Martha Helen Stewart (, ; born August 3, 1941) is an American retail businesswoman, writer, and

television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...

. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, merchandising and

e-commerce E-commerce (electronic commerce) is the activity of electronically buying or selling of products on online services or over the Internet. E-commerce draws on technologies such as mobile commerce, electronic funds transfer, supply chain manageme ...

. She has written numerous bestselling books, is the publisher of ''

Martha Stewart Living ''Martha Stewart Living'' is a magazine and former television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of ...

'' magazine and hosted two syndicated television programs: ''Martha Stewart Living'', which ran from 1993 to 2004, and ''

Martha Martha (Hebrew: מָרְתָא‎) is a biblical figure described in the Gospels of Luke and John. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Mary of Bethany, she is described as living in the village of Bethany near Jerusalem. She was witness to ...

'', which ran from 2005 to 2012. In 2004, Stewart was convicted of felony charges related to the

ImClone stock trading case A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and U.S. Attorney probe of trading in the shares of ImClone Systems resulted in a widely publicized criminal case, which resulted in prison terms for businesswoman and television personality Martha Stewart, ...

; she served five months in federal prison and was released in March 2005. There was speculation that the incident would effectively end her media empire, but in 2005 Stewart began a comeback campaign and her company returned to profitability in 2006. Stewart rejoined the board of directors of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in 2011 and became chairwoman of her namesake company again in 2012. The company was acquired by Sequential Brands in 2015.

Early life

Martha Stewart was born in

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark. She is the second of six children born to parents Edward Kostyra (1912–1979) and Martha (née Ruszkowski; 1914–2007) and is of

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

heritage. Both her parents were teachers, her father later becoming a pharmaceutical salesman. When Stewart was three years old, the family moved to Nutley, New Jersey. She adopted the name "Grace" for her Catholic

confirmation name In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...

. When Stewart was 10, she worked as the occasional babysitter for the children of

Mickey Mantle Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995), nicknamed "the Commerce Comet" and "the Mick", was an American professional baseball player. Mantle played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career (1951–1968) with the New York ...

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of manager and coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–1963, 1965), all but ...

, and

Gil McDougald Gilbert James McDougald (May 19, 1928 – November 28, 2010) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) infielder who spent ten major league seasons playing for the New York Yankees from 1951 through 1960. McDougald was the 1951 American L ...

, all players for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

. Mickey and Merlyn Mantle had four sons, whom Stewart watched and for whom she organized birthday parties. She also began modeling. At 15, Stewart was featured in a television commercial for

Unilever Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy dri ...

. She went on to appear in television commercials and in magazines, including one of

Tareyton Tareyton is an American brand of cigarettes, currently owned and manufactured by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. History Tareyton began as a variation of Herbert Tareyton cork-tipped non-filter cigarettes (whose slogan was, "There's ''somet ...

's "Smokers would rather fight than switch!" cigarette advertisements. During her college years, she supplemented her scholarship money through "modeling jobs at $50/hour — which was a lot of money at that time." Among the companies she modeled for was

Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chanel is ...

. Stewart's mother taught her how to cook and sew. Later, she learned the processes of

canning Canning is a method of food preservation in which food is processed and sealed in an airtight container (jars like Mason jars, and steel and tin cans). Canning provides a shelf life that typically ranges from one to five years, although u ...

and preserving when she visited her grandparents' home in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

. Her father had a passion for gardening and passed on much of his knowledge and expertise to his daughter. Stewart was also active in many extracurricular activities, such as the school's newspaper and art club. Stewart graduated from

Nutley High School Nutley High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school in the Township of Nutley, in Essex County, New Jersey, United States, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Nutley Public Sch ...

. She attended Barnard College of Columbia University, originally planning to major in

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

, but switching to art, history, and later

architectural history The history of architecture traces the changes in architecture through various traditions, regions, overarching stylistic trends, and dates. The beginnings of all these traditions is thought to be humans satisfying the very basic need of shelt ...

