''Cake Boss'' is an American

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early ...

series, which originally aired on the

cable television network Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with broadc ...

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

. The series premiered on April 19, 2009, and has spawned four spin-offs: ''

Next Great Baker ''Next Great Baker'' (also known as ''Cake Boss: Next Great Baker'') is an American television series that airs on TLC, hosted by Buddy Valastro, the star of his own reality series, ''Cake Boss''. The show features contestants participating in ch ...

'', ''

Kitchen Boss ''Kitchen Boss'' is an American television series that airs on TLC, hosted by Buddy Valastro, the star of ''Cake Boss ''Cake Boss'' is an American reality television series, which originally aired on the cable television network TLC. The se ...

'', ''Bake You Rich'', and ''Bakery Boss''. On January 26, 2015, ''Cake Boss'' was renewed for two additional seasons. New episodes returned on May 18, 2019, with the show moving to TLC's sister network, Discovery Family until April 11, 2020.

Plot

The show follows the operations of Carlo's Bake Shop, an

Italian-American Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, ...

family-owned business in

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...

owned and operated by siblings Buddy Valastro (to whom the series' title refers), Lisa Valastro (Buddy's wife), Maddalena Castano, Grace Faugno and Mary Sciarrone. The show focuses on how they make their

edible art Edible art refers to food created to be art. It is distinguished from Edible Arrangements (which predominantly consist of fruit) because it is usually more elaborate dessert food. A common form of edible art is wedding cakes, but options for art ...

cakes and the interpersonal relationships among the various family members and other employees who work at the shop.

Cast

* Bartolo "Buddy" Valastro Jr. (born March 3, 1977) – The star of the show, who has worked at the bakery since age 17 in 1994. He is the only son and the youngest child of Bartolo "Buddy" Sr. and Mary Valastro. He grew up in

Little Ferry, New Jersey Little Ferry is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 10,626,Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...

, the ''

Hudson Reporter ''The Hudson Reporter'' is a newspaper chain based in Hudson County, New Jersey. ''The Hudson Reporter'' publications mainly focus on local politics and community news. The oldest newspaper in the chain is the ''Hoboken Reporter'', founded in 1983. ...

'' named him as an honorable mention in its list of Hudson County's 50 most influential people. *Mauro Castano (born August 18, 1963) – pastry chef and Buddy's right-hand man. He is married to Buddy's second-oldest sister, Maddalena. He was born in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, and left

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

when he was 12. He arrived in the USA on February 15, 1976. His father is from

Bernalda Bernalda ( Metapontino: or ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. The frazione of Metaponto is the site of the ancient city of Metapontum. Until the 15th century, it was called Cam ...

, Basilicata and his mother from near Reggio Emilia,

Emilia Romagna Emilia-Romagna (, , both also ; ; egl, Emégglia-Rumâgna or ''Emîlia-Rumâgna''; rgn, Emélia-Rumâgna) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy, situated in the north of the country, comprising the historical regions ...

. On September 16, 1989, he had his first date with Maddalena (her father orchestrated all), and in October 1991 they married. *Joseph "Joey" Faugno (born October 10, 1967) – The shop's head baker. He is married to Buddy's oldest sister, Grace. They have two children: Robert and Bartolina. *Frank "Frankie" Amato Jr. (born August 29, 1978) – cake decorator. He is Buddy's second cousin and godfather to his son Marco, with two children of his own. *Danny Dragone – a multipurpose employee who has worked at the bakery since before Buddy was born. He is a close family friend, and his daughter, Tatiana, works at the bakery. He is nicknamed "the mule" for his versatility. *Grace Faugno (née Valastro) – (born June 30, 1966) Buddy's oldest sister. She works the front counter and in later season in the decoration and delivery from special orders. She is married to Joey Faugno, the shop's head baker. They have two children: Robert and Bartolina. *Maddalena Castano (née Valastro) (born August 15, 1967) – manages the front counter. She is married to Mauro. They have three children: Dominique, Bartolo "Buddy", and Mary. *Mary Sciarrone (née Valastro) (born September 30, 1969) – Cake Consultant and Buddy's third-oldest sister. She is married with two children: Joseph and Lucia. In the fifth-season episode Trash, Twirls & Tough Love ", she was fired because of multiple incidents involving her making inappropriate statements. Mary was rehired as a cake consultant a few weeks after being fired. She returned to full-time work at the bakery in the episode "Silly Seuss & Surprise!". *Lisa Valastro (born December 31, 1974) – Buddy's youngest sister. Manages the storefront and sometimes handles billing. She has three kids Teresa "Tessy" Colegrove, John Colegrove and Isabella Valastro. *Elisabetta "Lisa" Valastro (née Belgiovine) (born March 9, 1979) – Buddy's wife. They have four kids, Sofia Valastro, Carlo Valastro, Marco Valastro and Buddy Valastro, Jr. Her parents, Gloria Tammacco and Mauro Belgiovine, who are seen in the show, are from

Molfetta Molfetta (; Molfettese: ) is a town located in the northern side of the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, southern Italy. It has a well restored old city, and its own dialect. History The earliest local signs of permanent habitation are a ...

