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Birth of a prodigy
Alton Crawford Walter Brown Jr. was bown in Las Angeles, California on July 30th, 1962 to ______ and ________. He lived the first years of his life there, then moved to Georgia wth his family. -
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Life of Alton Brown
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Moves
The Brown family (and their Siamese cat) moved to Georgia when Alton Brown Sr. purchsed a radio station located northeast of Atlanta. Young Alton Brown was only seven years old a the time when they drove from Las Angeles, California, to White County, Georgia. The family took the scenic route across the country, only stopping to sample the local cuisine and culture. -
Highschool/ Family Life
A.B. attended high school at Lithonia H.S. in Lithonia, Georgia. He stayed there for all his school years after. He graduated in 1980. He decided to pursue his talent of working with cameras and video. He often referred to himself as a "nerd" later on in his life. -
Father's Death
Alton Brown Sr. was often described as a workaholic. in fact, Alton Jr. himslef even described his father as a "workhorse", and "Someone who was truely dedicated to his work and business". He committed suicide circa March, 1972. Devastated by the loss of his father Alton fought with depression for a short time in high school. His mother grieved also, but remarried later on in her life. -
A.B. behind the camera.
Alton Brown went to college with the dreams of becoming a cameraman, before realizing he could do more infront of a camera. He earned his bachelors degree in drama in 1986 from the University of Georgia in Athens, GA. He was the director of photography on R.E.M.'s 'The One I Love" in 1987 which reached #9 on The U.S. Hot 100 Billboard. He used his skill and knowledge of cooking "as a way to get dates" in college. -
"The Big Switch"
While his grandmother and mothar spiked his interest in cooking, it wasn't until after college that he had an epiphany, so to speak. He was watching a cooking tutorial show one day, and he thought it was boring and a little bland. He thought he could do better. He made a deal with his wife and they packed up and moved from Marietta, Geaorgia, to Vermont. He would attned the New England Culinary school after his eventful cinematography career. -
Birth of a Great Cook
Alton attended culinary school at th New England Culinary Institute in 1997. He later told reporters that, “Nobody was giving us any explanation, I complained to my wife about the fact that all these shows were boring and dull and she finally got tired of hearing me complain about it and said, ‘Well, why don’t you do something about it?’ and I said, ‘Fine, I will." It was a big deal. His wife risked everything just for one of Alton's ideas. One of his demos caught the eye of Food Network. -
His First Great Show
One of Alton Brown's demos featured an informative cooking show which merged wit, humor, and food. He called this show "Good Eats". The first episode aired July 7, 1999. The show went on and continued on to have and additonal 14 seasons and a total of 248 episodes plus specials. Alton said that his skits and ideas are inspired by watching cooking shows and comidies, like Monty Python. -
Food Network Pickup
When A.B. sent his demo into the company of Food Network, they went bonkers. It piqued their interest and tickled their fancy. The show combined informative cooking instruction and Alton's quirky humor. The very first episode played in the late summer of 1999 in North America. -
Feasting on Asphalt
Another one of A.B.'s shows is "Feasting On Asphalt". It featured Alton, his camera crew, their motocycles, and miles upon miles of open roads and eateries. This show was a mission to travel the country showcasing "mom and pop" restaurants. Alton wanted to showcase "road food". The first episdoe aired July 9, 2006. There have been three seasons since and a marine counterpart, "Feasting on Waves". -
Peabody Award
"Good Eats" had always been an awarded and decorated show. But now, in mid December the show had won Alton a George Foster Peabody Award. "Good Eats" had been captivating viewers for years, but Alton had been the real mastermind behind it all. THe Peabody Award is given out to recognize distinguished members of the media world. -
Presented The James Beard Award
Sometime in mid 2003, Alton Brown's highly commerated cookbook, "I'm Just Here for the Food", was presented The James Beard Award. The James Beard Award is often referred to as "The Oscars of Food". This was a big deal for the people of Food Network and Alton Brown himself. -
Good Eats FInal Episode
On May 2, 2011, the cooking world and industry all grieved about the loss of one of the greatest cooking shows known to man. Alton stated that the final episode of "Good Eats" would wrap up in the 14 season after 249 episodes. "Good Eats" was nominated for The James Beard award in 2000, earned a Peabody in 2006, and finally earned The James Beard Award in 2011. But he also stated that there would still be bonus specials showing after in February. -
James Beard Award Host Ceremony
On May 7th 2012 in Avery Hall inThe Lincoln Center, New York City, Alton Brown co-hosted the 2012 James Beard Award Ceremony. He showcased many uprisings chefs and personalities. This was one of the biggest night in his career. Alton Brown even light up The Empire State Building at night for the ceremony. -
Guest Judge/Host
Throughout his years A.B. has been captivating the hearts and stomachs of the audience. He has hosted, starred, and judged in many shows, some are even his own creations! He is a highly decorated chef and TV personality. He has appeared on many shows such as "Iron Chef America". "The Next Iron Chef", "Good Eats:, "Feasting on Asphalt", and many, many more. Throughout good and bad Alton Brown has pulled through still pushes people to strive and reach for their dreams. 1999-Present
