billy mays was a pitchman “with confidence!”
I always thought Billy Mays was cool and kitschy; hey, he was so good at his job that he made me believe I couldn’t live without OxyClean (turns out he was right – that stuff really does work). It wasn’t until my eight year old daughter, Stella, became obsessed with him that I really started paying attention, though. Stella called herself “Billy Mays’ Number One Fan,” and I don’t think she was kidding. She referenced him at least 10 times a day, recorded every episode of “Pitchmen” and did a fantastic impression of him. She thought he was handsome and smart. Billy Mays made my little girl happy, and that made me happy, too.
Last week I wrote about Michael Jackson, the brand. I’m not into re-runs so I’ll spare you the same peptalk on Mr. Mays, but it goes without saying that Billy Mays himself was just as marketable as the products he promoted. His booming voice, enthusiastic delivery and signature dark hair and beard made him the perfect pitchman. He will be dearly missed and my love goes out to his family (I’m connected with his son Billy via Twitter and MySpace) and friends.
Whenever I’m feeling stressed or sad, Stella performs the “Billy Mays Rap” for me. It always, always cheers me up. After the week of tragedy that’s just passed (the deaths of Ed McMahon, Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, Philadelphia writer Steven Wells, Philadelphia promoter Rian Thal and avid Tweeter Megan Porter (@MegaPixel), I think we’re all in need of something to put a smile on our face.
tags: Billy Mays, Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Megan Porter, Michael Jackson, Rian Thal, Steven Wells