Me and Tony
I’ve shared with you my thoughts on Anthony Bourdain before, but let me tell you a story.
Before my book Feck Perfuction there was my coffee table/ “good-bye to design” tome called, Victore or, Who Died and Made You Boss (Abrams 2010). It is more pictures than words, but it tells the backstory about my work, my thoughts on “Design” and my process.
I wrote the book, but early on I searched hard for someone else to write it. I was afraid of my perceived weakness and, more than that, afraid of facing myself.
I wasn’t a writer, I wasn’t “qualified.”
About the same time I was scribbling notes about my own book, I picked up a ratty, used copy of Bourdain’s tales of life in the culinary trade, Kitchen Confidential.
Mind you, this is not the usual thing I pick up and read, but I had a chef pal named Gary Danko who was a creative influence on me, so I thought, “What the hell…”
I was immediately taken by the language and style of Bourdain’s story telling. He wasn’t writing, he was speaking—and directly to ME.
There was something authentic, not forced or schooled about it.
He wrote the way he spoke. He swore a lot. He told the truth, even if it was an expensive truth—the kind of truth you were not supposed to speak. It felt dangerous.
Since I had no writing experience, I was timid about owning my own voice. I was afraid to swear or even “use my words” to communicate.
But Bourdain’s ease at putting his thoughts on paper freed me, and by freeing me, Anthony Bourdain taught me how to write.
That’s where my story usually ends. Until I got this letter:
James
You don’t know me, but I’ve been meaning to reach out to you for ages. I live in Manhattan. I made a list a few years ago and one of the things on it was “Go to Brooklyn to find James Victore.” I then set that goal in motion only to find that you had left town for Texas. It derailed the plan for a bit, but I assumed I would wind up in Austin soon enough. However it has been awhile and I still haven’t been sent there for work or whatever.
I finally sat down to write you because I caught you on Chase Jarvis’ podcast. You mentioned Anthony Bourdain and it felt like the universe telling me to reach out. Tony was my friend and I worked for him for a long time. I was his photographer. Not a terrible gig.
I took your book Victore or, Who Died and Made You Boss? with me on a trip and while we were waiting to board the plane I was flipping through it and Tony was looking over my shoulder. They called for us to board, Tony went on first because he was sitting up front and I was somewhere in the back. When I was walking through the aisle and I came up to Tony’s seat he said “Holloway let me see your book. I’ll get it back to you.” And so I handed it to him and he put it in the seatback pocket. I proceeded to my seat. When we arrived and I made it to baggage claim he asked “Can I keep this a little longer?” And he gave it back to me the following evening. During that trip you and your work sparked a lot of our discussions about communicating ideas and creativity and motivations. I had been wanting to tell you for a while. Then hearing you mention Tony on the podcast made me feel like you were a fan of his, so I felt like you should know, he was a fan of yours. I’m sorry we never got to get together with him to discuss things in person. I’m certain you guys would’ve liked each other.
—David Scott Holloway
I was dumbfounded. My hero knew about me. He liked my work. I made him think.
Here is the reason I’m telling you this: you never know who is looking. You never know who you reach or who you are influencing.
We are all terrible judges of our own work and even our own life and existence. Because of this, we hold ourselves back, we see limits where there are none, and we fail to fulfill—or even see—our potential.
So, I beg you all to keep going. Keep making and writing and sharing with the world. Cuz you never know who is listening.
Thank you David Scott Holloway for sharing Tony with me.
Need a regular perspective check in your life? This is an easy test every time you walk by it—how would you fill in the blanks??
