That Time Guy Fieri Was Accused Of Being 'Impossible To Work With'

Chef and TV personality Guy Fieri recently made waves online with his surprisingly conservative appearance in a Super Bowl ad campaign for the appliance manufacturer Bosch. But well before he swapped his spiky blonde hair for a brown bowl cut, Fieri exploded onto the celebrity chef scene with "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives" (often shortened to "DDD"), an exploration of great greasy spoons nationwide — a show which led to significant controversy for Fieri and Food Network.

In 2011, "DDD" co-creator David Page filed an explosive lawsuit against Fieri and the network, alleging that the host had developed an abnormally large ego that fueled a hostile work environment. Page accused Fieri of surrounding himself with sycophants who excused abhorrent behavior, allegedly including a slew of homophobic and antisemitic comments, as well as sexually inappropriate behavior.

Eater reported at the time that a Fieri spokesperson said he's "a standup guy who does right by people. He would never make the kind of comments attributed to him in this story, and anyone who knows or has even met him knows that." But that wasn't the end of this case of he-said, he-said.

Shortly after Page filed his lawsuit, Food Network countersued for several breaches of contract, as well as its own allegations of a hostile work environment. According to the countersuit, Page sent abusive emails to staffers, calling them degrading names and, in at least one case, hoping a coworker would die soon so he could dance on their grave. Less than 2 weeks later, all parties' legal claims were confidentially settled out of court.

Despite the outrageousness of the accusations, the entire controversy seems to have slipped from popular memory. Although Page's allegations of homophobia were seconded by a then-executive at Page's production company, it would stand in stark contrast to known facts about Fieri's life.

Part of the heartbreaking side of Guy Fieri that fans don't see is the tragic death of his sister, Morgan, from cancer at age 38, a few months before Page's lawsuit. By all accounts, Fieri was extremely close with Morgan, who was also gay. He raised her child as his own, got a prominent tattoo of her, and after the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015, Fieri organized and officiated 101 gay weddings in a mass ceremony dedicated to his late sister's memory.

Page and Fieri have both moved on from their controversial 2011. The former took a step back from TV producing and recently started a food podcast, while the latter continued life as a celebrity chef. Fieri has since been involved in other successful TV shows, including "Guy's Grocery Games," a longer-running series than "DDD" ever was.

However, that first Food Network show arguably remains Fieri's signature contribution to the zeitgeist. "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives" completely changed Guy Fieri into a worldwide celebrity, and cemented his frosted tips image in countless minds. But the change runs deeper than sharing his culinary adventures, or even opening a chain of chicken restaurants in 2018.

Fieri has also used his celebrity to start the Guy Fieri Foundation, which focused for years on teaching children how to cook so they could be smarter consumers, but has since shifted to providing food and relief for first responders and disaster victims. It's certainly a long way from The Awesome Pretzel Cart, 10-year-old Guy Fieri's bicycle-borne first food business.