RIDGEVILLE, S.C. — It was 37 degrees at 4 a.m. in this small town about a 40-minute drive northwest of Charleston. Under a black February sky, a few men gathered logs to start a fire in a wooded ...

Ms. Holland, 55, polished her cooking technique in France, and holds a degree in Russian language and literature. But that made no difference to television executives 20 years ago.