Julia Child

Name at birth: Julia McWilliams

In the late 1940s Julia Child began studying French cooking while living in Paris. During the 1950s she co-founded a cooking school, L'Ecole des Trois Gourmandes, and with her partners began working on a cookbook. In 1961 Mastering the Art of French Cooking was published, and its success helped launch a cooking show on PBS television. Unflappable and droll, she shared her passion for food with American TV audiences for half a century. Child authored several books and won numerous awards around the world, and is often credited with having improved American culinary habits.