In 1961, after Pépin had declined an offer from John F. McCully introduced Pépin to Julia Child, who became a lifelong friend and collaborator. Soon after his arrival, The New York Times 's food editor Craig Claiborne introduced Pépin to James Beard and Helen McCully. Wanting to complete his education, he enrolled in English for foreign students, a GED equivalent and eventually General Studies classes toward a Bachelor of Arts degree at Columbia University. In 1959, Pépin went to the United States to work at the restaurant Le Pavillon. From 1956 to 1958, during his military service, Pépin was recognized for his culinary training and skill and was ordered to work in the Office of the Treasury, where he met his long-time cooking partner, Jean-Claude Szurdak, and eventually became the personal chef to three French heads of state, including Charles de Gaulle. At age sixteen, he went on to work in Paris, training under Lucien Diat at the Plaza Athénée. At the age of thirteen, he started his apprenticeship at Le Grand Hôtel de l'Europe in Bourg-en-Bresse. After World War II, his parents opened a restaurant called Le Pélican, where Pépin worked as a child, and later became known for his love for food. Pépin was the second of three sons born to Jeannette and Jean-Victor Pépin. Pépin was born in 1935 in Bourg-en-Bresse, France. In 2016, with his daughter, Claudine Pépin and his son-in-law, Rollie Wesen, Pépin created the Jacques Pépin Foundation to support culinary education for adults with barriers to employment. Since 1989, Pépin has taught in the Culinary Arts Program at Boston University and served as dean of special programs at the International Culinary Center in New York City. He has been honored with 24 James Beard Foundation Awards, five honorary doctoral degrees, the American Public Television’s lifetime achievement award, the Emmy Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2019 and the Légion d'honneur, France's highest order of merit in 2004.
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Pépin was a longtime friend of the American chef Julia Child, and their 1999 PBS series Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home won a Daytime Emmy Award. He has authored over 30 cookbooks, some of which have become best sellers. Since the late 1980s, he has appeared on American television and has written for The New York Times, Food & Wine and other publications. Jacques Pépin French pronunciation: (born December 18, 1935) is a French-born American chef, author, culinary educator, television personality, and artist.