Jerry Baker (author)

Jerry Baker (June 19, 1931 – March 2, 2017) was an American author, entrepreneur, public speaker, and product spokesperson who wrote numerous books on gardening, home hints, and health topics. He was best known as "America's Master Gardener," and for creating his world-famous DIY tonics using common household products like beer, baby shampoo, castor oil, and mouthwash.

Biography

Baker began his career in the 1960s as an undercover cop in Detroit, Michigan, posing as a gardener, tree trimmer, landscaper, and seed salesman.[1] He left the police force and eventually went to work as a horticulture buyer for S. S. Kresge Corporation (which later became Kmart Corporation). Baker's interest in gardening led him to local radio and TV appearances in the Detroit area. He eventually became a frequent guest on Dinah Shore’s daytime TV show, Dinah’s Place.[2] The exposure he received from his Dinah’s Place appearances prompted him to write his first best-selling book, Plants Are Like People, in 1972. A full-length record album by the same name was released shortly after the book was certified as a bestseller. Baker also began the national craze of talking to your plants with the publication of his second best-selling book, Talk to Your Plants, the following year, in 1973.

In the 1970s, Baker was a frequent guest on TV shows like The Mike Douglas Show, The Merv Griffin Show, and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. He hosted his own TV show, Plants Are Like People, on KMOX (a CBS affiliate) in St. Louis, MO. Baker also often appeared as a gardening expert on TV morning shows like Kennedy and Company in Chicago and on the ABC affiliates’ morning shows in New York City, Detroit, and Los Angeles.

In the 1990s and 2000s, Baker had his own series of gardening shows that ran on Public Television stations in the US and Canada. They were used by PBS as pledge drive specials; the programs featured Baker's down-home wisdom and commonsense solutions to gardening problems. These shows are now available on DVD (see below), and various segments can also be viewed on YouTube. Baker also has appeared on QVC, selling his own private label merchandise. From 1987 to 2007, Baker hosted his own national call-in radio show called On the Garden Line, which was produced by Westwood One and broadcast on the Mutual Broadcasting Network.

Over the years, Baker had served as a product spokesperson for Jacobsen Lawn Mowers, Hudson Sprayers, U.S. Gypsum, and Plantabs. His big break came from his affiliation with the Garden Weasel, a tool for loosening soil. Baker appeared as the Garden Weasel's spokesperson in advertising materials, including radio and TV ads, print, and point-of-purchase displays. He became widely recognized for his signature line in the Garden Weasel TV commercial, “If you’re into gardening like I am…” In 1982, Baker returned to his roots, becoming the national gardening spokesperson for Kmart Corporation's Garden Centers, a relationship that lasted until 1996.

In 1987, Baker helped found American Master Products, Inc. (AMP), a direct marketing and multi-media company based in Wixom, Michigan. AMP owns and manages the Jerry Baker brand, develops content and private label products, and negotiates licensing deals.

AMP has published more than 50 books under the Jerry Baker brand name, with more than twenty million copies sold worldwide. AMP also published the popular “On the Garden Line” newsletter between 1988 and 2008.[3]

Baker died on March 2, 2017, at age 85.[4]

