James Beard and Jane Nickerson
We are in the midst of packing as we move to our new house. One advantage of all this packing is re-discovering books. One book I found was the above book which consists of letters between culinary legends James Beard and Helen Evans Brown. In this book are several references to New York Times food editor Jane Nickerson.
Beard writes in a letter to Evans: “Going to four parties for Jane this week. She leaves next week for Florida, and how we all hate to see her go. She has done more for dignified food coverage than anyone. Everyone will miss her keenly, and I more than most, for she was a good friend and a most amusing person always.” (p 192)
What I enjoy about this book is that these letters reveal true feelings – more so than those expressed in a media interview. Beard’s feelings about Jane reveal just how significant she was in the New York food world in the 1950s. (The letters also reveal that Beard thought that Craig Claiborne was a bad replacement for Nickerson at the Times.)
I am working on a conference paper about Nickerson that establishes her place in food and journalism history.
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