William Darrell Mays Jr. (July 20, 1958 – June 28, 2009) was an American television direct-response advertisement salesperson. Throughout his career, he promoted a wide variety of products, including OxiClean, Orange Glo, Kaboom, and Zorbeez. His promotions aired mostly on the Home Shopping Network through his company, Mays Promotions, Inc., although they aired on various other syndicated networks.
Mays and his business partner, Anthony Sullivan, were also
featured on PitchMen, a Discovery Channel television series that documented
their work. His distinctive beard, attire, loud voice, and impassioned sales
pitches made him a recognized television presence in the United States and
Canada.
Early life
Mays was born on July 20, 1958, in McKees Rocks,
Pennsylvania, and raised in nearby Pittsburgh. He was a student at Sto-Rox High
School, and later West Virginia University, where he was a walk-on linebacker
on its football team during his two years there.
Career
Early work
After dropping out of college, Mays worked for his father's
hazardous waste company before moving to Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1983. On
the Atlantic City boardwalk, Mays sold the Washmatik portable washing device to
passersby, along with other "As Seen
on TV" products. In Atlantic City, he was taught how to sell by the
older salesmen, saying "I was taught
to pitch by a lot of old pitchmen. That's the kind of style I have."
Mays then traveled to home shows, auto shows, and state
fairs across the United States for a period of twelve years, selling various
maintenance products and tools, including cleaning products and food choppers.
Television pitching
At a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania home show in 1993, Mays struck
up a friendship with rival salesman Max Appel, founder of Orange Glo
International, a Denver-based manufacturer of cleaning products. He was then
hired by the company to promote their line of cleaners, OxiClean, Orange Clean,
Orange Glo, and Kaboom, on the Home Shopping Network in St. Petersburg,
Florida. That same year he also befriended another future pitchman, Anthony
Sullivan. Customer response to Mays' sales pitches was enthusiastic, and sales
sharply increased after his first day, although some reviews were poor. He was
very well known for shouting during infomercials. For example, The Washington
Post staff writer Frank Ahrens called him and other similar television salesmen
"a full-volume pitchman, amped up
like a candidate for a tranquilizer-gun takedown".
In October 2000, Mays shot an infomercial for the
then-three-year-old OxiClean corporation. He became a staple of the brand and
the wider company, Orange Glo. Later on he appeared in Kaboom infomercials.
Mays was the CEO and founder of Mays Promotions, Inc., based
at his home in Odessa, Florida. His services as a pitchman became highly
sought-after, and he appeared in commercials for many diverse "As Seen On TV" products such
as Mighty Putty. Mays claimed to be an avid user of the products he promoted.
In December 2008, Mays began appearing in ads for ESPN's
online service, ESPN360. These ads were a slight departure for Mays as they
were designed to be parodies of his and other infomercial clichés. He also made
a live appearance during the 2008 Champs Sports Bowl promoting ESPN's and ABC's
January 1, 2009, bowl games. Prior to his death, Mays had signed a deal with
Taco Bell to film infomercial-style commercials for the chain. Shooting was
scheduled to begin in August 2009.
On April 15, 2009, the Discovery Channel began airing
PitchMen, a documentary series that featured Mays and Anthony Sullivan in their
jobs in direct-response marketing. After Mays' death, Discovery Channel aired a
special Billy Mays tribute special, Pitchman: A Tribute to Billy Mays.
On March 27, 2009, Mays appeared on The Tonight Show with
Jay Leno. He and Sullivan also appeared on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien
on June 23, 2009, five days before his death.
Personal life
Mays' first marriage was to Dolores "Dee Dee" Mays, which ended in divorce. He had a son with
Dolores named Billy Mays III (born August 12, 1986) who worked as a production
assistant alongside his father on the PitchMen television show. Mays had a
daughter, Elizabeth, with his second wife, Deborah Mays. His daughter was three
years old at the time of his death. Mays' mother is Joyce Palm, and his father
is Billy Mays Sr.; he was survived by both.
In an interview during the 2008 presidential election, Mays
said he was a Republican.
Death
Wikinews has related
news:
American pitchman
Billy Mays dies at age 50
On the morning of June 28, 2009, Mays' wife found him
unresponsive in his Tampa, Florida home. He was pronounced dead at 7:45 a.m.,
aged 50, appearing to have died sometime overnight. The Associated Press
reported there were no indications that the house had been burglarized, and
that police did not suspect foul play. Mays had told his wife the previous
evening that he had felt unwell. Initially, there was incorrect speculation
that he died from a head injury he experienced on a flight he had taken earlier
in the day, in which the plane sustained a rough landing after blowing its
tires.