. To help pay her college tuition, she did fashion modeling for

. During this time, she met Andrew Stewart, who finished his law degree at

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by '' U.S. News & Worl ...

. They married in July 1961."EVERYWOMAN.COM" ''The New Yorker'' by Joan Didion, Published: February 21, 2000 She returned to Barnard a year after their marriage to graduate with a

double major A double degree program, sometimes called a dual degree, combined degree, conjoint degree, joint degree or double graduation program, involves a student's working for two university degrees in parallel—either at the same institution or at diffe ...

in history and architectural history.

Career

In 1967, Martha Stewart began a second career as a stockbroker, her father-in-law's profession. Meanwhile, Andrew Stewart founded a publishing house and served as chief executive of several others. Andrew and Martha Stewart moved to

Westport, Connecticut Westport is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, along the Long Island Sound within Connecticut's Gold Coast. It is northeast of New York City. The town had a population of 27,141 according to the 2020 U.S. Census. History ...

, where they purchased and restored the 1805 farmhouse on Turkey Hill Road that would later become the model for the TV studio of ''

''. During the project, Stewart's panache for restoring and decorating became apparent. In 1976, Stewart started a catering business in her basement with a friend from her modeling days, Norma Collier. The venture quickly became successful but soured when Collier alleged that Stewart was difficult to work with, and was also taking catering jobs on the side. Stewart soon bought Collier's portion of the business. Stewart was also hired as the manager of a gourmet food store, the Market Basket, but after a disagreement with the owners at the mini-mall she was forced out and opened her own store. Andrew had become the president of prominent New York City publisher

Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Abrams, formerly Harry N. Abrams, Inc. (HNA), is an American publisher of art and illustrated books, children's books, and stationery. The enterprise is a subsidiary of the French publisher La Martinière Groupe. Run by President and CEO Michael ...

In 1977, he was responsible for releasing the English-language edition of ''

The Secret Book of Gnomes The Secret Book of Gnomes is a series of books about gnomes designed for children. They contain fictional stories and guides about how gnomes live in harmony with their environment, such as what a gnome has in his first aid kit and how a gnome's ...

'' series, by Dutch authors

Wil Huygen Wil (Willibrord Joseph) Huygen (23 June 1922 – 14 January 2009) was a Dutch book author. He is best known for the picture books on gnomes, illustrated by Rien Poortvliet. Huygen was born in Amersfoort, the Netherlands. The seventh of ten ...

and

Rien Poortvliet Rien Poortvliet (; 7 August 1932 – 15 September 1995) was a Dutch artist and illustrator. Born in Schiedam, Poortvliet was best known for his drawings of animals and for "Gnomes", a famous series of illustrated books with text by Wil Huyg ...

, which quickly became a blockbuster success and was on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list. He contracted Stewart's company to cater the book release party, where Stewart was introduced to Alan Mirken, head of

Crown Publishing Group The Crown Publishing Group is a subsidiary of Penguin Random House that publishes across several fiction and non-fiction categories. Originally founded in 1933 as a remaindered books wholesaler called Outlet Book Company, the firm expanded into ...

. Mirken was impressed by Stewart's talent as a chef and hostess and later contacted her to develop a cookbook, featuring recipes and photos from the parties that Stewart hosted. The result was her first book, ''Entertaining'' (December 13, 1982),

ghostwritten ''Ghostwritten'' is the first novel published by English author David Mitchell. Published in 1999, it won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and was widely acclaimed. The story takes place mainly around East Asia, but also moves through Russia, B ...

Elizabeth Hawes Elizabeth Hawes (December 16, 1903 – September 6, 1971) was an American clothing designer, outspoken critic of the fashion industry, and champion of ready to wear and people's right to have the clothes they desired, rather than the clothes ...