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. *Maurizio Belgiovine – delivery boy and structure builder. He is Buddy's brother-in-law and a graduate of

Rutgers Business School Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

. *Ralph Attanasia III (born September 6, 1984) – bakery sculptor. *Marissa Lopez – Buddy's intern (winner of

Season 2 Season 2 may refer to: * ''Season 2'' (Infinite album) * '' 2econd Season'' See also

* {{disambig ...

of ''Next Great Baker''), later becoming manager of Carlo's Bakery's new location in

Ridgewood, New Jersey Ridgewood is a village in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 24,958,ALS. The family's struggle and reaction was documented in the Season 5 episode, " A Bittersweet Homecoming", on July 23, 2012. Mary died on June 22, 2017, after a five-year battle with ALS. *Remigio "Remy" Gonzalez – Buddy's former left-hand man and the ex-husband of Buddy's sister, Lisa. Remy's first and only child, daughter Isabella, was born on the Cake Boss episode "Mother's Day, Mama and Mom-to-be". He left the show after being arrested for alleged sexual assault. *Salvatore "Sal" Picinich (1947 – January 30, 2011) worked at the bakery from 1964 and was one of Buddy's most trusted employees. Picinich stopped appearing on the show at the end of 2009, when he began battling cancer, but returned in the summer of 2010 to accept the Employee of the Century Award on the occasion of the bakery's 100th anniversary. He died on January 30, 2011. *Kevin "Stretch" Krand – a delivery boy who left the shop to continue his education. *Tony "Tone-Tone" Albanese – Buddy's second intern. *Daniella Storzillo – a sculptor and decorator at Carlo's. She left to work as a real estate sales associate. *Stephanie "Sunshine" Fernandez – top decorator at Carlo's. She was the first female employee who did not work with sales, as stated by Buddy Valastro. She left for an opportunity to finish nursing school nine months earlier. Before leaving to become a nurse, she appeared on the show's spinoff, ''Next Great Baker'', where she was chosen by the

season 2 Season 2 may refer to: * ''Season 2'' (Infinite album) * '' 2econd Season'' See also

* {{disambig ...

winner, Marissa Lopez, to help her build her American Dream cake. *Dana Herbert – winner of

Season 1 Season One may refer to: Albums * ''Season One'' (Suburban Legends album), 2004 * ''Season One'' (All Sons & Daughters album), 2012 * ''Season One'' (Saukrates album), 2012 See also * * * Season 2 (disambiguation) * Season 4 (disambiguati ...

of ''Next Great Baker'' *Ashley Holt – winner of

Season 3 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In tempera ...

of ''Next Great Baker'' *Paul Conti – bakery employee (former contestant of

of ''Next Great Baker''); was only in a couple of episodes because he lost his house and his job due to

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

. He eventually got a job working for a baking supply company. *Anthony "Cousin Anthony" Bellifemine – baker and former delivery boy, Bellifemine left unexpectedly at the end of season 6 (Ep. 28: Up, Up and Away). *Chad Durkin – Bakery employee (former contestant of Season 3 of ''Next Great Baker'', hired by Buddy for his pastry skills (seasons 7–8).

Reception

The popularity of the show has resulted in increased business for Carlo's Bake Shop, and increased tourism to the Hoboken area. Due to the series's popularity, Carlo's Bake Shop has become a

tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural ...

, with lines to enter the bakery often extending down the block and around the corner. In 2010, Hoboken renamed the corner of Washington Street and Newark Street to "Carlo's Bakery Way" in honor of the bakery's centennial. Season one averaged 2.3 million viewers while season two averaged 1.8 million viewers. In 2016, a ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' study of the 50 TV shows with the most

Facebook Like The like button on the social networking website Facebook was first enabled on February 9, 2009. The like button enables users to easily interact with status updates, comments, photos and videos, links shared by friends, and advertisements. Onc ...

s found that ''Cake Boss''s "audience is generally not urban; in fact, one hot spot is Appalachia".

Tie-ins and spinoffs

On November 2, 2010, Buddy Valastro's book, ''Cake Boss: Stories and Recipes from Mia Famiglia'', which is based on the series, was released. Published by Atria Books (a division of

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 ...

