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Chef's Quitting Controversy Monday , March 20, 2006 By Roger Friedman Isaac Hayes did not quit "South Park." My sources say that someone quit it for him. I can tell you that Hayes is in no position to have quit anything. Contrary to news reports, the great writer, singer and musician suffered a stroke on Jan. 17. At the time it was said that he was hospitalized and suffering from exhaustion. It’s also absolutely ridiculous to think that Hayes, who loved playing Chef on "South Park," would suddenly turn against the show because they were poking fun at Scientology. Last...

Chef's Back, Even If Hayes Isn't 'South Park' premiere trumpets character's return March 20 2006 LOS ANGELES -- "South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone may yet have the final word on Isaac Hayes' departure from the show. The series, which has been the focus of much media speculation in the past week over Hayes leaving and Comedy Central's pulling of a Scientology-mocking episode, begins its 10th season Wednesday night with an episode called "The Return of Chef!" -- while making no mention of Hayes. In the episode, Chef makes a "triumphant homecoming" to South Park (even prior to...

Ode to Hypocrisy By the Comedy Central bigwigs (and Tom Adkins) Once, Comedy Central Was a network that stood tall South Park was unleashed, And man, did they have balls. South park lampooned big shots, and megastars who got fat They said a bunch of swear words Man, we LOVE when they do that! They attacked religion. And politicians, too Heck, they bitch-slapped everyone! In fact, we quite approved. But Suddenly, our braintrust Has our panties tied in knots They tweaked the Scientologists! Those dirty little snots! Sure, we let ‘em have fun. And even throw some slime! But don’t...

NEW YORK, March 13 (UPI) -- Religious parody on "South Park" has led Isaac "Chef" Hayes to quit the Comedy Central cartoon. Hayes, who has been with "South Park" since 1997, issued a statement Monday saying he has requested a release from the show because of recent episodes displaying "inappropriate ridicule of religious communities." "There is a place in this world for satire, but there is a time when satire ends and intolerance and bigotry toward religious beliefs of others begins," Hayes said. "Religious beliefs are sacred to people and at all times should be respected and honored. As a...

Some chefs in Rochester dished out support for local veterans this weekend. They served up a prime rib dinner to raise money to help keep a VFW post open. "We needed a place to meet that had a kitchen. It fit the bill," Chef Paul Healy, President of the Rochester Chapter of the American Culinary Federation (ACF) said. Members of ACF recently started meeting and cooking twice a month at VFW post 307 on S. Union St. in Rochester. "So far we couldn't be happier," Healy said. Neither could the VFW's treasurer and building manager, Tony Torelli. "Our members are...

Isaac Hayes Hospitalized for Exhaustion MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Isaac Hayes was being treated at a Memphis hospital Tuesday for exhaustion, his longtime songwriting partner said. "He's just overworked and had been in Atlantic City performing, the D.C. area performing, and in Tunica (Miss.) a couple of nights ago. He was just overworked," David Porter told The Commercial Appeal newspaper. "He's doing much better," Porter added

Chef gets Bronze Star for convoy rescue Chief Warrant Officer 3 David J. Longstaff, manager of the U.S. Army culinary team, has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal with Valor for rescuing five Soldiers pinned down in an ambush. Longstaff was serving as Division Support Command food service technician for the 1st Armored Division, when he went on a procurement mission in the Al Rasheed district of Baghdad on Aug. 7, 2003. It was early afternoon with temperatures reaching 113 degrees fahrenheit. During his first five months in Iraq, Longstaff had participated in more than 150 convoys into Baghdad. This...

Q: How did you go from the tough guy with the gold chains on "Hot Buttered Soul" to playing a fat, bearded cartoon cook who has threesomes with white women? A: Well, I had been on my agent's back a long time: "Man, get me some voice-overs! Get me some voice-overs!" So one day he called me and said, "Mr. Hayes, I think I've got some voice-over work for you." I said, "Yeah, some Disney!" He goes, "No, no, not quite. This is different." He wouldn't tell me about it. He just said Matt Stone and Trey Parker, who created...

