The Frugal Gourmet, Jeff Smith, faced sexual misconduct allegations and his show ended. His reputation and career were significantly affected.
Jeff Smith, known as The Frugal Gourmet, was a popular television chef and author who hosted “The Frugal Gourmet,” a cooking show that aired on PBS from the mid-1980s until the late 1990s. His approachable demeanor and focus on cost-effective cooking won him a large following. However, in the late 1990s, Smith’s career came to an abrupt halt due to a series of sexual misconduct allegations.
In 1997, several men accused Smith of sexual abuse, claiming the incidents occurred when they were teenagers working for him in the 1970s. These allegations led to a lawsuit, which was settled out of court in 1998. The details of the settlement were not disclosed, but the lawsuit and the surrounding publicity had a devastating impact on Smith’s public image and career.
As a result of the scandal, Smith’s television show was canceled, and he largely disappeared from the public eye. His cookbooks, once bestsellers, became less popular. Jeff Smith maintained his innocence until his death in 2004, but the allegations had already irreparably damaged his reputation. The Frugal Gourmet’s demise serves as an early example of how allegations of sexual misconduct can affect a public figure’s career, even before the rise of social media and the #MeToo movement.
