LETTING TONY loose on the world was easy. Reining him in—not so much. "I wouldn't pretend that there aren't times when I hear something Tony says and I have a deep inhalation of breath," says Pat Younge, president and general manager of the Travel Channel. On the rare occasion that Younge wants to tinker with an episode—to prune a bit of barnyard language, say, or lose some quip that's caused an uproar down in legal—there ensues a long and gladiatorial e-mail debate. "Once I wanted to change the title sequence," Younge says, "and Tony sent me an e-mail saying he could feel the blood draining from his veins."

The Travel Channel knew what they were getting. Tony has never shied away from verbal fisticuffs, and he seems to take particular joy in sniping at the rogue's gallery of celebrity "chefs." In Kitchen Confidential, he calls Emeril Lagasse "Ewok-like" and says that four-star gourmands like André Soltner would never invite Tony, a chef of minor repute, to go skiing. (As it happened, after Soltner read the book he did invite Tony to the slopes; Tony has also since developed a grudging respect for Lagasse, or at least his cooking.)

Tonight, he'll take aim at Rachael Ray. "She's got a magazine, a television empire, all these bestselling books—I'm guessing she's not hurting for money," Tony will say, his voice rising. "She's hugely influential, particularly with children.

"And she's endorsing Dunkin' Donuts."

A pause.

"It's like endorsing crack for kids! I'm not a very ethical guy. I don't have a lot of principles. But somehow that seems to me over the line. Juvenile diabetes has exploded. Half of Americans don't have necks. And she's up there saying, 'Eat some fuckin' Dunkin' Donuts. You look great in that swimsuit—eat another donut!' That's evil."