Books
  • I never met a house plant I didn’t like, 1976
  • Plants Are Like People
  • Talk to Your Plants
  • The Impatient Gardener, 1983 ISBN 0345309499
  • The Impatient Gardener's Lawn Book, 1987 ISBN 0345340949
  • Make Friends with Your Lawn
  • Make Friends with Your Roses
  • Make Friends with Your Annuals
  • Make Friends with Your Fruit Trees
  • Make Friends with Your Vegetable Garden
  • Make Friends with Your Evergreens and Ground Covers
  • Make Friends with Your Bulbs
  • Make Friends with Your Shade Trees
  • Make Friends with Your House Plants
  • Make Friends with Your Flowering Trees
  • Make Friends with Your Flowering Shrubs
  • Make Friends with Your Perennials and Biennials
  • Jerry Baker's Fast, Easy Vegetable Garden, 1999 ISBN 0452281040
  • Jerry Baker's Flower Power!, 1999 ISBN 0345434153
  • Jerry Baker's Happy, Healthy House Plants, 1999 ISBN 0452281067
  • Jerry Baker's Herbal Pharmacy, 2000 ISBN 0922433372
  • Jerry Baker's Giant Book of Kitchen Counter Cures, 2001 ISBN 0922433410
  • Jerry Baker's Oddball Ointments, Powerful Potions, and Fabulous Folk Remedies, 2002 ISBN 0922433445
  • Jerry Baker's Perfect Perennials!, 2003 ISBN 0922433437
  • Jerry Baker's Anti-Pain Plan, 2004 ISBN 0922433496
  • Jerry Baker's Backyard Problem Solver, 2004 ISBN 0922433429
  • Jerry Baker's Flower Garden Problem Solver, 2004 ISBN 0922433461
  • Jerry Baker's Giant Book of Garden Solutions, 2004 ISBN 0922433518
  • Jerry Baker's Terrific Garden Tonics!, 2004 ISBN 0922433569
  • Jerry Baker's Bug Off!, 2005 ISBN 0922433488
  • Jerry Baker's Supermarket Super Products!, 2005 ISBN 092243350X
  • Jerry Baker's Year-Round Bloomers, 2005 ISBN 0922433542
  • Grandma Putt's Old-Time Vinegar, Garlic, Baking Soda, and 101 More Problem Solvers, 2006 ISBN 0922433771
  • Jerry Baker's Backyard Bird Feeding Bonanza, 2006 ISBN 0922433577
  • Jerry Baker's Cut Your Health Care Bills in Half!, 2006 ISBN 0922433585
  • Jerry Baker's Great Green Book of Garden Secrets, 2006 ISBN 0922433836
  • Jerry Baker's It Pays to be Cheap!, 2006 ISBN 0922433453
  • Nature's Best Miracle Medicines, 2006 ISBN 0922433755
  • Jerry Baker's Supermarket Super Remedies, 2006 ISBN 0922433631
  • Jerry Baker's Amazing Antidotes, 2007 ISBN 0922433844
  • Jerry Baker's Dear God...Please Help It Grow!, 2007 ISBN 092243381X
  • Jerry Baker's Green Grass Magic, 2007 ISBN 0922433828
  • Jerry Baker's Homespun Magic, 2007 ISBN 0922433860
  • Jerry Baker's The New Healing Foods, 2007 ISBN 0922433623
  • Jerry Baker's Old-Time Gardening Wisdom, 2007 ISBN 9780922433834
  • Secrets from the Jerry Baker Test Gardens, 2007 ISBN 0922433550
  • Grandma Putt's Home Health Remedies, 2008 3rd ed, ISBN 0922433895
  • Jerry Baker's All-American Lawns, 2008 ISBN 9780922433612
  • Jerry Baker's Backyard Birdscaping Bonanza, 2008 ISBN 0922433887
  • Jerry Baker's Supermarket Super Gardens, 2008 ISBN 0922433879
  • Jerry Baker's Can the Clutter!, 2009 ISBN 9780922433957
  • Jerry Baker's Cleaning Magic, 2009 ISBN 0922433941
  • Jerry Baker's Speed Cleaning Secrets!, 2009 ISBN 9780922433131
  • Jerry Baker's Terrific Tomatoes, Sensational Spuds, and Mouth-Watering Melons, 2009 ISBN 0922433925
  • America's Best Practical Problem Solvers, 2010 ISBN 9780922433995
  • Healing Fixers, Mixers, and Elixirs, 2011 ISBN 9780922433018
  • Home, Health, and Garden Problem Solver, 2011 ISBN 9780922433001
  • Jerry Baker's Ultimate Household Tonics Book, 2011 ISBN 9780922433025
  • Jerry Baker's The New Impatient Gardener, 2012 ISBN 9780922433032
  • Jerry Baker's Solve It with Vinegar!, 2012 ISBN 9780922433155
  • Jerry Baker's Top 25 Homemade Healers, 2014 ISBN 9780922433704
  • Grandma Putt's Green Thumb Magic, 2015 ISBN 9780922433674
  • Jerry Baker's Cure Your Lethal Lifestyle!, 2015 ISBN 9780922433681
  • Healing Remedies Hiding in Your Kitchen, 2016 ISBN 9780922433261
  • Jerry Baker's Fix It Fast and Make It Last!, 2016 ISBN 9780922433254
  • Jerry Baker's Vinegar: The King of All Cures!, 2017 ISBN 9780922433247
  • Jerry Baker's Grow Younger, Live Longer!, 2017 ISBN 9780922433230
  • Jerry Baker's Live Rich, Spend Smart, and Enjoy Your Retirement! ISBN 9780922433223

DVDs
  • Jerry Baker's Garden of Herbal Delights
  • Jerry Baker's Gardening Wisdom
  • Jerry Baker's Gardening Special—Lawn Problems
  • Jerry Baker's Gardening Special—Flower Power
  • Jerry Baker's Gardening Special—Tree, Shrub & Evergreen Care
  • Jerry Baker's Super Growing Secrets
  • Jerry Baker's Amazing Houseplants Tips & Tricks
  • Jerry Baker's Lawn Care Tips & Tricks
  • Jerry Baker's Year ‘Round Flower Care
  • Jerry Baker's Year ‘Round Lawn Care
  • Jerry Baker's Year ‘Round Rose Care
  • Jerry Baker's Year ‘Round Tree, Shrub & Evergreen Care
  • Jerry Baker's Year ‘Round Vegetable Gardening
  • Jerry Baker's Around the Yard I
  • Jerry Baker's Around the Yard II
  • Jerry Baker's Garden Magic I
  • Jerry Baker's Garden Magic II

References
  1. News, Marian Christy, Special to the. "GARDEN PRO FIGHTS BACK SINCE A SHOT IN THE HEAD ENDED HIS CAREER AS A VICE COP, JERRY BAKER HAS GAINED FAME AND FORTUNE AS THE 'MASTER' GARDENER, FALLEN TO ALCOHOLISM AND CLIMBED BACK UP AGAIN". Sun-Sentinel.com. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
  2. Terrace, Vincent, Encyclopedia of Television Series, Pilots and Specials 1974–1984, Volume II. New York Zoetrope, 1985. ISBN 0-918432-61-8. Page 112
  3. Jerry Baker Official Website, Jerrybaker.com
  4. "Gerald Fay Baker Jr". Legacy.com. March 5, 2017. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
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