After an initial autopsy on June 29, 2009, Vernard Adams, the
Hillsborough County, Florida medical examiner, stated that Mays suffered from
hypertensive heart disease and that heart disease was the likely cause of his
death. According to a toxicology report released August 7, 2009, heart disease
was the "primary cause of
death" and cocaine was listed as a "contributory
cause of death." In response to the release of the toxicology report,
the Mays family issued a press release stating, "We are extremely disappointed by the press release released by
the Hillsborough County medical examiner's office. We believe it contains
speculative conclusions that are frankly unnecessary and tend to obscure the
conclusion that Billy suffered from chronic, untreated hypertension" and
said in the release that they were considering "an independent evaluation of the autopsy results".
The medical examiner concluded that "cocaine use caused or contributed to the development of his heart
disease, and thereby contributed to his death," the office said in a
press release. The office said Mays last used cocaine in the few days before
his death but was not under the influence of it when he died. Hillsborough
County spokeswoman Lori Hudson said that nothing in the toxicology report
indicated the frequency of Mays' cocaine use. Cocaine can raise the arterial
blood pressure, directly cause hypertrophy of the left ventricle, and
accelerate the formation of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries, the
release said. However, in October 2009, the results of a second medical
examination, commissioned by Mays' family, concluded that cocaine was not a "significant contributing factor"
to his death.
According to subsequent news reports, the toxicology tests
also showed levels of painkillers hydrocodone, oxycodone, and tramadol, as well
as anti-anxiety drugs alprazolam and diazepam. Mays suffered from hip problems
and were scheduled to have had hip replacement surgery the day after he was
found dead.
Mays' funeral was held on July 3, 2009, in his hometown of
McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. The pallbearers wore blue shirts and khaki pants at
the funeral, much like Mays wore when he advertised his products. He is buried
in Mount Calvary Cemetery.
In the immediate aftermath of his death, many companies
pulled ads featuring Mays from the air, replacing them with similar ads
featuring Anthony Sullivan. By mid-July, with his family's consent, some ads were
put back into rotation, alongside previously unaired ads.
In popular culture
His catchphrase and infomercials made Billy Mays a notable
icon in popular culture, with many shows, YouTube videos, and films lampooning
him. In the South Park episode "Dead
Celebrities", Mays' ghost appears repeatedly to Ike Broflovski, trying
to sell him products from the afterlife with his catchphrase "Hi, Billy Mays here with the...".
Mays' son, Billy III, a self-proclaimed South Park fan, said he loved "Dead Celebrities", and found
its portrayal of his father to be both tasteful and respectful.
He was portrayed by comedian Colin J. Sweeney in the season
1 episode of Epic Rap Battles of History, 'Billy
Mays vs. Ben Franklin'. In the middle of the battle, Mays dies and has his
second verse covered by fellow infomercial pitchman, Vince Offer, portrayed by
Peter Shukoff.
Products pitched
Awesome Auger A
gardening tool
Big City Slider Station A
mini-burger cooker
Crocodile Cutter Cutter
for metal and other materials
The Ding Kin A
dent repairing device
DualSaw A
circular saw with two blades
Engrave-it A
tool that engraves names on any metal surface
ESPN360 A
broadband service
EZ Bundler A
strapping tool that bundles objects together
EZ Crunch Bowl "A new way to eat breakfast
cereal"
Flies Away A
fly trap
Gator Blades Precision
heavy duty windshield wiper blades
Gopher A
tool for grabbing out-of-reach objects
Grabit A tool that
removes screws easily
Grater Plater A ceramic
plate with grater teeth
Green Now! Lawn
fertilizer in a can
Grip Wrench A
strap wrench
Handy Switch A
wireless electric switch
Hercules Hook A hook
for hanging objects on a wall
iCan health insurance A
health insurance benefit group
Impact Gel A
shoe insert
iTie A necktie
with a hidden pocket
Jupiter Jack Cell
phone speaker system for the car
Kaboom! Tile
and shower cleaner
Mighty Mendit A
bonding agent for mending cloth
Mighty Shine A soft
powder that removes rust and tarnish from metal objects
Mighty Putty An
epoxy putty adhesive
Magic Carry A
harness system that allowed the user to pick up two or three times what they
can lift normally.
Mighty Putty Steel A
metal alloy adhesive putty
Mighty Putty Wood A
non-shrinking epoxy putty for wood
Mighty Tape A
self-fusing silicone rubber waterproof tape
Orange Glo A
wood cleaner
OxiClean A
general purpose cleaner
Pest Patrol A
pest repellent which relied on ultrasonic frequencies.
Quick Chop A
chopping device
Quik Strip A
wire stripper
Safety Beep A
stick-on alert device for vehicles moving in reverse
Samurai Shark A knife
sharpener
Simoniz Fix-It A
scratch remover
Simoniz Liquid Diamond Car
polish
Six Shooter A
cordless power drill able to hold up to six different bits
Steam Buddy A
lightweight steam iron
Tool Band-it A
magnetic armband for holding hand tools
Turbo Tiger A
vacuum cleaner
Ultimate Chopper A
kitchen tool
Vidalia Slice Wizard A
kitchen tool
WashMatik A
hose that pumps water from a bucket without being hooked up to a faucet
What Odor? An
odor-removing fluid
Zorbeez A
chamois cloth
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