Julie Powell, food writer who inspired Julie & Julia , dies at 49

Julie Powell, the food writer who inspired Nora Ephron's 2009 biographical dramedy Julie & Julia, died from cardiac arrest on Oct. 26 at her home in upstate New York, her husband Eric Powell told The New York Times. She was 49.

Powell rose to prominence in 2002 when she launched the Julie/Julia Project on Salon, which chronicled her attempt to cook all 524 recipes from Julia Child's landmark cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking over the course of a year. An aspiring writer who was dissatisfied with her administrative job, Powell became one of the earliest pioneers of contemporary food blogging, acquiring a cult following as she documented her failures and successes, both in life and in the kitchen — usually with a cocktail in tow.

JIMI CELESTE/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images Julie Powell

The success of the blog led to a book deal with Little, Brown and Company. Powell released Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen in 2005. The book was later adapted into a film, Ephron's Julie & Julia, starring Amy Adams as Powell and Meryl Streep as Child. The star-studded cast also included Chris Messina as Powell's husband Eric and Stanley Tucci as Child's husband, Paul. Streep scored a best actress nomination for the role at the 2010 Academy Awards and Golden Globes.

"Julie and Julia became an instant classic, and it is with gratitude for her unique voice that we will now remember Julie's dazzling brilliance and originality," Judy Clain, editor in chief of Little, Brown and Company, tells EW in a statement.

"We mourn her loss with her husband Eric and her family," she continued. "We are sending our deepest condolences to all who knew and loved Julie, whether personally or through the deep connections she forged with readers of her memoirs. She was a brilliant writer and a daring, original person and she will not be forgotten."

As for what Powell thought of the movie adaptation, her husband told the Times she was "happy for the story to be Nora Ephron's story." He added, "It did kind of sand down the quirky and the spiky and a lot of the things everyone knew her for and loved her for. And she was okay with that."

The film's success pushed Child's book to the top of the bestsellers list nearly 48 years after it was published. Along with Julie and Julia, Powell also authored Cleaving: A Story of Marriage, Meat, and Obsession.

Powell is survived by her husband, brother, and parents.

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