B. Smith, Everson native and model turned lifestyle guru, dead at 70
Model, restaurateur and lifestyle guru Barbara “B.” Smith, an Everson native, died at her Long Island home Saturday evening, her family announced in a statement on social media. She was 70.
Smith died Saturday evening after battling early onset Alzheimer’s disease, which she was diagnosed with in 2013. “Heaven is shining even brighter now that it is graced with B.’s dazzling and unforgettable smile,” Gasby said in a lengthy Facebook post honoring her life.
Smith wrote three cookbooks, founded three successful restaurants and launched a nationally syndicated television show and a magazine. Her successful home products line was the first from a black woman to be sold at a nationwide retailer when it debuted in 2001 at Bed Bath & Beyond. In 1976, she became the second black model to be on the cover of Mademoiselle magazine, after Joli Jones in 1969.
“It’s good to be busy,” Smith told the 蘑菇视频 in 2012. “I like it that way.”
After graduating from Southmoreland High School in 1967, Smith began modeling and moved to New York City in 1969, when she signed with the famous Wilhelmena agency. She appeared on the covers of such magazines as Ebony, Essence and became the first African-American woman on the cover of Mademoiselle.
Smith was born the only girl in a family of four children to the late William and Florence Smith. Her father worked for U.S. Steel.
Smith went on to serve as a spokeswoman for Verizon, Colgate, Palmolive Oxy and McCormick’s Lawry seasonings. She hosted the nationally syndicated television show “B. Smith with Style” for nearly a decade, which aired on NBC stations.
Smith also started writing home entertainment books, beginning in 1994 with “B. Smith’s Entertaining and Cooking for Friends,” which was the first tabletop entertainment and lifestyle book by an African-American. This was followed by “B. Smith’s Rituals and Celebrations,” which became a James Beard Foundation Award nominee; and “B. Smith Cooks Southern-Style” that includes tips for reducing calories.
“I’m not really thinking about firsts,” Smith said in 2012. “It’s ‘Can I do this?’ or ‘Can I do that?’ I want to try something new. I’m just thinking about what’s next — always evolving.”
She and her husband, Dan Gasby, raised awareness of Alzheimer’s disease, and particularly its impacts on the African-American community, following her diagnosis.
The couple co-authored a book, “Before I Forget: Love, Hope, Help, and Acceptance in Our fight Against Alzheimer’s,” and have partnered with the Brain Health Registry.
Smith is survived by Gasby, whom she married in 1992, and her stepdaughter Dana Gasby.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.