OxiClean’s Billy Mays dies
The man who promoted products like OxiClean and Orange Glo, Billy Mays, died Sunday morning in his Tampa, Florida home. According to local police, Mays was found unresponsive by his wife, Deborah, at 7:45 a.m. Authorities do not suspect foul play, and an autopsy should be available by Monday afternoon. He was 50.
Born in Pennsylvania in 1958, Mays found his voice selling knives, mops, and other “as seen on TV” gadgets on Atlantic City’s boardwalk. In the 1990s, he met Max Appel, Orange Glo International founder, who recruited him to demonstrate the environmentally-friendly line of cleaning products on the Home Shopping Network.
Success followed in the form of commercials and infomercials using Mays to demonstrate and sell products with his high-energy demeanor and amiable catchphrases. Recently, Mays has been featured on the reality TV show “Pitchmen” on the Discovery Channel, which follows the work of Mays and fellow marketer Anthony Sullivan.
On Saturday, Mays was involved in an incident at the Tampa airport. Apparently, his US Airways flight blew its two front tires upon landing. No one was seriously injured, and whether the incident was related to Mays’ death is inconclusive.
[photo: AP]
Tags: Billy Mays, infomercial, Orange Glo, OxiClean