannily negotiated for a multiyear contract in which Kerr was to receive a royalty of about 0.5c on every unit sold instead of a flat fee. To Miller's astonishment, however, Kerr was unimpressed by Glad Wrap, and despite Miller's strenuous effort to demonstrate its enormous usefulness, Kerr remained unconvinced.


Canada and ''The Galloping Gourmet''

Miller and Kerr parted ways in the late-1960s after Kerr received a lucrative offer from Fremantle of
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. Although his management contract with Miller still had several years to run, Kerr and Miller agreed to a negotiated buy-out; the two parted ways amicably, and remained good friends. Kerr's new series for Fremantle, ''The Galloping Gourmet'' (December 30, 1968–September 14, 1973) was named for his onscreen persona. It was recorded in Ottawa at CJOH-TV and produced by his wife Treena Kerr. The origin of his Galloping Gourmet persona stemmed from ''The Galloping Gourmets'', a 1967 book he co-authored with wine expert Len Evans. The nickname was the result of a 35-day worldwide trek to the finest restaurants around the globe. The show was taped in front of a live audience. The title was echoed in the opening of each episode, where Kerr entered the stage area by running in and leaping over a chair in the dining room set (a stunt conceived by Treena). Many episodes featured a prerecorded segment with Kerr in a part of the world wherein that episode's dish originated. The series was known for its lighthearted humour, tomfoolery, and the copious use of
clarified butter Clarified butter is milk fat rendered from butter to separate the milk solids and water from the butterfat. Typically, it is produced by melting butter and allowing the components to separate by density. The water evaporates, some solids (i.e. ...
, cream, and fat. A famous line of Kerr's on the show was his response to someone's criticism of his cooking: "Madam, you could go outside and get run over by a bus, and just think what you would have missed!" He also liberally featured wine, serving it with most meals, using it in his dishes, and waxing poetic about its virtues. He would also raise a glass of wine to his lips (to which he referred as a "Short Slurp") as a cue to the director to cut to commercials, then would bring it back up to his lips right before the show came back on. This gave the impression to some viewers that he was drinking heavily during the taping. In reality he drank very little. In an ongoing feature of the show, Kerr would make his way into the audience as the closing credits began and select an audience member (usually female) whom he would invite onstage with him to enjoy whatever dish he had just prepared. Another recurring feature at the end of each show would be a close-up of Kerr as he sampled the dish he had just cooked. To "oohs and ahs" from the audience, he would pull a face as though he was in ecstasy from tasting his latest creation. ''The Galloping Gourmet'' was a hit, and earned two Emmy Award nominations. During its run, Kerr became a worldwide sensation and wrote an abundance of cookbooks. However, he was pilloried by many of the elite of the food world of the time, including influential food writer Michael Field, who called Kerr "the
Liberace Władziu Valentino Liberace (May 16, 1919 – February 4, 1987) was an American pianist, singer, and actor. A child prodigy born in Wisconsin to parents of Italian and Polish origin, he enjoyed a career spanning four decades of concerts, recordi ...
of the food world," and
James Beard James Andrews Beard (May 5, 1903 – January 23, 1985) was an American chef, cookbook author, teacher and television personality. He pioneered television cooking shows, taught at The James Beard Cooking School in New York City and Seaside, ...
, who wrote that Kerr "has very little respect for food." The show was dubbed in French and aired on Télévision de Radio-Canada starting September 6, 1971, under the title ''Le Gourmet farfelu''. From 1969 to 1972 Kerr also made guest appearances on ''
Monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West ...
'', a long-running NBC radio variety programme.


