1944 Rejecting suggestions like “dairy-free” or “healthy,” Watson takes the word “vegan” to mean a vegetarian diet without dairy or eggs. The definitions “vegetarian” and “fruitorian” are also rejected, as these two words “are already associated with societies that allow the “fruits” of cows and poultry to be eaten.” 1956 17-year-old swimmer Murray Rose wins three Olympic gold medals on a vegan diet of sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, brown rice, dates, cashews and his mother’s carrot juice – earning himself the nickname “The SeaweedStreak”. 1969 Bearded bohemian guru Father Yod (Jim Baker) opens The Fountainhead, a vegan nightclub on Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip. The dot attracts celebrity eaters from Marlon Brando to John Lennon. 1981 “StraightEdge” (literally “clear edge”), a 46-second track by the punk band MinorThreat, hits on drugs and booze, spawning the so-called straight edge subculture. Many of its supporters go vegan; vegan extremists find their place in groups like the Animal Liberation Front. 1991 The Physicists Committee for Responsible Medicine is proposing a revision of the 4 food groups recommended by the USDA: this time they are fruits, legumes, whole grains and vegetables. Farmers derided the proposal as “the pinnacle of irresponsibility”. A year later, the Ministry unveils a food pyramid to the public, with meat and dairy products occupying small sections at the very top. 1992 After reading Diet for the New America, “Weird” Al Yankovic joins the fast-growing list of vegan celebrities. (That same year, Paul McCartney, a vegetarian, refuses to give Yankovic permission to parody his song “LiveandLetDie” as “ChickenPotPie”.) When asked in a fanzine how he explains his participation in the annual Best American Chef Chicken Ribs (Great American Rib Cook-Off), he replies, “The same way I explain college performances to myself, even though I’m not a student.” 2002 Linking his life to his wife and the animal rights movement, artist Jonathan Horowitz closes his Go Vegan! in Chelsea with “Tofu on a gallery pedestal” – a piece of bean curd floating in the water. The New York Times art critic Ken Johnson calls it “a silent, almost religious call for a change in eating habits.” 2008 Vegan trendsetters Ellen De Geniris and Portia De Rossi celebrated a vegan wedding catered by chef Tol Ronnen, who that same year was preparing a 21-day vegan cleanse for Oprah Winfrey, designed to remind media stars “like the food we eat each and every one of us.” day ends up on our plates.” 2009 Alicia Silverstone’s vegan cookbook The Good Diet tops The New York Times bestseller list. “Back then, I just had no idea about my capabilities,” the star admits her ignorance, referring to the days when she was not a vegan. 2011 Deciding that being an avid foodie means “playing Russian roulette,” Bill Clinton tells SNN journalist Sanjay Gupta (and also a surgeon and successful writer) that he has – for the most part – given up meat, eggs, and dairy products. Asked by Gupta if that makes him a vegan, the former omnivore rubs his chin and replies, “I guess so.” 2012 Usher is trying to persuade his protégé, Justin Bieber, to veganism in order to “keep him on his toes.” Bieber, however, “does not accept” veganism; a member of his group admits to the press that he tasted tofu and tacos from tempeh, after which he “put on a performance by spitting out food to the sound of vomiting.” 2013 Israel’s Domino’s Pizza launches its first vegan soy cheese pizza topped with vegetables.
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