This one may have flown slightly underneath the radar, but in 2018 we lost one of Hollywood's most prolific and enduring performers. Connie Sawyer prided herself on being the oldest working actress in the business, and to the best of our knowledge, she was. Even though she died of old age this year at the impressive age of 105, Sawyer was still working all the way up to late 2017. She has more credits to her name than anyone could count, but some of the better-known movies include "Dumb and Dumber" and "When Harry Met Sally".
Sawyer was born in 1912 - the same year the Titanic sank - and first appeared on TV with Jackie Gleason in 1954. She was never truly the star of any show or film she was in and didn't mind one bit. In fact, she had quite a sense of humor about it; her autobiography is titled "I Never Wanted To Be A Star, And I Wasn't".
Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.
Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.
Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.