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Cake Boss

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Cake Boss
GenreReality
StarringBuddy Valastro
Valastro Family
The Staff of Carlo's Bakery
Opening themeSugar, Sugar, sung by:
The Nerds (2009–11)
Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights (2011–)
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes123 (plus 5 specials) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersPamela Healey
Jim Berger
Art Edwards
ProducersLaney McVicker
Casey Bauer
Production locationHoboken, New Jersey
EditorsDavid T McCurley
Patrick Bryant
Christopher Schultz
David Miers
Stacey Martins
Running time30 minutes
Original release
NetworkTLC
ReleaseApril 19, 2009 (2009-04-19) –
present
Related
Next Great Baker
Kitchen Boss

Cake Boss is an American reality television series, airing on the cable television network TLC. The show follows the operations of Carlo's Bakery, a family-owned business in Hoboken, New Jersey owned and operated by siblings Buddy Valastro (to whom the series' title refers), Lisa Valastro, Maddalena Castano, Grace Faugno and Mary Sciarrone.[1] The show focuses on how they make their cakes, and the interpersonal relationships among the various family members and other employees who work at the shop.

The show premiered on April 19, 2009, and four additional seasons followed, premiering October 26, 2009, May 31, 2010 (returning in October), January 31, 2011 (returning in September), and May 28, 2012, respectively.[2][3][4][5]

Cast

Present

  • Bartolo "Buddy" Valastro, Jr. (born March 3, 1977)[6][7][8][9] – The Italian American star of the show, who has worked at the bakery since age 17 in 1994.[10] He is the only son and the youngest child of Bartolo "Buddy" Sr. and Mary Valastro. He grew up in Little Ferry, New Jersey.[11] He is married to Elisabetta "Lisa" Valastro (née Belgiovine) with whom he now has four children: Sofia, Bartolo "Buddy" III, Marco, and Carlo Salvatore. In 2012, as a result of the attention that the series brought to Hoboken, New Jersey, the Hudson Reporter named him as an honorable mention in its list of Hudson County's 50 most influential people.[12]
  • Mauro Castano – pastry chef and Buddy's right-hand man. He is married to Buddy's second oldest sister, Maddalena Castano (née Valastro) (born August 15, 1967)[13] who works the front counter. They have three children: Dominique, Buddy, and Mary.[14]
  • Danny Dragone – multipurpose employee, worked at the bakery since before Buddy was born. He is a close family friend, and married with one child who works at the bakery: Tatiana. He is nicknamed "the mule" for his versatility.[15]
  • Frank "Frankie" Amato Jr. – cake decorator. He is Buddy's first cousin, the godfather to his son Marco, and married with two children.[16]
  • Joseph "Joey" Faugno – The shop's head baker. He is married to Buddy's oldest sister Grace Faugno (née Valastro) (born June 30, 1966)[13] who works front counter. They have two children: Robert and Bartolina.[17]
  • Lisa Gonzalez (born December 31, 1974)[13] – Buddy's youngest sister, was married to Remy and has one child and two older children from a previous marriage.[citation needed]
  • Anthony "Cousin Anthony" Bellifemine – baker and former delivery boy. He is Lisa and Maurizio's paternal cousin.[citation needed]
  • Maurizio Belgiovine – delivery boy. He is Buddy's brother-in-law.[18]
  • Ralph "Ralphie Boy" Attanasia III – bakery sculptor.[citation needed]
  • Dana Herbert – Buddy's intern (winner of Season 1 of Next Great Baker).
  • Marissa Lopez – Buddy's intern (winner of Season 2 of Next Great Baker).
  • Ashley Holt – Buddy's intern (winner of Season 3 of Next Great Baker).
  • Mary Sciarrone (née Valastro)[18] (born September 30, 1969)[13] – Cake Consultant and Buddy's third oldest sister. She is married with two children.[19] In the fifth season episode "Stained Glass & A Surprised Danny", she was fired because of multiple incidents involving her making inappropriate statements.[20] Mary was rehired as a cake consultant a few weeks after being fired.[21]