) in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Carlo's Bake Shop, the book features the history and stories of Valastro's family and the bake shop, along with recipes. Valastro's second book, ''Baking with the Cake Boss: 100 of Buddy's Best Recipes and Decorating Secrets'', is a cookbook, also published by Atria Books, released November 1, 2011 and featuring Valastro's cake, pastry and decorating recipes. The success of ''Cake Boss'' has led to a spin-off competition series hosted by Valastro, ''

'', in which people compete to win a top cash prize, other valuable prizes, and an apprenticeship at Carlo's Bakery. The program's first season was seen on TLC December 6, 2010 through January 24, 2011, with a second season televised November 28, 2011 to January 30, 2012. The competition's third season premiered on Monday, November 26, 2012. Another spinoff series, ''

'', debuted on January 25, 2011. It featured Valastro presenting his family's recipes, as well as special guests, including members of his own family. A

backdoor pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...

special, ''Bakery Boss'', debuted on May 27, 2013. The special features Valastro traveling to a struggling bakery, Friendly Bake Shop in

Frankfort, New York Frankfort is a town in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The town is named after one of its earliest settlers, Lawrence (Lewis) Frank. The town of Frankfort includes a village, also called Frankfort. Frankfort is located east of Utica, ...

, and helping them reverse their fortunes, using a format similar to '' Kitchen Nightmares''. The program returned to TLC as a series on December 2, 2013, and was later renamed ''Buddy's Bakery Rescue''. Buddy's intern, Ashley Holt, served as Culinary Producer for the series. ''Cake Boss'' also has a product line that features baking pans and decorating accessories.

Episodes

Controversies

In July 2010, Masters Software, Inc., of

Cedar Park, Texas Cedar Park is a city and a major suburb of Austin in the state of Texas, approximately to the north-west of the center of Austin. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the city's population was 77,595. History Before the arrival of European sett ...

, obtained a preliminary injunction forbidding TLC from calling its show "Cake Boss". Since 2006, the company has operated the domain name cakeboss.com, and since 2007, it has sold a bakery management program called CakeBoss. The suit claims that

Discovery Communications Discovery, Inc. was an American multinational mass media factual television conglomerate based in New York City. Established in 1985, the company operated a group of factual and lifestyle television brands, such as the namesake Discovery Chan ...

infringes on its trademark by causing confusion among customers and vendors. In October 2010, Masters Software and Discovery Communications reached a settlement, the details of which are not public. On June 11, 2012,

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through ...

celebrity Carmen Carrera appeared in a ''Cake Boss'' episode, " Bar Mitzvah, Beads and Oh Baby!", in which she unknowingly participated in a prank involving Cousin Anthony, who was set up with a date with Carrera. The punchline of the prank had Buddy tell Anthony that Carrera is transgender. Carrera agreed to participate in the prank on the program in part to promote equality for the transgender community saying, "I'm totally cool with a prank like this, I, you know as long as it's in good fun." Following the airing of the program, Carrera was upset by an interview portion of the program where Buddy said, "And I tell him...that's a man, baby!" Carrera made a statement saying, "I made it VERY clear to the producers on how to use the correct wording before agreeing to filming this but instead they chose to poke fun and be disrespectful. That's not what I'm about! ... I may not have been born a woman, but I'm NOT a man... After taking this journey it's not fair at all to be lied to by the producers." Buddy Valastro apologized for the incident, saying, "I owe an apology to the entire LGBT community. It was absolutely not my intention to upset or offend her, or anyone within the community, and I was wrong to use the words I did. I am a supporter of gay rights and equality, and while I regret this situation and my choice of words, I am thankful to have received this feedback and the opportunity to learn from this mistake. I hope that Carmen accepts my sincere regrets." The following day, on June 12, 2012, TLC announced that "Bar Mitzvah, Beads and Oh Baby!" had been pulled from rotation indefinitely, with plans to re-edit the episode. The episode has since re-aired on July 23, 2012, but with the offending scene re-edited.

In popular culture

Comedian Paul F. Tompkins plays a parody of ''Cake Boss'' host Buddy Valastro on the

Comedy Bang Bang ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'' (formerly ''Comedy Death-Ray Radio'') is a weekly comedy audio podcast, which originally began airing as a radio show on May 1, 2009.A Special Thing Forums:Comedy Death-Ray Radio starts today! Popularly known as ''Humani ...

podcast and IFC TV show.

References

External links

* *
Carlo's Bake Shop official website
{{Former TLC Programming 2000s American reality television series 2009 American television series debuts 2010s American reality television series 2020s American reality television series 2020 American television series endings American television series revived after cancellation Discovery Family original programming English-language television shows Media about cakes TLC (TV network) original programming Television shows filmed in New Jersey Television shows set in New Jersey