Marion Rombauer Becker (2 January 1903 – 28 December 1976) was an illustrator, author, environmentalist, and arts administrator. She is best known for her work illustrating the original ''

The Joy of Cooking ''Joy of Cooking'', often known as "''The Joy of Cooking''", is one of the United States' most-published cookbooks. It has been in print continuously since 1936 and has sold more than 20 million copies. It was published privately during 1931 b ...

'', which she co-authored with her mother Irma von Starkloff Rombauer, and continued to update after her mother's death.

Life

Marion Rombauer was born in

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

in 1903. She attended

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

, graduating in 1925 with degrees in art history and French. She was interested in art, and served as the art director at the

John Burroughs School John Burroughs School (JBS) is a private, non-sectarian college-preparatory school with 631 students in grades 7– 12. Its 49-acre () campus is located in Ladue, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. Founded in 1923, it is named for U.S. naturali ...

from 1928 to 1932. Following the death of her father by suicide in 1930, she moved into an apartment with her mother, where they personally tested out the recipes for the cookbook. Marion designed the book, cover art, and illustrations for the first edition of ''The Joy of Cooking''. In 1932, Marion married an architect named John William Becker and began working as the art director at the Hillsdale School in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

. She went on to serve as the first professional director of the Modern Art Society of Cincinnati (now known as the

Contemporary Arts Center The Contemporary Arts Center (abbreviated CAC) is a contemporary art museum in Cincinnati, Ohio and one of the first contemporary art institutions in the United States. The CAC is a non-collecting museum that focuses on new developments in pain ...

) from 1942 to 1947. In 1955, Becker was diagnosed with

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

and underwent a mastectomy. Becker was passionate about gardening and botany, and co-authored a book about wild plants and flowers called ''Wild Wealth'' with ecologist Paul Sears and Frances Jones Poetker in 1971. She spent 35 years cultivating growth of wild American plants in her gardens and corresponded with many prominent botanists. A boxwood cutting Becker took from her home garden and gave to the

Missouri Botanical Garden The Missouri Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located at 4344 Shaw Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri. It is also known informally as Shaw's Garden for founder and philanthropy, philanthropist Henry Shaw (philanthropist), Henry Shaw. I ...

so deeply impressed the members of the Boxwood Society of the Midwest that they had it officially registered as ''Buxus sempervirens Joy'' in her honor. She also served as secretary for the board of the Cincinnati Nature center from its founding in 1966 until her death. Following the death of her mother in 1962, Becker took over updating new editions of ''The'' ''Joy of Cooking''. The last edition of the book published under her eye was the sixth, which was published in 1975, considered to be a fan favorite and the bestselling edition to date. Following her death, the

University of Cincinnati Medical Center The University of Cincinnati Medical Center (UCMC) is a primary teaching hospital for the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. At various times since its founding in 1821 it has been known by names including Cincinnati Hospital, Commercial ...

named a medicinal herb garden in her honor. She was also given an Ohio Governor's Award in 1976 and was the first woman to be named a "great living Cincinnatian".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Marion Rombauer 1903 births 1976 deaths 20th-century American botanists 20th-century American illustrators 20th-century American women artists American arts administrators American botanical writers American cookbook writers American gardeners American women food writers American women illustrators Artists from Missouri Biologists from Missouri People from St. Louis County, Missouri Vassar College alumni Writers from Missouri Women arts administrators