. Following the success of ''Entertaining'', Stewart released many more books under the

Clarkson Potter Clarkson Potter (September 19, 1880 – October 4, 1953) was an American golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, un ...

publishing

imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

, including ''Martha Stewart's Quick Cook'' (1983), ''Martha Stewart's Hors d'Oeuvres'' (1984), ''Martha Stewart's Pies & Tarts'' (1985), ''Weddings'' (1987), which was also

, ''The Wedding Planner'' (1988), ''Martha Stewart's Secrets for Entertaining'' (1988), ''Martha Stewart's Quick Cook Menus'' (1988), and ''Martha Stewart's Christmas'' (1989), among others. During this time, she also authored dozens of newspaper columns, magazine articles, and other pieces on

homemaking Homemaking is mainly an American and Canadian term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping, housewifery or household management. It is the act of overseeing the organizational, day-to-day operations of a house o ...

, and made numerous television appearances on programs such as ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime broadcast syndication, syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicag ...

'' and ''

Larry King Live ''Larry King Live'' was an American television talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was the channel's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly. Mainly aired from CNN's Los Angeles ...

''. Andrew and Martha Stewart separated in 1987 and divorced in 1990.

Later career

In 1990, Stewart signed with Time Publishing Ventures to develop a new magazine, ''

'', for which Stewart would serve as editor-in-chief. The first issue was released in late 1990 with an initial rate base of 250,000. Circulation would peak in 2002 at more than 2 million copies per issue. In 1993, Stewart began a weekly half-hour television program, also called ''Martha Stewart Living'', based on her magazine. The show expanded to weekdays in 1997 and later to a full hour show in 1999 with half-hour episodes on weekends, and ran until 2004. Stewart also became a frequent contributor to

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

's ''

Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It w ...

'' and later to

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

's ''

The Early Show ''The Early Show'' is an American morning television show that aired on CBS from November 1, 1999 to January 7, 2012, and the ninth attempt at a morning news-talk program by the network since 1954. The program aired Monday through Friday from ...

'', and starred in several prime time

holiday A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or tra ...

specials on the CBS network. On the cover of their May 1995 issue, ''

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker' ...

'' declared Stewart "the definitive American woman of our time".

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia

In September 1997, with the assistance of business partner Sharon Patrick, Stewart was able to secure funding to purchase the various television, print, and merchandising ventures related to the Martha Stewart brand, and consolidate them into a new company, named Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSLO). Stewart served as chairwoman, president, and CEO of the new company and Patrick became

Chief Operations Officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...

. By organizing all of the brand's assets under one roof, Stewart thought she could promote synergy and have greater control of the brand's direction through the business's activities. That same month, Stewart announced in ''Martha Stewart Living'' the launch of a companion website and a catalogue business, called Martha by Mail. The company also had a direct-to-consumer floral business. On October 19, 1999, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia went public on the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...

under the ticker symbol MSO. The initial public offering was set at US$18 per share (), and rallied to US$38 () by the end of trading, making Stewart a

billionaire A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least one billion (1,000,000,000, i.e., a thousand million) units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. The American busin ...

on paper and the first female self-made billionaire in the United States. The stock price slowly went down to $16 per share by February 2002. Stewart was then and continues to be the majority shareholder, commanding 96% control of voting power in the company.

The Martha Stewart Podcast

In June 2022, Martha Stewart announced that she would be launching her first original podcast, entitled ''The Martha Stewart Podcast,'' in partnership with

iHeart Radio iHeartRadio (often shortened to just "iHeart") is an American freemium broadcast, podcast and radio streaming platform owned by iHeartMedia. It was founded in August 2008. , iHeartRadio was functioning as the national umbrella brand for iHe ...

. On June 15, 2022, Stewart shared that

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

would be the guest on the first episode of podcast, which debuted on June 22, 2022.

Stock trading case and conviction

According to the

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...