Past

Carlo's Bake Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey, where the series is filmed.
  • Mary Valastro Pinto – Buddy's mother. A show regular until her 2010 retirement; still appears on the show on occasion. Announced in 2012 that she has been diagnosed with ALS. The family's struggle and reaction was documented on the Season 5 finale, "A Bittersweet Homecoming", on July 23, 2012.[22]
  • Remigio "Remy" Gonzalez – Buddy's former left-hand man and the ex-husband of Buddy's sister Lisa. Remy's first and only child, daughter Isabella, was born on the Cake Boss episode "Mother's Day, Mama and Mom-to-be". He left the show after being arrested for alleged sexual assault.[23]
  • Salvatore "Sal" Picinich (1947[24] – January 30, 2011[25][26][27]) worked at the bakery from 1964 and was one of Buddy's most trusted employees. Picinich stopped appearing on the show at the end of 2009, when he began battling cancer, but returned in the summer of 2010 to accept the Employee of the Century Award on the occasion of the bakery’s 100th anniversary. He passed away January 30, 2011.[26]
  • Kevin "Stretch" Krand – a delivery boy who left the shop to continue his education.[28]
  • Tony "Tone-Tone" Albanese – Buddy's second intern. [[2]]
  • Stephanie "Sunshine" Fernandez- top decorator at Carlo's. She was the first female employee who did not work with sales, as stated by Buddy Valastro.[episode needed]

Reception

The interior of Carlo's Bake Shop on a busy holiday.

The popularity of the show has resulted in increased business for Carlo's Bake Shop, and increased tourism to the Hoboken area.[29] Due to the series' popularity, Carlo's Bake Shop has become a tourist attraction, with lines to enter the bakery often extending down the block and around the corner.[30] In 2010, Hoboken renamed the corner of Washington Street and Newark Street to "Carlo's Bakery Way" in honor of the bakery's centennial.[31]

Season one averaged 2.3 million viewers[32] while season two averaged 1.8 million viewers.[33]

Tie-ins and spinoffs

On November 2, 2010, Buddy Valastro's book, Cake Boss: Stories and Recipes from Mia Famiglia, which is based on the series, was released. Published by Free Press in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Carlo's Bake Shop, the book features the history and stories of Valastro's family and the bake shop, along with recipes.[18]

Valastro's second book, Baking with the Cake Boss: 100 of Buddy's Best Recipes and Decorating Secrets, is a cook book, also published by Free Press, released November 1, 2011 and featuring Valastro's cake, pastry and decorating recipes.[34]

The success of Cake Boss has led to a spin-off competition series hosted by Valastro, Next Great Baker, in which people compete to win a top cash prize, other valuable prizes, and an apprenticeship at Carlo's Bakery. The program's first season was seen on TLC December 6, 2010[35] through January 24, 2011,[5] with a second season televised November 28, 2011 to January 30, 2012. The competition's third season premiered on Monday, November 26, 2012.[36]

Another spinoff series, Kitchen Boss, debuted January 25, 2011. This series, which is seen weekdays, features Valastro presenting his family's recipes, as well as special guests, including members of his own family.[5]

Episodes and DVD releases

Main article: List of Cake Boss episodes
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast airedNetwork
113April 19, 2009 (2009-04-19)August 17, 2009 (2009-08-17)TLC
219October 26, 2009 (2009-10-26)February 22, 2010 (2010-02-22)
325May 31, 2010 (2010-05-31)November 29, 2010 (2010-11-29)
441January 31, 2011 (2011-01-31)January 30, 2012 (2012-01-30)
530May 28, 2012 (2012-05-28)February 18, 2013 (2013-02-18)
628May 27, 2013 (2013-05-27)February 24, 2014 (2014-02-24)
721September 8, 2015 (2015-09-08)November 24, 2015 (2015-11-24)
832August 23, 2016 (2016-08-23)December 2, 2017 (2017-12-02)
938May 18, 2019 (2019-05-18)April 11, 2020 (2020-04-11)Discovery Family

As of February 18, 2013, a total of 123 episodes and 5 specials have been broadcast. The first three seasons, along with the first half of season 4, have been released on DVD in Region 1. Up until halfway into the fifth season, each episode title employed alliteration.

