Watching Julia Child
A few days ago, I was asked to do a live Q&A on Julia Child, following a screening of the documentary, JULIA. The screening is scheduled for tomorrow, Friday, March 18, in honor of Women’s History Month. Given how last minute the invite was, I was either plan B or pIan Z, but no matter: I was thrilled. I grew up watching my mother cook from Julia Child’s cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and then ultimately tried to cook alongside Julia myself. I never mastered Mastering, but happily made her berry clafoutis multiple times one summer, as well as her Provencal potato gratin and iterations of her chocolate mousse. Julia Child was one of the first women to “teach” on TV, using her humor and fierce intellect to lure viewers into her kitchen. She managed to be unassuming, accomplished, likable and hugely influential, a rare accomplishment for women in the early 1960’s, or for anybody at any time.
Because the invitation to speak about Julia was so last minute, I’ve done a deep dive into her work this week: Watch the documentary, fish out old copies of My Life in France and From Julia Child’s Kitchen (far more user-friendly than Mastering) and rewatch old episodes of her making a French omelette, casserole roast chicken and scallops on The French Chef. I also started reading As Always: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis Devoto, which is an absolutely magnificent testimony to the way women support each other through writing. In this war-filled, pandemic-fueled world we live in, reading the lively, funny, loving, civilized and encouraging way Julia and Avis wrote to each other has been a soothing diversion from nightly doom scrolling.
Events, events!
Following the screening of JULIA, a documentary directed by Julie Cohen and Betsy West, Laura will be leading a Q&A about Julia Child. Learn more about JULIA below and secure your spot today. Tickets are $15.
JULIA tells the story of the legendary cookbook author and television superstar who changed the way Americans think about food, television, and even about women. Using never-before-seen archival footage, personal photos, first-person narratives, and cutting-edge, mouth-watering food cinematography, the film traces Julia Child's surprising path, from her struggles to create and publish the revolutionary Mastering the Art of French Cooking (1961) which has sold more than 2.5 million copies to date, to her empowering story of a woman who found fame in her 50s, and her calling as an unlikely television sensation.
Melanie Hoopes, a fabulous person and hugely talented writer, has a play called Kindness Committee debuting this weekend at the South Presbyterian Church in Dobbs Ferry. Tickets are available for Friday, March 18, and Saturday, March 19. The play is also being recorded and will be available for viewing next week. Melanie took several writing workshops with me pre-pandemic. “Some of the stories I worked on with you are in here!” she said. Her stories are fabulous—beautifully written, funny and moving. Do not miss this play.
