Mr. Food, TV Chef Art Ginsburg Dead At 81 [Video]

You might say that Mr. Food was a celebrity chef before there was such a thing. He has been a popular feature segment during the mid-day news on WJRT for decades. How sad that the man beneath the chef's hat, Art Ginsburg, has passed away at the age of 81. Hit read more to learn more about the very engaging Mr. Food.

Art Ginsburg, aka Mr. Food made his television debut on a local morning show in upstate New York in 1975. With his focus on easy to prepare recipes using ingredients that most cooks already had in their kitchens, his 90 second segments were being featured on 168 TV stations around the country by 2007. There is a line of housewares that bears his name and he has published 52 Mr. Food related cookbooks, selling close to eight million copies nation wide. Mr. Food also liked to feature up-and-coming celebrities within his segments, and one such celebrity, Rachel Ray has wonderful memories of time spent with him. "Art Ginsburg was a warm, gregarious man who knew food is more about love and sharing than a fancy ingredient list." she says. "He was a supportive and loyal friend and I'll miss his smile and warm hugs."

Mr. Ginsburg was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just over a year ago. Early treatments and surgery forced his cancer into remission, but it returned earlier this November. He passed away at his home in Weston, Florida at the age of 81.

His company, Ginsburg Enterprises, hopes to continue the popular 90 second cooking segment with something very much like his Mr. Food vignettes, called 'Mr. Food Test Kitchen'. It won't be the same, though, without his trademark ending to each segment. No one will be able to say "Ooh! It's so good!" quite like Mr. Food did.

Are you a loyal Mr. Food viewer? Will you watch the new version of his show?