Celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain found dead in France at 61

PARIS – American TV celebrity and food writer Anthony Bourdain has been found dead in his hotel room in France while working on his CNN series on culinary traditions around the world. He was 61.

CNN confirmed the death, saying in a statement that Bourdain was found unresponsive Friday morning by friend and chef Eric Ripert, and calling his death a suicide.

CNN said Bourdain was in Strasbourg filming an upcoming segment in his series "Parts Unknown."

The CNN statement said: "His love of great adventure, new friends, fine food and drink and the remarkable stories of the world made him a unique storyteller. His talents never ceased to amaze us and we will miss him very much."

Strasbourg police, emergency services and regional authorities did not immediately have information about the death. Bourdain's assistant Laurie Woolever would not comment on what happened.

The CNN statement expressed condolences to his daughter and family but provided no information about memorial ceremonies.

Bourdain's death drew new attention to celebrity suicides.

It came three days after fashion designer Kate Spade died of apparent suicide in her Park Avenue apartment in New York. Spade's husband and business partner said the 55-year-old business mogul had suffered from depression and anxiety for many years.

A U.S. government report released Thursday found suicide rates inched up in nearly every U.S. state from 1999 through 2016. More than half of suicides in 2015 in a subgroup of 27 states were among people with no known mental health condition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found.