Money Profile: Anthony Bourdain

[MRG]

Everyone has a story and many are stories we can learn from. If I only focused on people who never made mistakes I would learn a lot less.

So true. My life has been enhanced by all of the people in it.

He gives me hope for two younger Nephews.

 

[MooreBonds]

Makes me like him even more that he says that weed was a major expense. Just the fact that he admits to it and doesn't care. I saw one of his shows once where he was learning juditsu and getting his butt kicked. But he was by far the oldest guy in the class and trying really hard and doing way better than I would be doing being the same age. I really do like his "don't give a damn" style.

If I had a successful string of shows and made big bucks by traveling the world sampling food and talking freely about my past...yeah, I'd give it a go at jujitsu and let my butt get kicked and thrown around. And I surely wouldn't give a damn either if I was paid buku bucks to travel and explore and live his life!

Anecdotal stories of a few successes in spite of their irresponsibility are one thing (see countless examples of sports stars who piss away all of their earnings in a few years time). Realizing that you can't live life like that is another. What would he be doing/what would he have done if he didn't make it big in broadcasting? Just be like one of the faceless millions that live life for the moment.

 

[NW-Bound]

... It's not just weed and cocaine - he was on heroin for a while IIRC...

Yes. Surprising he got to where he is now.

... What would he be doing/what would he have done if he didn't make it big in broadcasting? Just be like one of the faceless millions that live life for the moment.

As long as a person causes nobody else harm, we will just have to let a person live his life. There are a lot of people like that, and as long as I do not have to bail them out, I can only chuckle.

 

[harley]

Not to mention the fact that it's now legal for recreational use in 9 states in the U.S.

Should be 50, but just to nit pick, it's 8 states and DC. The only way DC is a state is if you are considering states of confusion and dysfunction.

 

[Sue J]

I enjoy his shows. It's not just about the food, it's about the culture and the people.

Everywhere he goes he makes sure to get out and have local "street food", usually meat in some sort of tube form or the local version of meat on a stick.

He has a colorful history. The turnaround for him was having a daughter. His ex-wife is an MMA fighter.

 

[bmcgonig]

If I had a successful string of shows and made big bucks by traveling the world sampling food and talking freely about my past...yeah, I'd give it a go at jujitsu and let my butt get kicked and thrown around. And I surely wouldn't give a damn either if I was paid buku bucks to travel and explore and live his life!

Anecdotal stories of a few successes in spite of their irresponsibility are one thing (see countless examples of sports stars who piss away all of their earnings in a few years time). Realizing that you can't live life like that is another. What would he be doing/what would he have done if he didn't make it big in broadcasting? Just be like one of the faceless millions that live life for the moment.

Not every successful miscreant needs a counterpunch of a story to warn us what might have happened if things had taken an alternate route. Jeez..I just like the guy and his show

 

[Winemaker]

Hey, I like his shows as well as Andrew Zimmern's show. I just said I'm not inclined to watch and enjoy him, now knowing his past. I didn't ask for him to be thrown to the street. Freedom is what makes this country great, and responsibility means you live with the consequences of your decisions.

Pretty soon our only Heroes will be sandwiches.

 

[Midpack]

If I had a successful string of shows and made big bucks by traveling the world sampling food and talking freely about my past...yeah, I'd give it a go at jujitsu and let my butt get kicked and thrown around. And I surely wouldn't give a damn either if I was paid buku bucks to travel and explore and live his life!

Anecdotal stories of a few successes in spite of their irresponsibility are one thing (see countless examples of sports stars who piss away all of their earnings in a few years time). Realizing that you can't live life like that is another. What would he be doing/what would he have done if he didn't make it big in broadcasting? Just be like one of the faceless millions that live life for the moment.

That's a different perspective? Bourdain could indeed have become "one of the faceless millions" (your words), and he didn't find his way until later in life. But he didn't just fall into broadcasting and host/produce more than 4 successful shows, without some unique talents and drive. If broadcasting hadn't panned out, he does have some skills and a work ethic that should have translated into something else. We'll never know, but he wasn't just lucky...

 

[NW-Bound]

Hey, I like his shows as well as Andrew Zimmern's show. I just said I'm not inclined to watch and enjoy him, now knowing his past. I didn't ask for him to be thrown to the street. Freedom is what makes this country great, and responsibility means you live with the consequences of your decisions.

Pretty soon our only Heroes will be sandwiches.

I don't think as strongly about this regarding Bourdain as you do, but I know what you mean.

I do not follow actors' and actresses' personal life, or read People Magazine. But occasionally, I ran across something about them, and it turned me off enough that it impacted my enjoyment of their movies.

I guess it is better that we do not know.

 

[stepford]

Entirely apart from AB's past and whether or not we approve, what I got from this article is that when you have a large enough income stream you can allow yourself the luxury of living in the now and not sweating the details of your finances. From other reading I gather his net worth is only a small multiple of his annual income - also a luxury few of the ER crowd here can afford.

