The year she turned 15, she appeared in a Lifebuoy soap commercial, Advertising Age reported. The year she turned 27, she became a stockbroker in New York. The year she turned 35, she started a catering business in Westport, Connecticut. The year she turned 39, People profiled her as a contributing editor of House Beautiful who ran a catering service for clients such as Beverly Sills and the Paul Newmans.
The breakthrough yearThe year she turned 41, she published her first book, Entertaining, which Vanity Fair says brought her fame.
The year she turned 45, she had four books, a newsletter and a PBS special, according to CBS News. The year she turned 46, Kmart hired her as a lifestyle consultant.
The year she turned 50, Time Inc. began publishing Martha Stewart Living. The year she turned 52, a weekly syndicated show of the same name premiered. The year she turned 54, People reported that the magazine’s circulation was 1.3 million and that her syndicated show reached over 5 million viewers a week.
The year she turned 56, she bought out most of Time Inc.’s stake in her magazine and TV show. The year she turned 58, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia went public on the New York Stock Exchange. The year she turned 59, she made the Forbes 400 for the first time. The year she turned 60, Vanity Fair reported that she had written 34 books.
The year she turned 63, she was sentenced to five months in prison after a conviction over her sale of ImClone Systems stock. The year she turned 64, she was released from Alderson prison, and her daily talk show Martha debuted in September. The year she turned 65, her company reported a fourth-quarter profit.
The year she turned 68, she announced a product partnership with The Home Depot. The year she turned 69, her partnership with Kmart ended. The year she turned 70, J.C. Penney invested $38.5 million in her company. The year she turned 71, Martha Stewart’s Cooking School premiered on PBS. The year she turned 73, Macy’s and her company settled a legal dispute. The year she turned 74, Sequential Brands Group agreed to acquire her company.
The year she turned 75, VH1 aired Martha & Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party. The year she turned 78, she joined Canopy Growth as an adviser, and Sequential agreed to sell her brands to Marquee Brands for $175 million. The year she turned 79, Martha Knows Best premiered on HGTV. The year she turned 80, Netflix landed a documentary about her life. The year she turned 81, the first episode of The Martha Stewart Podcast was released.
The year she turned 82, she was announced as a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover model, the oldest in the issue’s history, NBC News reported. The year she turned 83, Netflix released the documentary Martha. The year she turned 84, she co-hosted Yes, Chef! on NBC and took over Crumbl’s menu for a week. The year she turned 85, she announced Hint, a home management company, and Netflix set video episodes of her podcast to begin on Aug. 26.
Martha Stewart (born Aug 3, 1941) started a catering business in 1976, the year she turned 35, and became known with her first book, Entertaining, in 1982, the year she turned 41. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia went public in 1999, the year she turned 58.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.
Advertising Age reported that she played a young married woman in a commercial for Unilever’s Lifebuoy soap when she was about 15.
Source 07 · Advertising Age · Martha Stewart Stars in Unilever Ad, 55 Years Ago · opens in a new tab Year calculated from the article’s “55 years ago” headline (June 2011).She worked as a stockbroker at Monness, Horstman, Williams and Sidel until 1973.
Source 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabShe launched the business in Westport, Connecticut. People reported in 1980 that her first catering job was on a hot August day.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabSource 04 · People · Martha Stewart Caters for the Newmans and Redfords · opens in a new tab Day not given in the sources.People reported that she was a contributing editor of House Beautiful and ran a catering service whose clients included Beverly Sills, the Paul Newmans and the Robert Redfords.
Source 04 · People · Martha Stewart Caters for the Newmans and Redfords · opens in a new tabThe book was based on her catering business. Vanity Fair says its publication brought her fame, and Fox News reports that it became a bestseller.
According to CBS News’s timeline, she had four books, a newsletter and a PBS special by this year.
Source 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tabKmart first used her mainly in advertisements and publicity features and later built a product line with her name, according to CBS News. Fox News reports that the deal was worth $200,000.
Source 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tabSource 03 · Fox News · Fast Facts: Martha Stewart Timeline · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabThe magazine launched in 1991, according to CNN and People.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabSource 05 · People · The Best Revenge · opens in a new tab CBS News dates the partnership with Time Inc. to launch the magazine to November 1990.The 30-minute show aired weekly in syndication.
Source 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tab Day not given in the sources.People reported that Martha Stewart Living had a circulation of 1.3 million, her syndicated show reached over 5 million viewers a week, and her 14 books had 5 million copies in print.
Source 05 · People · The Best Revenge · opens in a new tabCNN reports that the company was renamed Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia the same year.
Source 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tab Day not given in the sources.The stock opened at $18 a share on the New York Stock Exchange and closed at $35, up 95 percent. CNN reports that the offering raised close to $130 million on its first day of trading.
