The basis for Nora Ephron's "Julie & Julia," food writer Julie Powell, passes away at the age of 49.
A well-known culinary writer named Julie Powell, whose popular blog the "Julie/Julia Project" served as the inspiration for Nora Ephron's last film,
Her husband Eric confirmed to the New York Times that "Julie & Julia" star Julia Roberts died suddenly on October 26 after a heart attack at her Olivebridge, New York, home. Powell, 49 years old,
Powell set out to create each dish in "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" by Julia Child and to write about the experience.
Based on the voyage of the culinary blogger, "Julie & Julia," starring Meryl Streep as Child and Amy Adams as Powell, jumps back and forth in time from the 1950s to the early 2000s.
Streep was nominated for best actress at the 82nd Academy Awards for her performance.
After becoming bored with her fruitless work at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, Powell launched the "Julie/Julia Project" on Salon.com in 2002.
She rapidly gained a sizable following; according to Salon, before the end of the year, her page had 400,000 page views.
Soon after, Powell decided to work with Little, Brown & Company to publish her blog into a book. The resultant book, "Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen," was published in 2005.
John and Kay Foster welcomed Powell into the world on April 20, 1973 in Austin, Texas. She graduated from Amherst College with a bachelor's degree in theatre and fiction writing in 1995.