(SEC), Stewart avoided a loss of $45,673 by selling all 3,928 shares of her

ImClone Systems ImClone Systems Incorporated was a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing biologic medicines in the area of oncology. It was founded in 1984 and had its corporate headquarters in Bridgewater, New Jersey, and its research headquarters i ...

stock on December 27, 2001, after receiving

material Material is a substance or mixture of substances that constitutes an object. Materials can be pure or impure, living or non-living matter. Materials can be classified on the basis of their physical and chemical properties, or on their geologi ...

, nonpublic information from Peter Bacanovic, her broker at

Merrill Lynch Merrill (officially Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated), previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investment bank ...

. The day following her sale, the stock value fell 16%. In the months that followed, Stewart drew heavy media scrutiny, including a ''Newsweek'' cover headlined "Martha's Mess". Notably, on June 25, 2002, CBS anchor

Jane Clayson Jane Clayson Johnson (born April 25, 1967) is an American journalist and author. Early life and career Clayson was born in Sacramento, California, and spent most of her childhood there. She played with the Sacramento Youth Symphony and is an a ...

grilled Stewart on the air about ImClone during her regular segment on ''The Early Show''. Stewart continued chopping cabbage and responded: "I want to focus on my salad." On October 3, 2002, Stewart resigned her position, held for four months, on the board of directors of the

, following a deal prosecutors had made with Douglas Faneuil, an assistant to Bacanovic. On June 4, 2003, Stewart was indicted by the government on nine counts, including charges of

securities fraud Securities fraud, also known as stock fraud and investment fraud, is a deceptive practice in the stock or commodities markets that induces investors to make purchase or sale decisions on the basis of false information, frequently resulting in lo ...

and

obstruction of justice Obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, is an act that involves unduly influencing, impeding, or otherwise interfering with the justice system, especially the legal and procedural tasks of prosecutors, investigators, or other gov ...

. Stewart voluntarily stepped down as CEO and Chairwoman of MSLO, but stayed on as chief creative officer. She went on trial in January 2004. Prosecutors showed that Bacanovic had ordered his assistant to tell Stewart that the CEO of ImClone,

Samuel D. Waksal Samuel D. Waksal (born September 8, 1947) is the founder and former CEO of the biopharmaceutical company ImClone Systems. He is also the founder of Kadmon Pharmaceuticals, which was financed with private capital and commenced operations in New Y ...

, was selling all his shares in advance of an adverse

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...

ruling. The FDA action was expected to cause ImClone shares to decline. Monica Beam, a shareholder of MSLO, also brought a derivative suit against Stewart and other directors and officers of the company. It went before the Supreme Court of Delaware in 2004 and was ultimately dismissed.

Sentence

After a highly publicized six-week jury trial, Stewart was found guilty in March 2004 of

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...

charges of conspiracy to obstruct, of obstruction of an agency proceeding, and of

making false statements Making false statements () is the common name for the United States federal process crime laid out in Section 1001 of Title 18 of the United States Code, which generally prohibits knowingly and willfully making false or fraudulent statements, or ...

to federal investigators and was sentenced in July 2004 to serve a five-month term in a federal correctional facility and a two-year period of supervised release (including five months of electronic monitoring). Bacanovic and Waksal were also convicted of federal charges and sentenced to prison terms. Stewart also paid a fine of $30,000. In August 2006, the SEC announced that it had agreed to settle the related civil case against Stewart. Under the settlement, Stewart agreed to disgorge $58,062 (including interest from the losses she avoided), as well as a civil penalty of three times the loss avoided, or $137,019. She also agreed to a five-year ban from serving as a director, CEO, CFO, or any other officer role responsible for preparing, auditing, or disclosing financial results of any public company. In June 2008, the

UK Border Agency The UK Border Agency (UKBA) was the border control agency of the Government of the United Kingdom and part of the Home Office that was superseded by UK Visas and Immigration, Border Force and Immigration Enforcement in April 2013. It was forme ...

refused to grant her a visa to enter the United Kingdom because of her criminal conviction for obstructing justice. She had been planning to speak at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

on fashion and leisure industry matters.

