Anthony Bourdain struggled with fame and heartbreak in the days leading up to his death by suicide, a new book reveals.
In an unauthorized biography titled “Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain,” journalist Charles Leerhsen records text messages sent by the late celebrity chef in his final days to provide insight into his thinking.
“I hate my fans too. I hate being famous. I hate my job,” Bourdain wrote to his ex-wife Ottavia Busia-Bourdain, who had become one of his closest confidants, according to an excerpt published by the New York Times: “I am lonely and live in constant uncertainty.”
Leerhsen also notes in the book, due out October 11, that Bourdain and his then-girlfriend of two years, Asia Argento, often had bouts of jealousy.
Five days before he died in June 2018, the CNN host saw photos of Argento, 47, dancing with French reporter Hugo Clément at a Roman restaurant the couple would often visit together.
According to the book, Bourdain was “incensed” at the footage and searched the name of the “Land of the Dead” star online “hundreds of times”, causing them to argue over the phone and via text.
“I’m okay. I’m not hateful. I’m not jealous you’ve been with another man. I don’t own you. You’re free. Like I said. As I promised. As I really meant it, the ‘Parts Unknown’ star Argento a day before his death.
“But you were careless. You were reckless with my heart. My life.”
Bourdain noted in the same conversation that he was most hurt by the fact that the alleged rendezvous of the Italian actress took place at a hotel in Rome that they loved.
Argento then wrote back to him: “I can’t handle this.”
The “XXX” star went on to break up with Bourdain because of his “possession,” according to the book.
A day later – after a full day of filming followed by an evening of drinks – the beloved chef reached out to Argento again.
“Is there anything I can do?” he reportedly asked, to which his ex replied, “Stop busting my balls.”
Bourdain, according to the book, simply wrote back “OK” and then hanged himself.
The New York Times contacted Argento for comment, and she told the paper she hadn’t read the book, but said of Leerhsen, “I clearly wrote to this man that he couldn’t publish anything I said to him.”
Argento has said in the past that her infidelity was not the cause of Bourdain’s death.
“People say I killed him. They say I killed him. I understand the world needs to find a reason. I’d love to find a reason too,” she said on “DailyMailTV” in September 2018. “People must think he killed himself for something like this. He also cheated on me. That was no problem for us.”
She added: “He was a man who traveled 265 days a year. When we saw each other, we really enjoyed each other’s presence, but we are not children. We are adults.”
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues discussed in this story, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.