Born: August 3, 1941, Jersey City, New Jersey, USA
Summary. Over the last two decades Stewart has held a prominent position in the American publishing industry; as the author of several books, hundreds of articles on the domestic arts, editor of a national home keeping magazine, host for two popular daytime television programs, and commercial spokeswoman for K-Mart. In 2001 she was named the third most powerful woman in America by Ladies Home Journal. In 2004 she was convicted of lying to investigators about a stock sale and served five months in prison.
Early days. Her parents were middle-class Polish-Americans: Edward Kostyra and Martha Ruszkowski Kostyra. Stewart and her five siblings, was raised in Nutley, New Jersey. Stewart graduated from Nutley High School. Instilled with a strong passion promoted by her parents, she mastered traits that many would consider common household chores. Stewart's mother taught her how to cook and sew. Later, she learned the processes of canning and preserving when she visited her grandparents' home in Buffalo, New York. Her father had a passion for gardening, and passed on to her much of his knowledge. During this time, Stewart began a modeling career. She was hired and appeared in several television commercials and magazines, including one of Tareyton's "Rather fight than switch" cigarette advertisements. Finishing with straight As, she was awarded a partial scholarship to Barnard College in New York City. Initially she intended to major in Chemistry, but switched to Art and European History, and later Architectural History. In 1961 she married Andrew Stewart. Then she left Barnard for one year, and continued her modeling career, while her husband finished his law degree at Yale Law School. She returned to Barnard a year later, to graduate with a double major in History and Architectural History. In 1965 her daughter Alexis was born.
Beginnings of business career. In 1967, she became a successful stockbroker but left the profession in 1973, in order to focus more time on her daughter, and to restore her new home. Stewart and her husband decided to move to Westport, Connecticut. They purchased and undertook a massive restoration of the 1805 farmhouse that would later become the model for the set of the Martha Stewart Living television program. Stewart and her husband undertook the entire venture by themselves. In 1976 Stewart started a catering business in her basement with a friend, Norma Collier. The venture quickly became successful, but soured when Collier alleged that Stewart was difficult to work with, and was also taking catering jobs on the side. Stewart soon bought her portion of the business. She was also hired as the manager of a gourmet food store, The Market Basket at the Common Market which she transformed into a booming success. Meanwhile, Stewart's husband had become the president of prominent New York City publisher. Andy Stewart contracted Stewart's company to cater a book release party, where she was introduced to Alan Mirken, the head of Crown Publishing Group. Mirken was impressed by Stewart's talent and later contacted her to develop a cookbook featuring recipes and photos from the parties that Stewart hosted. The result was Entertaining, ghostwritten by Elizabeth Hawes. From there, word of her skills and business grew rapidly. Entertaining became a New York Times Best Seller, and the best selling cookbook since Julia Child and Simone Beck's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, released two decades earlier.
Rise to fame. Following Entertaining's success Stewart released Martha Stewart's Quick Cook (1983), Martha Stewart's Hors D'oeuvres (1984), Martha Stewart's Pies & Tarts (1985), Weddings (1987), The Wedding Planner (1988), Martha Stewart's Quick Cook Menus (1988), Martha Stewart's Christmas (1989), and many others. She also authored dozens of newspaper columns, magazine articles and other pieces on homemaking, and made numerous television appearances on programs such as The Oprah Winfrey Show and Larry King Live. In 1989 she divorced her husband. In 1990 she signed with Time Publishing Ventures to develop a new magazine, Martha Stewart Living, for which she served as editor in chief. Circulation would peak in 2002 at more than 2 million copies per issue. In 1993, she began a weekly half-hour service program based on her magazine, which was quickly expanded to a full hour, and later to a daily format, with half-hour episodes on weekends. Stewart also became a frequent contributor to CBS's The Early Show, and starred in several prime time holiday specials on the CBS network. On the cover of their May 1995 issue, New York Magazine declared her as "the definitive American woman of our time."
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. In September 1997, Stewart, with the assistance of business partner Sharon Patrick, was able to secure funding to purchase the various television, print, and merchandising ventures related to the Martha Stewart brand, and consolidate them into a new company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Stewart served as chairwoman, president, and CEO of the new company. That same month Stewart announced in Martha Stewart Living the launch of a companion website, and a catalogue business. The company also has a direct to consumer floral business. In October 1999, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia went public on the New York Stock Exchange. The initial public offering was set at $18 per share, and rallied to $38 by the end of trading, making Stewart a billionaire on paper. The stock price slowly went down to $16 per share by February 2002. Stewart was then and continues to be the majority shareholder, with a commanding 96% control of voting power in the company.
