"I thought the documentary was excellent. I’ve always wanted to know the whole story. I watched his show religiously, looking forward to recording it on my VHS machine back then. Loved the cookbooks as well. I always got the feeling he was flawed like all of us are, but I’d be willing to bet that it was the alcohol abuse that did him in. Had he not gotten in trouble, I’m sure he would’ve wound up working for the Food Network, whose own success he heavily influenced. His cooking shows were more than just cooking. His food history lessons were enchanting. Thank you for making this documentary. I hope a lot of people decide to take a look back on his very interesting life and career."
Peter Kern
"Very well done. No surprises."
Pamela
"Great work by Chris Johnson and his team. Chris lets the people involved tell the stories, from the victims, to people in the room, to the enablers and a few deniers. It is a story this country needs to hear. Pay close attention and you will learn."
Mike Dawson (Stadium High School 1980)
"One of the most interesting, thought provoking, detailed documentaries I have seen. I watched Jeff Smith religiously. While his insights, ideas, creativity, were incredible, I am saddened by his duality and secrets/addiction. I do feel his sexual proclivities were driven by his latent homosexuality. The documentary is about Jeff Smith, but also about the complexities of the human condition."
Jane Aquilina
"A bit too long and at times, the interviews were repetitive. There are a lot of issues that went unanswered. Did they try to contact anyone from the immediate family? If they declined, I would have liked to have known. If Jeff and Patty never divorced, why wasn’t he mentioned in her obituary (her obituary was published). What about his kids? Did they essential cease all communication from him? The reporter in this documentary was awesome, by the way. Not sure it was worth $20 but I can appreciate everyone needs to make money to support their endeavors."
Karen
"Amazing. Thorough, so engaging and well-developed story…my mom and I watched the entire 5 episodes on the edge of our seats. High production value also. Great job I am so glad I saw it!"
Nicole
"I knew the man and several food industry colleagues. Spot on."
Jmkays
"It could have been three episodes just fine. Too long. Enlightening about how far a persons enablers will go to continue denial. Good use of old footage. Would have loved one of his victims to talk with his minister."
Carly
"I lived in Steilacoom when he had the Bair Store and used to see him at the Grand china restaurant. Excellent piece about his life, I thoroughly enjoyed it"
Judie
"I have been waiting for this documentary forever. The frugal gourmet show and books were the bond for many years between my immigrant grandparents with whom I lived as a young adult. Luckily, his downfall came shortly after they had both passed. Great job!"
Nick M.
"“I Bid you Peace” was artfully done and journalistically sound. I especially liked the opening of each segment with the lighting of a stove burner.
The documentary was engrossing, but in a much different way than "The Frugal Gourmet” cooking show that I loved to watch. As the owner of three of Jeff Smith’s cookbooks, which I still use today, it’s hard to reconcile Jeff Smith, the minister and chef, with Jeff Smith, the pedophile. I had my doubts as to whether the claims against Smith were true, but with all the evidence presented in the film, I no longer question his guilt.
Speaking as a former journalist, the film hit all the right notes for fairness and balance. There is a broad array of interviewees. Included are journalists, friends, foes, former employees and victims. The victims are to be commended for speaking out. The only complaint: There were no closed captions."
Bernadette Pruitt
"This was an excellent documentary, especially for those of us who remember Jeff Smith, watched his shows and bought his cookbooks. I give this four stars instead of five, as I thought it sometimes overelaborated and some parts had an excessive number of interviews.
I had two encounters with Mr. Smith, both at book signings. The first was a pleasure, as he was relaxed and gracious. The second was awful, his having screamed at me and berated me for daring to ask him to sign a second book of his that I had bought. I remember that, at the first event, he had an adult beverage at hand and, at the second event, he did not. In this regard, your documentary explained much. Despite all that came to light subsequently, I still regard him as the individual who got me much more interested in food and cooking, and I still cook his recipes.
Dave M."
Dave M.