The Last, Painful Days of Anthony Bourdain

[dalton99a]

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/27/dining/anthony-bourdain-biography.html
https://archive.ph/MG0z0

The Last, Painful Days of Anthony Bourdain
A new, unauthorized biography reveals intimate, often raw, details of the TV star’s life, including his tumultuous relationship with the Italian actor Asia Argento. And it’s drawing criticism from many of his friends and family.
By Kim Severson
Sept. 27, 2022 Updated 3:00 p.m. ET

After Anthony Bourdain took his own life in a French hotel room in 2018, his close friends, family and the people who for decades had helped him become an international TV star closed ranks against the swarm of media inquiries and stayed largely silent, especially about his final days.

That silence continued until 2021, when many in his inner circle were interviewed for the documentary “Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain” and for “Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography.” The two works showed a more complex side of Mr. Bourdain, who had become increasingly conflicted about his success and had in his last two years made his relationship with the Italian actor Asia Argento his primary focus. But neither directly addressed how very messy his life had become in the months that led up to the night he hanged himself at age 61.

On Oct. 11, Simon & Schuster will publish what it calls the first unauthorized biography of the writer and travel documentarian. “Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain” is filled with fresh, intimate details, including raw, anguished texts from the days before Mr. Bourdain’s death, such as his final exchanges with Ms. Argento and Ottavia Busia-Bourdain, his wife of 11 years who, by the time they separated in 2016, had become his confidante.

“I hate my fans, too. I hate being famous. I hate my job,” Mr. Bourdain wrote to Ms. Busia-Bourdain in one of their near-daily text exchanges. “I am lonely and living in constant uncertainty.”

...

[elleng]

1. ;-(

[fierywoman]

2. YEAH.

[betsuni]

3. There are lots of "Parts Unknown" on YouTube.

I've been watching and you can see sometimes he looks like he hasn't slept and isn't in the mood. He's talked many times of how travel changed his life, how happy he was. Then years later, the romanticism fades, every country has problems, people are similar no matter where they are. In one of his books he describes a feeling his crew might have of a "hang yourself in the hotel bathroom" night.

Thanks for posting. I want to read the book. Tony was an excellent writer, excellent TV personality, helped a lot of people.

[Tree Lady]

4. I bet he wanted to go back to being

A regular guy who wasn't recognized on the street. I could tell in some of his videos his drinking was out of control and that he was tired of traveling.

Even Rick Steves ended up divorced, all that traveling has to be hard on a relationship.

[keep_left]

5. Here is an excerpt of a CBC interview with Bourdain which illuminates some of his struggles.

Bourdain spoke with Day 6 host Brent Bambury in 2010. At the time, he shared his love of music with Bambury — and discussed his struggles with mental health and drug and alcohol use.

During the interview, Bourdain spoke about one song in particular — Time Has Come Today by The Chambers Brothers — that he said "saved" his life.

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/episode-393-ontario-goes-for-ford-north-korea-summit-brock-turner-impeach-o-meter-lgbtq-soccer-and-more-1.4696342/in-2010-anthony-bourdain-talked-about-his-mental-health-struggles-and-the-song-that-saved-his-life-1.4696371

You can listen to the excerpt at the link.