Personal setbacks, born-again Christianity and ''Take Kerr''

Some near-tragedies caused Kerr to suspend his television career, thus ending the show. In April 1971, Kerr and his wife Treena were involved in a car crash in California. As a result of the accident, he suffered a dislocated spine and a weakened left arm. As therapy, Kerr wore a bracelet to strengthen the weakened arm. In January 1972, Treena was at first diagnosed with
lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malign ...
. That diagnosis turned out to be incorrect; it was later determined she had
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...
. Although a part of a lung was removed, she made a full recovery. However, she became addicted to
painkillers An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It i ...
as well as several other medications. In 1975, Treena became a born-again Christian after being encouraged by an employee; Kerr also became religious at the same time. Kerr returned to television in 1975 with a daily syndicated five-minute series, ''Take Kerr'', which featured a particular recipe for each show. This programme reflected his newfound embrace of both Christianity and healthful eating, with lighter-calorie recipes and Christian elements, including the use of the hymn "This Is the Day the Lord Has Made" as a theme song. The programme lasted four series. One Christian element on the show, an inclusion of a passage from the Bible in the closing credits, was strongly resisted by one of the stations on which the show aired, and indirectly caused Kerr to lose millions of dollars in potential revenue owing to his unwillingness to compromise. This series was later repeated on
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
during its first year or two. In a 1975 interview publicizing ''Take Kerr'', Kerr renounced the show ''The Galloping Gourmet'', saying that "What I did wasn't art, it was a crime," given the increasing rate of obesity in the United States. He also apologized for two of his trademarks on that show, his wine drinking and his double entendres. He stated that he was trying to convince TV stations to remove reruns of the show from syndication.


Minimax, ''The Graham Kerr Show'', and ''Graham Kerr's Kitchen''

After his wife Treena's stroke, then heart attack in 1986, Kerr was prompted to create a new style of cooking that he dubbed "Minimax". This new method of food preparation minimized ("Mini-") fat and cholesterol while it maximized ("-max") aroma, colour, texture, and taste. Minimax led to ''The Graham Kerr Show'', originally produced at KING-TV in Seattle and later syndicated to local stations during the 1990–91 season, followed by a run on the Discovery Channel. From 1992 to 1995, Kerr starred on the
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
show ''Graham Kerr's Kitchen'', which again embraced the low-fat, "minimax" approach. Minimax also led to three successful cookbooks: ''Graham Kerr's Smart Cooking'', ''Graham Kerr's Minimax Cookbook'', and ''Graham Kerr's Creative Choices (A Minimax Book)'' along with corresponding series on public television: ''Graham Kerr's Kitchen'', ''Graham Kerr's Swifty Seasoned'', and ''The Best of Graham Kerr''. ''Graham Kerr'' is currently distributed by
MTM Enterprises MTM Enterprises (also known as MTM Productions) was an American independent production company established in 1969 by Mary Tyler Moore and her then-husband Grant Tinker to produce ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' for CBS. The name for the producti ...
.


Career since 1995

In 1995, he appeared in ''Cooking in Concert: Julia Child & Graham Kerr'', a PBS TV special with Julia Child. In 1996, Kerr, in his book of that year called ''Swiftly Seasoned'', created the concept of a "Moulded Ethnic Vegetable," a baked combination of starches and vegetables seasoned with flavours characteristic of different ethnic cuisines. The "MEV," as he referred to it in recipes, was intended to remedy what he perceived as a lack of focus in vegetarian meals; according to Kerr, while omnivorous cuisine generally has a central focus in a meat dish, vegetarian plates are often little more than collections of side dishes, and the MEV was an attempt to provide a central focus for such meals. The MEV was not a widely successful concept, and a business venture to manufacture and sell a
muffin tin A muffin or cupcake tray is a mold in which muffins or cupcakes are baked. A single cup within a regular muffin tin is and most often has room for 12 muffins, although tins holding 6, 8, 11, 24, and 35 muffins do exist. A single cup within a m ...
–like MEV baking pan was not successful. (While it was generally intended to be vegetarian, Kerr did incorporate meats into some MEV recipes in later books.) From 1996 to 2000, Kerr was also the editor-at-large for ''
Cooking Light ''Cooking Light'' was an American monthly food and lifestyle magazine Lifestyle journalism is the field of journalism that provides news and opinion, often in an entertaining tone, regarding goods and services used by consumers in their everyda ...
'' magazine. Since the late 1990s, Graham Kerr appeared in a series of radio and television features for the '' 5 A Day'' programme of the National Cancer Institute, called ''Do Yourself a Flavor'', emphasizing the use of fruits and vegetables in recipes. Kerr's earlier series, including ''The Galloping Gourmet'', has aired in the US on
Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (which holds a 69% ownership stake of the network) and Nexstar Media Group ( ...
and
Cooking Channel Cooking Channel is an American basic cable channel owned by Food Network, a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (69%) and Nexstar Media Group (31%). The channel is a spin-off of Food Network, broadcasting ...
. He has worked with Bastyr University and many businesses looking for innovation, better health and good taste. In 1997–98, Kerr recorded a series ''The Gathering Place'' in Toronto. A total of 130 one-hour episodes were recorded. The series featured guests who were prominent authorities in various health fields. Kerr included videos shot on location on a worldwide voyage aboard the ship '' Queen Elizabeth 2'' (''QE2''). Kerr's autobiography ''Flash of Silver...the leap that changed my world'' was published in 2015.


