Ran for about 1/2 hour last night. It was out takes from his show that were filmed about a year ago. One of the more telling statements which I may not have exactly right went:
"There is corruption in America. There is corruption in the UK. There is even corruption in Sweden. In those places corruption is a problem. In Russia, corruption is the system."
Whichever oligarch is currently in the Russian equivilent of the "Chateau Bow-wow" better be on a plane headed towards his Manhattan or Miami condo because Putin has promised to personally find those responsible.
He doesn't mince words about Putin, his thuggery or the system. Also mocked the choice of Sochi for the Winter Olympiad--why select the warmest place in Russia; says the facilities built at huge cost (amid huge corruption) are virtually unusable as winter sports venue because of a typical lack of snow.
And, finally, why is Bourdain doing this interview with a serious critic of Putin (granted, maybe it was not so foreseeable that it would become a very hot topic)? Bourdain is the worst interviewer on TV; even his "dinner conversations" on "Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown" are anemic to unwatchable, although we do enjoy seeing the foods, the locales, etc.
Was a big time chef and wrote a best selling book on the subject. Acerbic, outspoken and people like watching him.
He's a very fine writer. His shows are uneven, but when they're good, they're great. (I might like them better if I ate more meat, especially pork. He loves his pork.)
As for the "Why not me?" argument, well, if you can do it, go do it. Not trying to be snarky -- he showed how it's done, there's plenty of TV time to be filled. If you have the chops, you too can do what he did.
But it's harder than it looks. I've been working on trying to set up a similar TV gig for years, using Bourdain's shows as an inspiration, but on a different topic. I'm making progress, but it's slow going. My books haven't been big bestsellers, and so far the related "TV" is web video. So I have even more respect for what he did than when I started. It ain't easy to get to where he is, and it's even harder to stay there.
I haven't gotten a chance to see the interview or the program that used the condensed version, but I don't think he or his producers were expecting him to be bringing a newly minted martyr for the cause of misgovernance in Russia to the American audience.
I've read all his books, from the "Bobby Gold Stories" to "Bone in the Throat" and "Gone Bamboo" (these in addition to the more well-known food stuff).
Although he's not a top-shelf writer, he does know how to tell a story and keeps the subject matter close to what he knows about. I like his attitude and the fact, alluded to above, that he calls himself on his own bullshit.
It's a Brasserie. There's also one in D.C., Miami, and Tokyo.
Good question. Have you taken any steps to become a travel writer or TV personality?