Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Announces Emeril Lagasse to Team with HarperStudio for Multi-Year, 10-Book Project

NEW YORK (Map) - NEW YORK, Sept. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (NYSE: MSO) today announced that Emeril Lagasse is collaborating with HarperStudio, a new imprint of HarperCollins, on a multi-year, 10-book project. Mr. Lagasse is one of the first authors to join HarperStudio, which launched April 2008 as an innovative book publishing platform. The chef's first book with HarperStudio will focus on indoor and outdoor grilling and will go on sale May 12, 2009, in time for Father's Day. It will be Mr. Lagasse's first book since 2005.

HarperStudio will promote Mr. Lagasse's new book program and previous titles with an aggressive, integrated, multimedia marketing campaign. The HarperStudio website and emerils.com will play a significant role in these efforts, featuring video, photography, texts and blogs. MSLO will also help market the books across its Omnimedia platforms, including internet, magazines, television, and radio.

Stated Charles Koppelman, Executive Chairman of MSLO: "As a celebrity and accomplished chef, Emeril is the perfect author for HarperStudio's cutting-edge book publishing formula. We believe this collaboration presents significant opportunities for MSLO and contributes to our growth strategy for Emeril's brand."

"Emeril's long-term commitment to our new company gives us the chance to bring his new books as well as his existing best-sellers to an even broader audience," said Robert Miller, President and Publisher, HarperStudio.

"I've had a great relationship with HarperCollins for over 15 years," said Emeril Lagasse. "Since 1993, we've published 12 cookbooks for adults and children, including many best-sellers. I look forward to working with Bob and his team as we bring together the unique publishing model of HarperStudio, the infrastructure and expertise of my parent company, MSLO, and my ongoing passion for creating fun and innovative recipes for cooks at home."

Mr. Lagasse's relationship with the HarperCollins family has resulted in a number of best-sellers including "Emeril's Creole Christmas," "Emeril's TV Dinners," "Everyday's a Party," "Emeril's There's a Chef in My Soup" and "Emeril's There's a Chef in My Family."

The new book will feature approximately 170 mouth-watering recipes, 75 photos and many of the useful cooking tips for which Mr. Lagasse is known. Recipes include Emeril's Delmonico Bone-in Rib Steaks, Northern Italian Style Chicken Under a Brick, Grilled Pork Chops with Mixed Herb Chimichurri and Grilled Banana Splits.

Since joining the MSLO family of brands in April 2008, Mr. Lagasse has continued to grow and expand the Emeril brand. His guest column titled "Kick it Up" for Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine continues in the September issue with his family meatloaf recipe. This fall, Mr. Lagasse will begin appearing in regular segments on The Martha Stewart Show, the nationally syndicated, Emmy-winning daily television series that begins its fourth season on September 15. Viewers can also watch Emeril on Emeril Green, his new cooking show on Discovery's eco-friendly Planet Green network and on Emeril Live on Fine Living. In addition, Mr. Lagasse's new cookware line for Pro-Clad is available at Bed Bath & Beyond and HSN exclusively until November, and will rollout nationally thereafter.

About Emeril Lagasse

Chef Emeril Lagasse is the chef/proprietor of ten restaurants including three in New Orleans (Emeril's, NOLA and Emeril's Delmonico); three in Las Vegas (Emeril's New Orleans Fish House, Delmonico Steakhouse, and Table 10); two in Orlando (Emeril's Orlando and Tchoup Chop); one in Miami (Emeril's Miami Beach), and one in Gulfport, MS (Emeril's Gulf Coast Fish House). Lagasse is a national TV personality, and has hosted over 1500 shows on the Food Network, and is the food correspondent for ABC's "Good Morning America." This summer, he will host Emeril Green, a new series exploring fresh and seasonal ingredients on Discovery Communications' Planet Green -- an eco-lifestyle network. Lagasse is the best-selling author of twelve cookbooks including Emeril's New New Orleans Cooking which introduced his creative take on Creole cuisine, and Emeril's There's a Chef in My World, a children's cookbook. In September 2002, he established the Emeril Lagasse Foundation to support and encourage programs creating developmental and educational opportunities for children. Lagasse's corporate office, Emeril's Homebase, is located in New Orleans and houses restaurant operations, a culinary test kitchen, and a boutique store for his signature products. In April 2008, Emeril Lagasse joined the Martha Stewart family of brands; MSLO acquired the assets related to Lagasse's media and merchandising business, including television programming, cookbooks, and emerils.com website and his licensed kitchen and food products.

About Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (NYSE: MSO) is a diversified media and merchandising company, inspiring and engaging consumers with unique lifestyle content and distinctive products. The Publishing segment encompasses four magazines, including the company's flagship publication, Martha Stewart Living, periodic special issues and books. The marthastewart.com website provides consumers with instant access to MSLO's multimedia library, search and find capabilities, recipes, online workshops, community and personalization, as well as wedding-planning tools powered by WeddingWire. The Broadcasting segment produces such programming as the Emmy-winning daily, nationally syndicated television series, "The Martha Stewart Show," and Martha Stewart Living Radio, channel 112 on SIRIUS Satellite Radio. In addition to its media properties, MSLO offers high-quality Martha Stewart products through licensing agreements with carefully selected companies, including the Martha Stewart Collection exclusively at Macy's, Martha Stewart Everyday at Kmart, Martha Stewart Crafts with EK Success at Wal-Mart, Michaels and independent retailers, Martha Stewart for 1-800-Flowers.com and a co-branded food line with Costco. In April 2008, Emeril Lagasse joined the Martha Stewart family of brands; MSLO acquired the assets related to Lagasse's media and merchandising business, including television programming, cookbooks, and emerils.com website and his licensed kitchen and food products. For additional information about MSLO, visit www.marthastewart.com.