Awards and accolades

In 1965, Kerr was awarded the gold medal at the
Culinary Olympics The International Exhibition of Culinary Art (in German: ''Internationale Kochkunst Ausstellung'' or IKA) termed the Culinary Olympics, is a quadrennial chef competition, and the biggest culinary exhibition in the world.Dixon, Rachel, ''The Guardia ...
in Frankfurt, Germany, for ''The Graham Kerr Cookbook by the Galloping Gourmet''. In 2003, he received an honorary doctorate for culinary arts and nutrition from
Johnson & Wales University Johnson & Wales University (JWU) is a private university with its main campus in Providence, Rhode Island. Founded as a business school in 1914 by Gertrude I. Johnson and Mary T. Wales, JWU enrolled 7,357 students across its campuses in the fa ...
in Providence, Rhode Island. Also in 2003, Kerr was awarded an Honorary Life Member of the
American Dietetic Association The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is a 501(c)(6) trade association in the United States. With over 112,000 members, the association claims to be the largest organization of food and nutrition professionals. It has registered dietitian nut ...
.


Influence

Celebrity chefs Emeril Lagasse and
Charlie Trotter Charles Trotter (September 8, 1959 – November 5, 2013) was an American chef and restaurateur A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a ...
, as well as John Williams, the Executive Chef at the Ritz have all stated that they were fans of ''The Galloping Gourmet'' as children.


Personal life

Kerr married Treena Van Doorne, an English actress, on 22 September 1955. They first met when they were both 11 years old. They had three children together: Tessa (born 1956), Andrew (born 1960), and Kareena (born 1968). Treena Kerr died on 17 September 2015, five days before their 60th wedding anniversary. Kerr resided in
Mount Vernon, Washington Mount Vernon is the county seat of Skagit County, Washington, United States. The population was 35,219 at the 2020 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included in the Mount Vernon- Anacortes, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Ar ...
, for several years. He moved to
Warm Beach, Washington Warm Beach is a census-designated place (CDP) in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,437 at the 2010 census. Based on per capita income, one of the more reliable measures of affluence, Warm Beach ranks 66th of 522 ar ...
, in 2015 and tours the area.