Controversies

In July 2010, Masters Software, Inc., of Cedar Park, Texas, obtained a preliminary injunction forbidding TLC from calling its show "Cake Boss".[37] Since 2006, the company has operated the domain name cakeboss.com, and since 2007, it has sold a bakery management program called CakeBoss. The suit claims that Discovery Communications infringes on its trademark by causing confusion among customers and vendors.[38] In October 2010, Masters Software and Discovery Communications reached a settlement, the details of which are not public.[39][40]

On June 11, 2012, transgendered celebrity Carmen Carrera appeared in a Cake Boss episode, "Bar Mitzvah, Beads & Oh Baby!", in which she unknowingly participated in a prank involving Cousin Anthony, who was set up with a date with Carrera.[41] The punchline of the joke had Buddy tell Anthony that "...that's a man, baby!"[42][41] Carrera, however, originally agreed to appear on the program to promote equality for the transgender community, not aware that she would be involved in a joke. Following the airing of the program, Carrera complained about the situation, saying, "I made it VERY clear to the producers on how to use the correct wording before agreeing to filming this but instead they chose to poke fun and be disrespectful. That's not what I'm about! ... I may not have been born a woman, but I'm NOT a man... After taking this journey it's not fair at all to be lied to by the producers."[43][41] Buddy Valastro apologized for the incident, saying, "I owe an apology to the entire LGBT community. It was absolutely not my intention to upset or offend her, or anyone within the community, and I was wrong to use the words I did. I am a supporter of gay rights and equality, and while I regret this situation and my choice of words, I am thankful to have received this feedback and the opportunity to learn from this mistake. I hope that Carmen accepts my sincere regrets."[44][41] The following day, on June 12, 2012, TLC announced that "Bar Mitzvah, Beads & Oh Baby!" has been pulled from rotation indefinitely, with plans to re-edit the episode.[45] The episode has since returned to air on July 23, 2012,[46] but with the offending scene reedited.