Criminal conviction. According to U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in a federal indictment, Stewart avoided a loss of $45,673 by selling all 3,928 shares of her ImClone stock in late 2001. The day following her sale, the stock value fell 16%. Prosecutors showed that Peter Bacanovic, Stewart's broker at Merrill Lynch, ordered his assistant to tell Stewart that the CEO of ImClone, Samuel D. Waksal, was selling all his shares in advance of an adverse Food and Drug Administration ruling. The FDA action was expected to cause ImClone shares to decline. Stewart voluntarily stepped down as CEO and Chairwoman of MSLO and went on trial in January 2004. She was found guilty in March 2004 of conspiracy, obstruction of an agency proceeding, and making false statements to federal investigators and sentenced in July 2004 to serve a five month term in a federal correctional facility and a two year period of supervised release (to include five months of home confinement). Stewart agreed in September 2004 to begin serving a five-month prison term while her appeal was still pending. She was released in March 2005, after which she was placed under home confinement and required to wear an ankle bracelet for an additional 5 months. Bacanovic and Waksal were also convicted of federal charges and sentenced to prison terms. Stewart also paid a fine of US$30,000. In August 2006, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it had agreed to settle the related civil case against Stewart. Under the settlement, Stewart agreed to a five-year bar from serving as a director, or as the CEO, CFO (or other officer roles in which she would be responsible for preparing, auditing, or disclosing financial results), of any public company.
Current projects. Following her release from prison in March 2005, Stewart was once again involved in Martha Stewart Living. Offerings of her company's Martha Stewart Everyday line at Kmart were expanded to include a new line of ready-made home furnishings, and its interior paint line became available at larger Sears stores. Stewart returned to daytime television with The Martha Stewart Show and appeared in The Apprentice: Martha Stewart. The Martha Stewart Show is currently in its second season. In October 2005, Stewart also released a new book called The Martha Rules on starting and managing a new business, and a month later her company released Martha Stewart Baking Handbook. In October 2006, Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook was published. She also is a regular contributor of cooking, gardening, and crafts segments on NBC's The Today Show. Stewart's daily talk show was nominated in six categories for the 33rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards in 2006, including Best Host and Best Show. MSLO launched a line of houses that carry her name to be built by KB Home initially in Cary, North Carolina and various other locations nationwide. The first homes, which were inspired by Stewart's homes in New York and Mount Desert Island in Maine, were completed in early 2006. Ultimately 650 homes are planned with prices from low $200,000 to mid-$400,000s. A line of paper-based crafts for EK Success is also in development. In September 2007, she launched an upscale line of home wares for Macy's (the largest brand launch in Macy's history). MSLO also launched a 24-hour satellite radio network with Sirius in November 2005, on which Stewart currently hosts a weekly call-in show. Stewart has also encouraged the use of Wikipedia on her program during a segment on pomegranates in order for viewers to learn more about that fruit's symbolism in Jewish tradition. In addition, she has mentioned making a Martha Stewart online encyclopedia: Marthapedia.com. Stewart also made a special appearance on the serio-comic series Ugly Betty in the November 2006 episode "Four Thanksgivings and a Funeral”. In September 2007, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia announced that it inked a partnership with E & J Gallo Winery to produce a wine brand with label "Martha Stewart Vintage". 15,000 cases to be sold include: 2006 Sonoma County Chardonnay, 2005 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon and 2006 Sonoma County Merlot . Martha Stewart also signed contract with Costco Wholesale Corp. to offer frozen and fresh food (label - Kirkland Signature).
Personal life. Never remarried, Stewart is an avid animal lover. Her pets include champion show Chow Chow dogs, French Bulldogs, Himalayan cats, and Friesian horses (which are considered to be among the finest and, indeed, most expensive of equine pets). Martha Kostyra, Stewart's mother, died in November 2007.
Martha Stewart Movies Made for television :Martha, Inc.: The Story of Martha Stewart for NBC and a sequel for CBS entitled Martha: Behind Bars, starring Cybill Shepherd.
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