A series of recent memoirs by former cooks, a bodyguard and the sister of one of the lovers of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il have all served to conjure up a lurid portrait of a mercurial and extravagant dictator. Kim Jong-il with his late father Kim Il-sung Kim won power thanks to his father - will the succession be so simple? But besides detailing Mr Kim's lifestyle, they have also given important indications as to who may go on to succeed the 61-year-old leader - if one of the world's most secretive, and arguably most dangerous, regimes survives. Analysing events...

WACO, Texas - Kitchen duties may have traditionally been viewed as women's work, but not at the White House. Until now: Cristeta Comerford has been named executive chief. After an extensive six-month search, first lady Laura Bush announced Sunday that Comerford was chosen from hundreds of applicants to head the executive kitchen. A naturalized U.S. citizen from the Philippines, she will be the first woman and first minority to hold the post. The 42-year-old Comerford has been an assistant chef at the White House for 10 years. She worked under former executive chef Walter Scheib III, who resigned in February.

HALLE, Germany (AFP) - A German chef armed with a meat cleaver and pans chased away two armed men who were trying to rob his cash till, police said. One of the robbers brandished a gun and demanded the cook hand over cash, but his accomplice found that the till was broken and jammed shut. The would-be thieves eventually fled empty-handed from the restaurant in the eastern city of Halle when the 48-year-old chef started throwing pots and keys. sh till, police said.

WASHINGTON - Fancy state dinners aren't all the new White House chef will need to do — the Bushes are looking for someone who knows barbecue and other good old American fare. Laura Bush told Newsweek she doesn't expect that any of the celebrity chefs with books or television shows will be interested in becoming head chef at the presidential home. But she's looking to fill the job with someone who "can really showcase American foods." The previous White House chef, Walter Scheib III, has left to pursue new opportunities after nearly 11 years of cooking for two presidents, and...

Julia Child, probably one of the most well known chefs, has passed away at age 91. Just broke on Fox.

Even being a former president of the United States isn't enough to guarantee a table at Jamie Oliver's landmark London restaurant Fifteen, it appears. Bill Clinton was turned away from the television chef's restaurant because it was full and staff refused to bump other patrons with a booking, it was reported. Fifteen, which is staffed by rookie chefs recruited and trained by Oliver in the television program Jamie's Kitchen, is so popular diners have to book three months in advance. The former US president wanted to visit the restaurant during a recent visit to London and a staff member rang...

Kim's Japanese chef tells of sushi and wild parties The increasing isolation of North Korea in the international community is driving Kim Jong Il, the North Korean leader, up against a wall. One critical question is, what will Kim do when the end of his reign nears. The button used to launch nuclear weapons is in his hand. Will he push it? What the world has not done is learn more about the kind of person Kim is. Shukan Post has found a Japanese man who served Kim Jong Il as a chef for 13 years. The Japanese chef told...

Chef 'suicide' after critics' attackOne of France's most celebrated chefs has apparently committed suicide after his flagship restaurant was downgraded in a top restaurant guide. Bernard Loiseau was found dead at his country home, a hunting rifle by his side. His death came a week after the renowned GaultMillau restaurant guide cut its rating for his Cote d'Or restaurant in Burgundy. Now the critics themselves are facing the criticism - accused of exercising too much power, toying with the establishments they assess and ultimately pushing Loiseau over the edge. "I think GaultMillau killed him. When you are leader of the...

In an emotion-charged interview, the TV chef tells why she is standing by her man, husband Tim Allen, convicted this week of child porn charges. RALPH RIEGEL reports Television chef Darina Allen last night emotionally insisted she was standing by her husband, Tim, despite the outcry over his child pornography conviction. And she pleaded: "Let him without sin cast the first stone." Darina, the public face of Ballymaloe and its world-famous cookery school, stressed that, while she was standing by the man she has loved for over 32 years, she would not condone what he had done. Her 52-year old...

Bin Laden Favorite Chef Speaks Out… The hunt for the world’s most wanted man goes on and it seems clues and speculations regarding his whereabouts still have not led the CIA to locate the Saudi fugitive and Al Qaeda leader. A self-described chef for Osama bin Laden, who has been captured by tribesmen in Afghanistan, says that his boss, after leaving Afghanistan for Pakistan, has since entered into Iran, according to a recent report in the Christian Science Monitor. Saudi Haji Mohamad Akram, suffering from torture by his captors, provided details regarding the battle at Tora Bora, of bin Laden's...