Incarceration

Stewart wanted to go to prison in Connecticut or Florida. She did not want to serve at the Federal Prison Camp in Alderson,

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

, owing to its remote location; in 2004, her lawyer said that the remoteness would make it difficult for Stewart's then-90-year-old mother to visit. Judge

Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum (September 16, 1929 – February 5, 2016) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Education Born into a Jewish family, Cedarbaum grew up in the Crow ...

recommended to the

Federal Bureau of Prisons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...

(BOP) that Stewart be given her first choice,

Federal Correctional Institution, Danbury The Federal Correctional Institution, Danbury (FCI Danbury) is a low-security United States federal prison for male and female inmates in Danbury, Connecticut. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Depar ...

, or her second choice, Federal Correctional Complex, Coleman. However, a spokesperson for the

U.S. Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...

said the BOP would not send her to FCI Danbury, because the news media could too easily access the facility. The bureau could not send Stewart to FCC Coleman, because of complications from

Hurricane Ivan Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The cyclone was the ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlan ...

; the Coleman complex filled because inmates from Federal Correctional Institution, Marianna, were moved to Coleman. Therefore, the Federal Bureau of Prisons assigned Stewart to Alderson. The spokesperson said he was concerned the assignment to Alderson could be perceived as being vindictive. Stewart's daughter,

Alexis Alexis may refer to: People Mononym * Alexis (poet) ( – ), a Greek comic poet * Alexis (sculptor), an ancient Greek artist who lived around the 3rd or 4th century BC * Alexis (singer) (born 1968), German pop singer * Alexis (comics) (1946–1977 ...

, said she believed the BOP "may have made a point of sending her far away." Judge Cedarbaum ordered Stewart to report to her prison sentence before 2:00 p.m. on October 8, 2004. By September 27, 2004, Stewart received the BOP ID . At about 6:15 a.m. on October 8, 2004,Martha Stewart Begins Service of Sentence
."

. October 8, 2004. Retrieved January 5, 2010. she reported to FPC Alderson. Stewart said her prison nickname was "M. Diddy." While in confinement, she took a job and became an informal liaison between the administration and her fellow inmates. The ''

People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...

'' special ''Scandals! That Rocked America'' stated, "Some expected America's goddess of domestic perfection to fall into terminal despair." Stewart was released from FPC Alderson at 12:30 AM on March 4, 2005.Press Release

Archive
.

. March 4, 2005. Retrieved January 5, 2010. She was then placed in a two-year term of supervised release; during five of those months, she was placed in home confinement with electronic monitoring. Stewart served her home confinement at her residence in Bedford, New York. She was allowed to leave her house for 48 hours per week for work-related visits. After her home confinement ended, but while her supervised release continued, she was required to remain employed and not to associate with people with criminal records. In addition, during the supervised release, she was required to receive permission from federal officials if she was going to leave the jurisdiction of the

United States District Court for the Southern District of New York The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case citations, S.D.N.Y.) is a United States district court, federal trial court whose geographic jurisdiction encompasses eight counties of New York (state), New York ...

Post-conviction and current projects

Following her release from prison in March 2005, Stewart launched a highly publicized comeback and was once again involved in ''

''. Offerings of her company's Martha Stewart Everyday line at

Kmart Kmart Corporation ( , doing business as Kmart and stylized as kmart) is an American retail company that owns a chain of big box department stores. The company is headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States. The company was inc ...

were expanded to include a new line of ready-made home furnishings, and its mass market interior paint line became available at the larger

Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...

stores. However, the most heavily promoted aspect of her comeback was in television. Stewart returned to daytime television with ''

The Martha Stewart Show ''Martha'', also known as ''The Martha Stewart Show'', is an American cooking show hosted by Martha Stewart. The series premiered on September 12, 2005, in syndication until it was picked up by the Hallmark Channel in September 2010 as part of a l ...

