No one was more shocked about Anthony Bourdain's suicide than his own mother.
In a phone interview with NBC News, Gladys Bourdain said she never saw any red flags indicating that something might be wrong with her son prior to his death.
Related: Olivia Munn Opens Up About Battle With Suicidal Thoughts
She insisted:
"Not a one, ever."
Gladys, a former editor at The New York Times, revealed that her younger son, Christopher, broke the news of Anthony's death to her.
She added that her late son was "a lover of people of all kinds" who never hid who he was:
"[He was] feisty and very talented. He didn't disguise anything ... he was who he was, and it was out there for everyone to see."
Reminiscing about his childhood, Gladys remembered Anthony, whom she last heard from in an email on Mother's Day, was always wise beyond his years:
"He always had talent, and he always had an incredible vocabulary. In second grade [his teacher] suggested that we put him into a private school because he was sitting in a corner reading books while all the other kids were learning how to read."
The Parts Unknown host's mother also shared that she was the one who suggested Anthony go to culinary school after he spent a summer working in a kitchen:
"The thing is he came back from his first summer in Provincetown as a dishwasher, and then one of the cooks burned himself or cut himself so badly he had to stop work and Tony, who had been just observing, filled in. And when he came back at the end of that summer, we talked about it and since he had so little interest in his college career. I suggested the Culinary Institute and that's how it all started."
As we reported, the 61-year-old was found dead by suicide in a French hotel room on Friday by his friend Eric Ripert.
Our heart goes out to Anthony's mother at this difficult time. He may never have displayed any signs of struggling, but even the most charismatic people can have a face they never reveal to others.
If you're in the U.S. and you feel like you need help, please reach out to the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-273-8255.
[Image via WENN.]