It was announced on Sunday, June 28th, that the infamous pitchman Billy Mays had passed in his sleep. I was very sad to hear this news as the man was so full of the life and was only 50 years old. Several months ago, I don't know how much this news would have phased me. I used to see Billy on TV and thought nothing of it. I said to myself, here's this Billy Mays joker again selling another random product. I never really believed much in "As Seen on TV" products. I always thought, if they are so good, why aren't they sold in stores everywhere?
Well, until recently, I had no idea how ignorant I was. I'm an avid fan of the Discovery Channel and watch most of their shows. Therefore, it's no surprise that a couple of months back, I saw advertisements for an upcoming new show called 'Pitchmen' that featured Billy Mays and Anthony Sullivan. The show didn't exactly spark my interest like say, 'Mythbusters', but I wound up watching the pilot episode and got hooked. I had no idea what Billy and fellow pitchmen did until I saw this show. I was pleasantly surprised to see how much Billy and Sully tested the products they pitch. They heavily scrutinized the products and had members of the general public test the product before they put their name on it. Watching 'Pitchmen' also gave me an appreciation of why these products aren't in stores. These products are generally raw. They're new, and throwing them on a TV infomercial is the test to see if they can be successful. Will the public bite?
'Pitchmen' gave me an appreciation for not only the work that Billy Mays did, but also for the man that Billy Mays was. He was a hard worker and really cared for the inventors that he was trying to help become successful. He was and still is a legend in his industry. He will be missed. I'm glad I came across his show on the Discovery Channel before his passing and I will continue to watch it until it's removed from the air.
RIP Billy.
Good read: http://money.cnn.com/2009/06/29/news/companies/remembering_billy_mays.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2009062916
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