An Immigrant Who Made an Impact – “Chef Boyardee”

 by Chris Lucas

Guest Column

The Keating Files – January 23, 2021

 

In 1914, sixteen year old Ettore Boiardi of Emilia Romagna, Italy, arrived at Ellis Island without a penny in his pocket.

 

His older brother, Paolo, was already working at New York’s famous Plaza Hotel and got Ettore a job in the kitchen, peeling potatoes and washing dishes. Ettore - who anglicized his first name to “Hector” - had been working in kitchens back home since the age of nine, learning the secrets of fine Italian cuisine.

At that time in America, Italians were sometimes viewed as less than human, and certainly not worthy of living or working with “real” Americans. One of the worst mass lynchings in American history had occurred just a few years earlier in New Orleans when Italians were beaten, hung, and shot by a vigilante group. It’s also around the time when the negative and false stereotype of all Italians as organized criminals began to take hold.

 

Nevertheless, Hector persisted. His talent in the kitchen helped him to rise from apprentice to head chef at the Plaza by 1918. 

 

French restaurants were considered high cuisine in America in 1918, but Hector started winning fans over to “new” Italian dishes like chicken parmigiana, ravioli, and spaghetti and meatballs made with his own special recipe for sauce.

 

President Woodrow Wilson hired Hector to cater a dinner for thousands of soldiers returning from World War I, and his fame as one of America’s great chefs was cemented after that. 

 

In 1924, Hector and his wife, Helen, opened a restaurant in Cleveland called “Garden of Italy.” Lines formed every night. 

 

It was so popular that people requested jars of Hector’s sauce to take home. By 1927, he started selling them in local markets under an Anglicized version of his last name. 

 

Boiardi became “Boy-Ar-Dee.”

 

In 1938, sales were so strong that Hector moved the company to Milton, Pennsylvania, where they grew 20,000 tons of tomatoes and mushrooms each season for his sauce. He also canned meals like ravioli and spaghetti, starting a rise in popularity of Italian food amongst Americans that hasn’t waned since.

 

The U.S. Government contracted Chef Boyardee to produce tins of Italian food for soldiers serving in World War II (some, ironically, in Hector’s own home country). They were producing 250,000 cans per day and taking in $500 million per year.

 

After the war, Hector sold the company but stayed on as spokesperson and the face on the can. He also did commercials until 1979, making Chef Boyardee one of America’s most famous and top selling brands. 

 

Ettore Boiardi died in Parma, Ohio, in 1985. Though he was a millionaire many times over, he never lost his sense of humility, and spent his life donating to and supporting organizations dedicated to immigrant rights in the U.S.A.

 

There are now two life size statues that pay tribute to Boiardi. One of them is in Milton, PA, and the other in Omaha, Nebraska, home to ConAgra, the company that now owns the brand. 

 

May he Rest In Peace.

 

_________

 

Chris Lucas is the author of Top Disney: 100 Top Ten Lists of the Best of Disney, from the Man to the Mouse and Beyond.

 

On the PRESS CLUB C Podcast, enjoy Ray’s discussion with Chris Lucas about his career as an actor, author and Disney expert. Tune in right here!