 

[tn3sport]

He's definitely hip. But, expecting a cocaine and heroin addict to be good with money, tax responsibilities, and relationships Not hardly...

 

[kcowan]

I think it is great that he found his niche. He could have lied about his background. But he chose to be honest. Just like Rick Steves, I will watch him when we stumble upon his show.

 

[MichaelB]

I think it is great that he found his niche. He could have lied about his background. But he chose to be honest. Just like Rick Steves, I will watch him when we stumble upon his show.

I agree. He sounds like a guy who made some questionable choices when he was young, acknowledged them and took the blame, worked hard, and managed to make something out of his life. Good for him. Who didn't make bad choices?

 

[Jack_Pine]

I don't think as strongly about this regarding Bourdain as you do, but I know what you mean.

I do not follow actors' and actresses' personal life, or read People Magazine. But occasionally, I ran across something about them, and it turned me off enough that it impacted my enjoyment of their movies.

I guess it is better that we do not know.

If I followed actors/actresses personal lives and politics I would not be able to watch any movies. Rather not know.

 

[Midpack]

I think it is great that he found his niche. He could have lied about his background. But he chose to be honest. Just like Rick Steves, I will watch him when we stumble upon his show.

I assume you're getting at Rick's active, long standing advocacy to legalize marijuana? Having watched him occasionally for years, I was surprised when I found out - seemed out of character with his onscreen personality to me. I don't watch his show any more or less as a result.

https://www.ricksteves.com/about-rick/new-approach-to-marijuana

 

[Winemaker]

...I do not follow actors' and actresses' personal life, or read People Magazine. But occasionally, I ran across something about them, and it turned me off enough that it impacted my enjoyment of their movies.

I guess it is better that we do not know.

I don't follow them either. I have been to the movie theatre 3 times since 1983, was just too busy/ not interested. I'll watch TV maybe 6 hours a week, not including news or football/hockey game.

Don't understand the Kardashian et al hysteria at all in todays society. But my late father was not OJ's attorney, and I didn't make a sex tape.(yet!) I don't tweet, not on FB or Instagram. This Forum is the closest thing I do about being public about my thoughts, and 85+% probably don't care about those either.

 

[Beldar]

I think Bourdain is a lot more financially savvy than he claims in the interview. He understands his wealth and earning potential enough to know that an advisor can ease the burden of managing it all himself, while he continues to earn the big celebrity bucks. Good for him.

DW & I always comment when we watch one of his episodes that it's amazing he's still alive considering how much he drinks and smokes. He seems sad all the time.

_B

 

[Fedup]

I thought he owns a restaurant or something.

 

[Koolau]

I think I like Bourdain because he is pretty much my opposite. He's willing to take risks. He's not ashamed of his mistakes. He lives his life to the fullest. I and maybe most of us cold learn something from him on this front.

The article had details I was not aware of, but I believe I saw him interviewed a few years back and he copped to his drug use and mis-spent youth (and middle age, heh, heh.)

His shows are just plain fun, even if I would never try the stuff he does. I suppose I can live vicariously through his non-fiction as well as I can through the fiction of most movie/tv shows. My hat's off to him and I hope he makes enough dough he can continue to not worry about it.

 

[marko]

I love his shows and have been following him since his first book. I love his descriptions and insights. Someone with a past like his delivers a unique set of views that you don't get anywhere else.

Most of all I like him because he got one shot at that brass ring and was smart enough to realize it and not blow it!

 

[walkinwood]

I like Bourdain's writing style - it seems to be so haphazard, but he still keeps you engaged. It's like those people who have what looks like a messy hairstyle, but each hair is carefully in its place.

I didn't know Rick Steve's was a pot advocate. He's also done lot to aid the homeless. Good for him!

 

[phil1ben]

He does a one-man live show. We saw him in Philadelphia a few months ago. Just him, a stool and a glass of water. It was excellent.

 

[RobbieB]

I love Bourdain, always have. If it weren't for watching his show I would never have learned the joys of real balsamic vinegar.

When I was young I did all the drugs I could get my hands on. Like Bourdain I also survived to become a self supporting tax paying productive member of society.

Not to mention I had big fun!

 

[redduck]

...... I spend too much time thinking about money, and he just doesn't care as long as he has enough. I don't know if I ever have enough. I always like to have more...).

You're not alone. Here's a quote from some guy who seems to have the same approach as you:

When John D. Rockefeller was asked how much money was enough, he replied: "A little bit more."

 

[redduck]

...If I only focused on people who never made mistakes I would learn a lot less.

I'm just guessing here, but I think that might be a very hard sample group to find. However, if you do find some in this group, you might learn a whole lot more than you think (another guess on my part).