There is simply no one more appreciative for what the restaurant industry has brought him than Chef Geoffrey Zakarian. In tandem with his longtime veteran publicist Tara Halper and Executive Producer Jaret Keller, Zakarian produced and hosted a one-hour television event last month to raise money for City Harvest. THE GREAT NEW YORK FOODATHON featured the biggest names in culinary, film, television, music, comedy and sports – all from their homes around the country. The show aired commercial-free on Fox 5 and My 9.
“In times of crisis, New Yorkers step up to help one another and this time is no different, as New York City comes together to help raise money for hunger relief throughout the boroughs,” says Zakarian, a City Harvest Board Member & Chair of the Food Council. “It’s an honor to host The Great New York Foodathon and pay tribute to the greatest city in the world.”
John Legend, Neil Patrick Harris, Bobby Flay, Whoopi Goldberg, Eric Ripert, Dr. Oz, Chelsea Clinton and Katie Couric were all present to celebrate New York City’s strength and resilience while raising money for City Harvest – NYC’s private response to hunger and largest food rescue organization, helping to feed the nearly 2.5 million New Yorkers who were struggling to put meals on their tables before the crisis and the many more who need help accessing food now. The special was supported by JPMorgan Chase.
“While City Harvest has stepped up to feed our city in times of great need before, including following 9/11, the 2008 recession, and Superstorm Sandy, we have never before experienced anything on the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are here for the long-haul, working to ensure there’s food for our neighbors throughout this crisis and in the uncertain weeks and months ahead,” said Jilly Stephens, City Harvest’s Chief Executive Officer.
Celebrity chefs such as Giada DeLaurentiis, Rachael Ray, Anne Burrell, Katie Lee, Buddy Valastro, Marcus Samuelsson and Michael Symon shared their favorite recipes from their home kitchens while actors Lin-Manuel Miranda, Kevin Bacon, Debi Mazar, Brooke Shields, Matt Bomer and Julianna Margulies gave heartfelt tributes to the Big Apple.
Also featured in the special were: Rosanna Scotto, Michael Strahan, Jim Gaffigan, David Burtka, Rob Thomas, Alan Cumming, Antoni Porowski, Bethenny Frankel, Patrick Ewing, Christie Brinkley, Jill Kargman, Wendy Williams, Isaac Mizrahi, Gavin Degraw, Danny Meyer, Donna Karan, Donatella Arpaia, Judith Light, Kristin Chenoweth, Cheyenne Jackson, Cynthia Rowley, Sandra Ripert, Molly Sims, Steve Schirripa, Zac Posen, Jennifer Esposito, Laura Prepon, Gabriele Corcos, Marc Murphy, Dascha Polanco and Talib Kweli.
The show’s Executive Producer Jaret Keller said, “New Yorkers are strong, determined and passionate when it comes to helping our neighbors. We are grateful to our friends at Fox 5 for acting quickly to provide a home for our extraordinary talent to tell their stories, entertain viewers and support City Harvest.”
The special aired on WNYW Fox 5 NY and WWOR Channel 9 and stream on all of Fox NY’s digital platforms. “FOX 5 and My 9 are proud to partner with Geoffrey Zakarian and provide the platform that will encourage the support of City Harvest, an exceptional organization that works tirelessly to protect New Yorkers in the fight against hunger. We have faith in the success of this special, because during critical times New Yorkers are prepared to step up and help those in need,” said Dan Carlin, VP of Programming, Research, Creative Services & Public Affairs at WNYW/WWOR.
Viewers were invited to join the cause to help feed hungry New Yorkers by making any monetary donation at cityharvest.org or providing a one time $25 donation by texting ‘FEEDNYC’ to ‘20222’ (data and message rates may apply). As part of their overall $10 million commitment to City Harvest, XTX Markets, a leading electronic market-maker, generously matched all Foodathon gifts made through April 19th, doubling the impact of every donation up to $2.5 million.
The Great New York Foodathon was executive produced by Geoffrey Zakarian, Jaret Keller, Margaret Zakarian and Tara Halper for Corner Table Entertainment, and Eric Conte and Dan Weinreich for Content.23 Media. The special featured original music by On The Move Entertainment’s artist, Yvette Roviro.
City Harvest is New York City’s largest food rescue organization, helping to feed the nearly 1.2 million New Yorkers who are struggling to put meals on their tables. They will rescue 66 million pounds of food this year and deliver it, free of charge, to hundreds of food pantries, soup kitchens, and other community partners across the five boroughs. The City Harvest programs empower individuals through nutrition education, increase their partners’ capacity, and strengthen the local food system, helping New Yorkers who are experiencing food insecurity to access, afford, and consume nutritious food. To learn more about their work, visit cityharvest.org.