Source 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabShe appeared for the first time on Forbes magazine’s list of America’s 400 wealthiest people.
Source 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tabVanity Fair reported that she had written 34 books and that Martha Stewart Living had a circulation of 2.4 million.
Source 06 · Vanity Fair · Empire by Martha · opens in a new tab September 2001 issue; day not given.Found guilty on March 5 of conspiracy, making false statements and obstruction of justice, she was sentenced to five months in prison, five months of home confinement and a $30,000 fine. After the verdict she released a statement maintaining her innocence, Fox News reported.
Source 03 · Fox News · Fast Facts: Martha Stewart Timeline · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabShe was released from Alderson Federal Women’s Prison in West Virginia, where she had reported on Oct. 8, 2004, and began five months of home detention. CNN lists Aug. 31 as the end of her home confinement.
Source 03 · Fox News · Fast Facts: Martha Stewart Timeline · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabCNN lists Sept. 12 as the debut of the daily talk show. The Apprentice: Martha Stewart followed on NBC on Sept. 21.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabMartha Stewart Living Omnimedia reported net income of $2.95 million for the quarter, compared with a loss of $7.33 million a year earlier, the Associated Press reported.
Source 08 · NBC News (AP) · Martha Stewart Living posts a quarterly profit · opens in a new tabThe line was set to launch in 2010.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tab Day not given in the source.The partnership had begun in 1987.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabSource 01 · CBS News · Martha’s Datebook · opens in a new tab Day not given in the source.J.C. Penney invested $38.5 million for a 16.6% stake in Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and entered a 10-year retail partnership showcasing her products.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabCNN lists the premiere in October 2012.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tab Day not given in the source.Macy’s had sued in January 2012, saying her 2011 deal with J.C. Penney violated a 2006 agreement. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabShe was to stay on as chief creative officer and sit on the board of directors. CNN Business later reported that Sequential paid about $350 million for the brands.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabSource 10 · CNN Business · Martha Stewart’s brands have a new owner · opens in a new tabShe teamed up with Snoop Dogg to share recipes and host celebrity guests.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabShe joined the Canadian marijuana company to help develop products derived from cannabis for people and animals.
Source 09 · WRAL (CNN Business) · Martha Stewart to advise cannabis company · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabThe sale of the Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse brands was priced at $175 million and could be worth as much as $215 million.
Source 10 · CNN Business · Martha Stewart’s brands have a new owner · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabThe series was scheduled for Friday, July 31, according to Variety.
Source 11 · Variety · HGTV’s Martha Knows Best Will Feature Jay Leno, Snoop Dogg · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabVariety reported that Netflix won a bake-off for a documentary by director R.J. Cutler.
Source 12 · Variety · Netflix Lands Martha Stewart Documentary · opens in a new tabCNN lists June 22 as the release date of the first episode.
Source 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabShe was one of four cover models for the issue, out May 18. NBC News reported that she was the oldest cover model in the history of the swimsuit issue.
Source 13 · NBC News · Martha Stewart makes a splash with Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabThe film by R.J. Cutler was released on Netflix.
Source 14 · The Hollywood Reporter · Martha Stewart Dishes on “Cookie-Cutter Life” in Netflix Documentary Trailer · opens in a new tabSource 15 · Vanity Fair · The Martha Stewart Netflix Documentary Serves Up Some Bombshells · opens in a new tabShe hosted the cooking competition with José Andrés.
Source 16 · Variety · Yes, Chef!: Martha Stewart, José Andrés to Host NBC Cooking Competition · opens in a new tabSource 02 · CNN · Martha Stewart Fast Facts · opens in a new tabThe Nov. 3–8 menu had seven desserts inspired by Entertaining, marking the book’s re-release.
Source 17 · People · Martha Stewart and Crumbl Join Forces for a Dessert Line Inspired by Her First Book · opens in a new tabHint launched with a $10 million seed round led by Slow Ventures.
Source 18 · Business Wire · Martha Stewart Announces Hint · opens in a new tabVideo episodes of The Martha Stewart Podcast were set to begin on Netflix on Aug. 26, and the series Martha Cooks on Aug. 25.
Source 19 · E! Online · Martha Stewart Is Returning to Netflix · opens in a new tabEND OF SELECTED RECORDSSelected records, 1956–2026 · not a complete list of work. “Key moment” is an editorial label, not a measure of success.
What did they do, and at what age?
AgeTrail lines up the key moments of a life by age.
Debut and breakthrough are marked separately, and every record has a source.
Business · United States
Aug 3, 1941 —
Ages are counted from the birth year 1941: the year of the event minus 1941, birthdays aside. “Key moment” labels and the connecting story are AgeTrail's editorial reading.
Fact-checked: 2026.09.30 · An independent archive, not affiliated with the person or their agency.