Works

* Kerr, G. (1963). ''Entertaining with Kerr''. Wellington: A.H. and A.W. Reed * Kerr, G. (1966). ''The Graham Kerr Cookbook''. Wellington: A.H. and A.W. Reed ''(this cookbook was released in a distinctive spiral binding, with heavy covers)'' * Kerr, G., & Evans, L. (1967). ''The galloping gourmets''. Sydney: A.H. & A.W. Reed. * Kerr, G. (1969). ''The Graham Kerr cookbook, by the galloping gourmet''. Garden City, New York: Doubleday. * Kerr, G. (1970). ''The Galloping Gourmet's Kitchen Diary''. * Kerr, G. (1972). ''The complete galloping gourmet cookbook''. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. * Kerr, G. (Early 1970s). ''A Festive Occasion, Just For You'' (a record album). Fremantle Records. * Kerr, G. (1976). ''The new seasoning''. New York:
Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...
/ Fleming H. Revell. * Kerr, G. (1978). ''The love feast: How good, natural, wholesome food can create a warm and lasting Christian family''. New York: Simon & Schuster / Fleming H. Revell. * Kerr, G., & Kerr, T. (1982). ''The Graham Kerr Step By Step Cookbook''. David C. Cook Publishing Company. * Kerr, G. (1991). ''Graham Kerr's smart cooking''. New York: Doubleday. * Kerr, G. (1992). ''Graham Kerr's minimax cookbook''. New York: Doubleday. * Kerr, G. (1994). ''Graham Kerr's kitchen''. New York: G.P. Putnam's. * Kerr, G. (1995). ''Graham Kerr's best: A low fat, heart healthy cookbook''. New York: G.P. Putnam's. * Kerr, G. (1996). ''Graham Kerr's swiftly seasoned''. New York: G.P. Putnam's. * Kerr, G. (1997). ''The gathering place: Informal international menus that bring family and friends back to the table''. Stanwood, WA: Camano Press. * Kerr, G. (2002). ''The gathering place: Featuring Nutrient-Rich Comfort Food''. Quarry Press. * Kerr, G., & Suzanne, B. (2004). ''Graham Kerr's simply splenda cookbook''. Alexandria, VA: Small Steps Press. * Kerr, G., & Kerr, T. (2004). ''Charting a course to wellness: Creative ways of living with heart disease and diabetes''. Alexandria, VA: American Diabetes Association. * Kerr, G., & Kerr, T. (2006). ''Recipe For Life''. * Kerr, T., & Kerr, G. (2007). ''Day by Day Gourmet Cookbook''. Broadman & Holman. * Kerr, G., (2010). ''Growing At The Speed Of Life'' Putnam. * Kerr, G., (2015). ''Flash of Silver...the leap that changed my world.'' Stanwood, WA: Camano Press..


''Television Cookbooks''

In addition, seven volumes of ''Television Cookbooks'', featuring recipes from ''The Galloping Gourmet'' series, were published from 1969 to 1971 by Fremantle International, the show's syndicator. Four versions were known to exist—a regular version and three additional versions released in conjunction with
KABC-TV KABC-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast of the United States, West Coast Flagship (broadcasting), flagship of the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network. ...
in Los Angeles, CBC Television in Canada, and the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
in Britain. The Fremantle and KABC versions were hardcover, and the CBC and BBC versions, though identical in content, were softcover and GBC–bound, with different covers (with the BBC version under the title ''Entertaining with Kerr''). These cookbooks were generally sold by mail order through the television series. In 1972, the cookbooks were re-released with new colour covers and sold in bookshops. This new version was sold by
Paperback Library Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a publishing company owned by Hachette Livre, the largest publishing company in France, and the third largest trade and educational publisher in the world. Hachette Livre is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lagardère Grou ...
but, despite the publisher's name, the books were hardcover.


See also

*
List of New Zealand television personalities This is a list of New Zealand television personalities, including presenters and journalists. It includes those who left the profession, retired, or died. A * Suzy Aiken – television personality and Prime News presenter * Peter Arnett – te ...


References


External links


2003 interview with the Seattle Times

Radio Interview with Graham Kerr WSLR w/Doug Miles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerr, Graham 1934 births Scottish television chefs Living people People from London Scottish emigrants to New Zealand Scottish emigrants to Australia Scottish emigrants to Canada Scottish emigrants to the United States People educated at Brighton College Army Catering Corps officers Australian television chefs New Zealand television chefs Television series by MTM Enterprises