'' and appeared in an adapted version of ''

The Apprentice ''The Apprentice'' is a Reality competition, reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States. Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with variou ...

'' (called '' The Apprentice: Martha Stewart''). Both shows premiered in September 2005, and both were produced by

Mark Burnett Mark Burnett (born 17 July 1960) is a television producer who is the former Chairman of MGM Television, MGM Worldwide Television Group. He is best known for creating and producing the reality shows The Apprentice (American TV series), ''The Ap ...

. Her prime time ''Apprentice'' spin-off received poor ratings. ''The Apprentice: Martha Stewart'' was not renewed for a second season. In October 2005, Stewart released a new book, titled ''The Martha Rules'', on starting and managing a new business, and a month later, her company released ''Martha Stewart Baking Handbook''. In October 2006, ''Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook'', a reference book about looking after a house, was published by

. She also is a regular contributor of cooking, crafts, and gardening segments on NBC's ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 ...

'' show. Stewart's daily talk show was nominated in six categories for the

33rd Daytime Emmy Awards The 33rd Daytime Emmy Awards, commemorating excellence in American daytime programming from 2005, was held on Friday, April 28, 2006 at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. This was the first time that the Daytime Emmys were held outside New York. A ...

in 2006, including Best Host and Best Show. Martha Stewart nrkbeta

MSLO launched a line of houses that carry her name to be built by

KB Home KB Home is a homebuilding company based in the United States, founded in 1957 as Kaufman & Broad in Detroit, Michigan. It was the first company to be traded on the NYSE as a home builder and was a Fortune 500 company from 2000 through 2008. It ...

, initially in

Cary, North Carolina Cary is a town in Wake and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is part of the Raleigh–Cary, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to the 2020 Census, its population was 174,721, making it the seventh largest muni ...

, and ultimately in various other locations nationwide. The first homes, which were inspired by Stewart's homes in New York and

Mount Desert Island Mount Desert Island (MDI; french: Île des Monts Déserts) in Hancock County, Maine, is the largest island off the coast of Maine. With an area of it is the 52nd-largest island in the United States, the sixth-largest island in the contiguous ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

, were completed in early 2006. Ultimately, 650 homes are planned, with prices from the low $200,000s to mid-$400,000s. A line of paper-based crafts for EK Success is also in development. In September 2007, she launched an upscale line of housewares for

Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...

, which was the largest brand launch in Macy's history. Appearing in commercials for the line, Stewart stated she has designed more than 2,000 items exclusively for Macy's. The line includes bedding, bath, cookware, and dinnerware. In addition to television and merchandising, MSLO launched a 24-hour

satellite radio Satellite radio is defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)'s ITU Radio Regulations (RR) as a ''broadcasting-satellite service''. The satellite's signals are broadcast nationwide, across a much wider geographical area than ter ...

channel with

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in November 2005, on which Stewart currently hosts a weekly call-in show. Stewart also made a special appearance on the comedy-drama series ''

Ugly Betty ''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which was originally broadcast on ABC. It premiered on September 28, 2006, and ended on April 14, 2010. The series is based on Fernando Gaitán's Colombian t ...

'', in the November 16, 2006, episode "

Four Thanksgivings and a Funeral "Four Thanksgivings and a Funeral" is an episode from the dramedy (drama-comedy) series ''Ugly Betty'', which aired on November 16, 2006. In the United States, Canada and Australia, it is the eighth episode but it's the ninth overall and was writte ...

," in which she gave her friend

Wilhelmina Slater Wilhelmina Vivian Slater (born Wanda Slater) is a fictional character in the American dramedy series ''Ugly Betty''. She is played by Vanessa Williams, who received a supporting actress award at the 2007 and 2008 NAACP Image Awards, a Best TV Vil ...

