The Real-Life Willy Wonka

"You won't know his name, but Brian Sollit was the genius who brought a perfect ending to dinner parties and family gatherings at Christmas." (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2417673/The-real-life-Willy-Wonka-Brian-Sollit-sweet-maker-gave-world-After-Eight-mints-Lion-bars-died-aged-74.html)

Brian Sollit's relationship with Rowntree in York, England dates back to the 1950's.  At the age of 15, he was hired as a chocolatier.  David's work on chocolate recipes so impressed his boss that he was promoted to head of the cream department in 1962.  There, he was asked to develop a recipe for a thin mint.  After Eight's were the result; the chocolate with the peppermint fondant became a favourite of many, including the Queen Mum.  

"[Brian] spent months, sometimes years agonizing over the technical details of his creations."  He also created the Lion's Bar and the Yorkie.  Referred to as a "larger than life" figure, the chocolatier was assigned the task of creating a 3 foot Pudsey Bear for Children in Need.  In 2012, he created a 3 kilogram After Eight to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the popular mint.  Over the past half century, millions of After Eights have been sent to over 50 countries around the world.

Brian Sollit not only loves chocolate but also Christmas, two things that go hand in hand.  "Every surface in my house is covered with Father Christmases" explained the Rowntree chocolatier.  Sadly, he never found a wife; some say he was married to his job.  

In 1964, author Roald Dahl penned the novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  First published in the United Kingdom, the novel sold 10,000 in the first week after it came out in the United States.  Like the After Eight, the novel was a huge success, going on to be read in classrooms all over the continent.  In 1971, the novel was adapted for the big screen starring Gene Wilder.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2417673/The-real-life-Willy-Wonka-Brian-Sollit-sweet-maker-gave-world-After-Eight-mints-Lion-bars-died-aged-74.html

It Ain't All About the Cookin'

"You may think you know the butter-loving, finger-licking, joke-cracking queen of cuisine...but you have never heard the intimate details of her often bumpy road to fame and fortune." 

Paula Deen grew up in a stereotypical family in Albany, Georgia.  Her parents ran a local store where she used to raid the candy counter.  While Paula did not excel in academics, her exuberant personality helped her get a spot on the cheerleading squad in high school.  She fell in love with a handsome hunk and the two married when she turned 18.  

The couple had two healthy baby boys and Paula Deen settled in as a housewife.  Early on in the marriage, Paula lost first her father, to a botched operation, and then her mother, to cancer.  Paula struggled with anxiety, manifesting itself in the form of agoraphobia.  To make matters worse, Jimmy Deen was not a good provider and struggled to hold down a decent job.   

Paula went out and got a job as a bank teller.  But not long after, she was held up at gunpoint, aggravating her agoraphobia.  She was confined to the house and would not go out for days, fearing that something terrible would happen to her as it had to her parents.  Caught between a rock and a hard place, she knew that she had to provide for her family.  

Paula had always loved her grandmother's recipes.  She dreamed up the idea to start The Bag Lady, providing downtown businessmen with a bagged lunch.  She would work early in the morning preparing sandwiches which her teenage boys would deliver downtown each day.  

The success of the Bag Lady gave birth to The Lady, a restaurant located in the Best Western.  Paula drew on the customers the former customers who had purchased her sandwiches.  The Lady was also a success.  

The Lady gave birth to The Lady & Sons, a restaurant Paula opened in Savannah, Georgia along with her two sons.  Still not financially ready, Paula's aunt gave her a $25,000 loan for the business.  The restaurant was a roaring success and within a few years, Paula found a bigger space for her restaurant. Paula's restaurant provided her with a stepping stone for her first cookbook, and her first television series.  

In the meantime, Paula remarried and has had a successful marriage for ten years.  It's rewarding to see someone overcome such adversity.  

Note:  For more information about Paula's first cookbook, read my post:

http://alinefromlinda.blogspot.ca/2012/01/savannah-storm-new-york-publisher.html.

http://www.amazon.ca/Paula-Deen-Aint-About-Cookin/dp/1439163359