See also

References

  1. ^ Diaz, Lana Rose. "Brothers & Sisters, Inc.: Hoboken businesses keep it in the family". 07030 Hoboken. (Winter 2012/13). Pages 16-20
  2. ^ "Cake Boss Returns October 11; Production Started on Next Great Baker". The Futon Critic. September 14, 2010
  3. ^ TV Listings for Cake Boss at TLC. Retrieved October 5, 2010
  4. ^ Gorman, Bill. "‘Cake Boss’ Returns With New Episodes" TV By the Numbers; September 28, 2010
  5. ^ a b c TV Guide: "TLC Orders New Buddy Valastro Series Kitchen Boss", January 5, 2011. Note: The article mentions that the show would be previewed following Next Great Baker; however, 19 Kids and Counting will be seen instead, per promos.
  6. ^ Buddy Valastro – Zap2it
  7. ^ The Life Of Bartolo (Buddy) Valastro Jr.
  8. ^ Cake Boss – eNotes.com
  9. ^ TRIBUTE TO MARY TUBITO VALASTRO PINTO L'ITALICO'S ITALIAN COMMUNITY 1997 WOMAN OF THE YEAR
  10. ^ "Buddy Valastro". TLC. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
  11. ^ Staff. "The Cake Boss returns to Little Ferry", Little Ferry Local, May 7, 2010. Retrieved August 22, 2012. "Cake Boss Buddy Valastro returned to Little Ferry on April 27 to accept the "keys to the city" during ceremonies at Borough Hall. Valastro, who grew up in town, is best known for his starring role on the TLC television program The Cake Boss.'"
  12. ^ Adriana Rambay Fernández, Stephen LaMarca, Gennarose Pope, Ray Smith, Al Sullivan and E. Assata Wright. "They've Got the Power". The Union City Reporter. January 8, 2012. Pages 1, 4–7 and 10–11.
  13. ^ a b c d [1]
  14. ^ "Mauro Castano". TLC. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
  15. ^ "Danny Dragone". TLC. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
  16. ^ "Frank Amato, Jr". TLC. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
  17. ^ "Joe Faugno". TLC. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
  18. ^ a b c Buddy Valastro. Cake Boss: Stories and Recipes from Mia Famiglia. ISBN 978-1-4391-8351-9.
  19. ^ "Mary Sciarrone". TLC. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
  20. ^ "Stained Glass & A Surprised Danny", Cake Boss, Season 5, Episode 3, TLC, June 4, 2012.
  21. ^ She returned to full time work at the bakery in the episode "Silly Seuss & Surprise!", Cake Boss, TLC, July 2, 2012.
  22. ^ "A Bittersweet Homecoming", Cake Boss, TLC, July 23, 2012.
  23. ^ "Former "Cake Boss" assistant Remy Gonzalez pleads guilty to aggravated sexual assault".
  24. ^ "'Cake Boss' and family mourn loss of 'Employee-of-the-Century' Salvatore Picinich". The Jersey Journal. February 1, 2011.
  25. ^ Buddy Valastro on Facebook, January 31, 2011.
  26. ^ a b "Sal Picinich, 'Cake Boss' celebrity, dies at 63". The Bergen Record. January 31, 2011.
  27. ^ "Salvatore Picinich". The Bergen Record. February 3, 2011.
  28. ^ "Strawberries, Sinatra and Sick Ovens". Cake Boss. Season 3. Episode 15. August 23, 2010. 18:47 minutes in. TLC. Ever since Stretch left for school, we've been a little light on the delivery staff. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |episodelink= ignored (|episode-link= suggested) (help)
  29. ^ Staab, Amanda. "The 'Cake Boss' effect". The Union City Reporter. July 11, 2010. Pages 6 and 8.
  30. ^ Sachs, Andrea (March 14, 2010). "Reality TV's 'Cake Boss' shows off his bakery and his home town, Hoboken, N.J." The Washington Post. Retrieved 04/01/2010. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  31. ^ Hyman, Vicki (06/08/2010). "'Cake Boss' kicking off Carlo's Bakery centennial with Hoboken block party". The Star Ledger. Retrieved 06/09/2010. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  32. ^ Gorman, Bill (July 29, 2009). "'Cake Boss' renewed by TLC". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  33. ^ Levine, Stuart (January 31, 2010). "'Cake Boss' earns third season". Variety. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  34. ^ Buddy Valastro. Baking with the Cake Boss: 100 of Buddy's Best Recipes and Decorating Secrets. ISBN 978-1-4391-8352-6.
  35. ^ "Cake Boss Gets Competitive with New Spinoff Series". TVGuide.com.
  36. ^ "Season Three of TLC's 'Next Great Baker' to Premiere Monday, November 26". TV By the Numbers. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  37. ^ "TLC's "Cake Boss" Could Crumble Under Litigation". NBC Universal. July 27, 2010. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
  38. ^ Richard A. Jones (July 16, 2010). "Masters Software, Inc. v. Discovery Communications, Inc., et al" (PDF). United States Department of Justice. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
  39. ^ Katie Colaneri (October 22, 2010). "'Cake Boss' will keep his name, settles 'amicably' with software company". Jersey Journal. Retrieved July 7, 2011.
  40. ^ Tierryicah Mitchell (January 23, 2011). "Who's the Boss?: Settlement Allows Buddy Valastro To Continue To Use "Cake Boss"". Law JournalFeeds. Retrieved July 7, 2011.
  41. ^ a b c d Huffington Post: "'Cake Boss' Features Carmen Carrera, Transgender Star Claims She Was Butt Of Transphobic Joke", June 12, 2012.
  42. ^ The Hoboken Patch: "Cake Boss Recap: On Becoming a Man, and Staying One", June 12, 2012.
  43. ^ Facebook: Carmen Carrera
  44. ^ Facebook: Cake Boss
  45. ^ Kane, Matt (June 13, 2012). "TLC Pulls Cake Boss Episode After Carmen Carrera and Her Supporters Speak Out". GLAAD.
  46. ^ Per listings at zap2it.com
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