(played by

Vanessa Williams Vanessa Lynn Williams (born March 18, 1963) is an American singer, actress, and fashion designer. She gained recognition as the first African-American woman to receive the Miss America title when she was crowned Miss America 1984. She resign ...

) tips on how to prepare a turkey.

Justin Suarez Justin Suarez is a fictional character on the American comedy-drama series ''Ugly Betty'' (2006–2010). Portrayed by actor Mark Indelicato, Justin is raised by his single mother Hilda, both of whom live with his aunt Betty and grandfather Ign ...

(played by Mark Indelicato) is a fan of Stewart. In July 2006, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia announced a multi-year agreement with FLOR, Inc., the eco-friendly manufacturer of high-style modular floor coverings, to manufacture and market a new line of Martha Stewart-branded carpet tiles. The Martha Stewart Floor Designs by FLOR line debuted in 2007 with the distinctive design and color palette associated with the Martha Stewart brand. The agreement with FLOR was part of the Martha Stewart organization's growing home furnishings program, which includes a wide range of products such as furniture with Bernhardt, wall color with Lowe's, and floor coverings with FLOR. On September 14, 2007, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia announced that it had signed a partnership with E & J Gallo Winery to produce a wine brand with label Martha Stewart Vintage (for sale in six cities, in January 2008, at $15). The 15,000 cases to be sold included 2006 Sonoma County Chardonnay, 2005 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon, and 2006 Sonoma County Merlot (for Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, North Carolina, Denver, Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, and Portland, Oregon). Martha Stewart also signed a contract with Costco to offer frozen and fresh food under the Kirkland Signature label. In July 2008, craft items under the names "Martha Stewart Celebrate" and "Martha Stewart Create," two divisions of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, premiered in Walmart stores. The deal came about, in part, due to the closing of more than 600

stores in the U.S. In a move from broadcast television to cable, on January 26, 2010, Hallmark Channel and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia announced a multi-year strategic partnership. Her hour-long daytime television series ''The Martha Stewart Show, Martha'', formerly ''The Martha Stewart Show'', moved to the Hallmark Channel on September 13, 2010. It aired on Hallmark for two seasons, before cancellation in early 2012, with the final episode airing on May 11, 2012. ''New York Magazine'' reported in 2011 that Martha Stewart Living had only made a profit in one of the previous eight years. That same year, Stewart debuted a new 30-minute show, ''Martha Bakes'', on the Hallmark Channel. Stewart made another foray into acting with a debut on the

legal drama ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit''. She played a private school headmistress in the episode entitled "Learning Curve" (airdate April 2012). A new television series, ''Martha Stewart's Cooking School'', debuted on PBS in October 2012. Each weekly, 30-minute episode covers cooking techniques and basics. It is based on her eponymous book. In 2014, Stewart reportedly partnered with eBay to create the American Made Martha Stewart online store. This marketplace allows a platform to more than 400 American vendors and offers them a chance to grow their brand and popularize their products. In the fall of 2016, VH1 premiered a new show featuring Martha and her friend

called ''Martha & Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party'', featuring games, recipes, and musical guests. Snoop Dogg and Stewart also later starred together in a Super Bowl commercials, Super Bowl commercial for T-Mobile during Super Bowl LI in February 2017. Marley Spoon is a new project of packaged and home-delivered ingredients and recipes for preparation at home. Stewart was originally a blind-tester and then joined CEO Fabian Siegel on a joint venture. In June 2018, Martha started appearing as a recurring judge for Chopped (TV series), ''Chopped'', a cooking competition on the Food Network. In October 2018, she appeared on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' alongside Julia Roberts. In February 2019, Canopy Growth Corporation, Canopy Growth (CGC), a Canadian marijuana company, announced that Stewart would join their company as an adviser. A new gardening show called ''Martha Knows Best'' premiered on HGTV on July 31, 2020. In it, Stewart provides gardening help to individual callers and to some of her celebrity friends. She also demonstrates some of the projects and improvements at her large (150 acre) estate.

