The Chowder Chief
SAVEUR reader Annie Wachnicki spots a familiar face in our October 2012 issue
When we published the 150th issue of SAVEUR earlier this month, we had a feeling its 150 timelessly classic recipes would resonate with our readers just as much as they resonated with us. We've loved hearing the stories people have shared with us about the roles these foods have played in their own lives—like this one from reader Annie Wachnicki, who upon opening the magazine to page 25, wasn't expecting to see a familiar face.
Credit: Annie Wachnicki
I was surprised and happy to open the October issue of SAVEUR and see my great-great-uncle Chief as the face of your New England Clam Chowder. Uncle Chief's real name was Frank Osborne, but my mom and her sisters always called him Chief. They remember him as a sweet man who never went out without a cigar and a bow tie (you can see him harvesting clams with both the stogie and his undone tie in the photo that appears in the magazine). He loved clamming and knew a thing or two about chowder—New England and Manhattan style
The photo on page 25 was originally published in Life magazine in 1962, but I know it from a yellowed reproduction that my Nana has had for as long as I can remember. I was visiting her last weekend for her 95th birthday and she found her original copy of Chief's photograph along with a stack of clippings, including one from a 1968 edition of The Westport News, entitled "The old man with his visions of chowder." (The full text in the newspaper clipping is visible in the photograph above.) —Annie Wachnicki, Brooklyn, New York
Do you have a SAVEUR recipe story? We'd love to hear from you! Send your SAVEUR stories to testkitchen@saveur.com, and you may see them right here on Saveur.com. (Stories may be edited for length and clarity.)
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