CNN confirmed Bourdain's death on Friday and said the cause of death was suicide.
"It is with extraordinary sadness we can confirm the death of our friend and colleague, Anthony Bourdain," the network said in a statement Friday morning. "His love of great adventure, new friends, fine food and drink and the remarkable stories of the world made him a unique storyteller. His talents never ceased to amaze us and we will miss him very much. Our thoughts and prayers are with his daughter and family at this incredibly difficult time."
Bourdain was in France working on an upcoming episode of his award-winning CNN series "Parts Unknown." His close friend Eric Ripert, the French chef, found Bourdain unresponsive in his hotel room Friday morning.
"Tony was an exceptional talent," CNN President Jeff Zucker said in an email to employees. "Tony will be greatly missed not only for his work but also for the passion with which he did it." Stunned reactions to his death from viewers, fellow chefs, celebrities and others swept through social media Friday morning. Author and humorist John Hodgman recalled eating with Bourdain some 14 years ago.
"He was big even then, but he took time to sit with me in Chinatown to talk 'weird' food for a magazine piece I was writing. He taught me that our 'weird' is the world's delicious," Hodgman wrote on Twitter. "We ate chicken feet. The afternoon vibrated with life. RIP."
Anthony Michael Bourdain (June 25, 1956 – June 8, 2018) was an American chef, author, and television personality. He was noted by popular sources as one of the most influential chefs in the world. Bourdain was a 1978 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and a veteran of numerous professional kitchens, including many years as executive chef at Brasserie Les Halles. He first became known for his 2000 book Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly. His first food and world-travel television show was A Cook's Tour, which ran for 35 episodes on the Food Network from 2002 through 2003. In 2005 he began hosting the Travel Channel's culinary and cultural adventure programs Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations (2005–2012) and The Layover (2011–2013). In 2013, he switched to CNN to host Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown. Though best known for his culinary achievements and television presentations, along with several books on food and cooking and travel adventures, Bourdain's lesser-known writings include both fiction and historical nonfiction.