Personal life

In 1961, she married Andrew Stewart, then a student at

. Their only child, daughter

, was born in 1965. The couple separated in 1987 and divorced in 1990. Subsequently, Martha Stewart dated Anthony Hopkins but ended the relationship after she saw ''The Silence of the Lambs (film), The Silence of the Lambs''. She stated she was unable to avoid associating Hopkins with the character of Hannibal Lecter. Stewart dated billionaire Charles Simonyi, who was an early employee of Microsoft and head of their software group, on and off for 15 years. She featured footage of him as a space tourist aboard Soyuz programme, Soyuz on her television show in 2007. They broke up around February 2008. Stewart is an avid animal lover. Her pets include champion show Chow Chow dogs, French Bulldogs, Himalayan (cat), Himalayan cats, a Fell Pony named Ben Chunch, and Friesian horses. Stewart no longer wears fur since her daughter opened her eyes about Fur farming, the issue. Martha Kostyra, Stewart's mother, died at the age of 93 on November 16, 2007. Kostyra, also called "Big Martha" by her family, had appeared on ''Martha Stewart Living'' numerous times. Stewart resides in Katonah, New York, Katonah, a hamlet of the Bedford (town), New York, town of Bedford, New York. She also maintains a residence on

in Seal Harbor, Maine, known as 'Skylands,' the former summer estate of automobile designer and tycoon Edsel Ford, with gardens designed by renowned landscape architect Jens Jensen (landscape architect), Jens Jensen (1922). In 2020, an appearance by Jimmy Kimmel on the TV show ''Finding Your Roots'' revealed that he and Stewart are cousins.

Recognition

In 1995, Stewart received the Golden Plate Award of the Academy of Achievement, American Academy of Achievement. In 1997, Martha Stewart was honored with an Edison Awards, Edison Achievement Award for her commitment to innovation throughout her career. In 2018, Stewart was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame. In 2020, Stewart was inducted into the Licensing International Hall of Fame.

Portrayal in popular media

Martha Stewart has been portrayed and parodied in all forms of media. Two television films have been made out of her life story: ''Martha, Inc.: The Story of Martha Stewart'' (2003) and ''Martha: Behind Bars'' (2005). She was portrayed by Cybill Shepherd in both films. She also made a cameo appearance in the fourth season of HBO's ''High Maintenance''.

References

External links

*
Martha Stewart Biography and Interview on American Academy of Achievement
*
Profile of Martha Stewart
in ''Makers: Women Who Make America'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Stewart, Martha 1941 births 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American journalists 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American businesspeople 21st-century American journalists 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American women writers American bloggers American book publishers (people) American business writers American businesspeople convicted of crimes American businesspeople in retailing American chairpersons of corporations American chief executives in the media industry American chief executives of food industry companies American chief operating officers American cookbook writers American female models American interior designers American magazine editors American magazine founders American magazine publishers (people) American marketing businesspeople American mass media company founders American media executives American people convicted of fraud American people of Polish descent American reality television producers American retail chief executives American television hosts American women bloggers American women chief executives American women company founders American company founders American women journalists American women non-fiction writers American women television presenters Barnard College alumni Businesspeople from Connecticut Businesspeople from Jersey City, New Jersey Businesspeople from New York (state) Daytime Emmy Award winners Living people Marketing women Nutley High School alumni Participants in American reality television series People convicted of making false statements People from Katonah, New York People from Nutley, New Jersey People from Westport, Connecticut Stewart family, Martha Television producers from New York (state) Television producers from New York City Women business writers Women cookbook writers Women corporate directors Women food writers Women in publishing Women magazine editors American women television producers Writers from Jersey City, New Jersey Writers from New York City 20th-century American businesswomen 21st-century American businesswomen People named in the Paradise Papers Television producers from New Jersey Television producers from Connecticut