(Media Update) The Gents a` Gourmet | Or How Don Draper Learned to Cook

It’s hard to believe these days, in 2012, with chefs like Bobby Flay, Mario Batali, Chris Kimball and Jamie Oliver all over the place, that there was a time in America when men didn’t know how to cook. Not necessarily because they had no interest in cooking, but because maybe they weren’t so smart in that department. This time, apparently, was the late 60s, when the Don Drapers and Roger Sterlings ruled the world and directions such as “Please remember gents  to separate five eggs does not mean to put three eggs in one bowl and two in another” were not uncommon.  There was even a TV show, broadcast right here in Nashville, right here on NPT (then WDCN) which aspired to teach these not-so-wise humans how to use that room in the house with the stove and sink in it, and presumably put down the tumbler and get off the couch. The show was called “The Gents a’ Gourmet” and was “delightful,” at least according to this amazing press release we discovered while digging through the archives in preparation for our 50th Anniversary later this year. We don’t have the tapes of the actual show, and can’t confirm if that’s where the apostrophe really was — after the “a” — but if the press release is any indication, it was amazing, and full of fascinating tidbits, like this:

“The television medium has contributed its share toward a deeper awareness of a man’s place in the world of cooking, particularly outdoor cooking. More and more men are making commercials concerned with culinary arts. After all men are not only the greatest chefs, but also the biggest eaters.”

There’s plenty more where that came from in this most palatable of press releases, including stories of men (students, as they are called) flipping pancakes in the closet and setting the tablecloth on fire. There was an episode called “Stag Dinners,”  golf references, and even an “exotic dessert featured in the ‘Afterglow’ category…” Yes, you read that right. The “Afterglow” category.

Oh, how we wish we had the videos, but for now, you must read the entire release, scanned and pasted below for your convenience. You may have to click on each image to view it larger, but it will be worth it.  For the men, this means directing your cursor over the image and ‘clicking’ your mouse, or tapping on it with your finger if you have a tablet or smart phone.  Do not point the remote control at it. Unless, of course, you have one of those TVs connected to the internet and pointing the remote at it actually does things. But you know that. Because men know those kinds of things.