TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

TV pitchmen seek next big idea

Photo from Discovery Communications

From left, infomercial giants Anthony Sullivan and Billy Mays evaluate quirky new products and craft pitches on their new Discovery Channel series, "Pitchmen."

ADVERTISEMENT

By WALT BELCHER

wbelcher@tampatrib.com

Published: April 13, 2009

TAMPA - When Billy Mays is out in the Tampa area with friends and family, people will sometimes ask for autographs.

"Or they will ask about my beard, or they won't believe it's really me," he says.

"But most often, they just want to hear me say, 'Hi, Billy Mays here!'" says the man whose booming voice has made him a TV icon.

With his black hair and boundless energy, Mays is the king of the infomercials.

Most notable for promoting cleaners OxiClean, Orange Glo, Kaboom and other household products like the Mighty Putty glue, Mays is "taking it to the next level" with a new reality series, "Pitchmen," which debuts Wednesday on the Discovery Channel.

"Pitchmen," from the same production company that created "Ice Road Truckers," follows Mays and fellow Tampa-based infomercial whiz Anthony "Sully" Sullivan (of Swivel Sweeper fame) as they search for the next great product.

"This is all about pursuing the American Dream and finding that inventor who has come up with something that will score a grand slam," says Mays, who lives in Odessa.

Over 13 episodes, Mays and Sullivan will show viewers new gadgets such as the Impact Gel shoe insert; the Tool Band-it, a magnetized armband that holds tools while you work; and the Soft Buns portable seat cushion.

"Every product has a story, as does every inventor," says Mays.

It's not as dangerous or exciting as "Ice Road Truckers," but there's drama in seeing small-time inventors soar or fail.

"Not every product will make it," he says. "For every one that we pick to sell, there are 30 to 40 that we reject."

Mays, 50, is living his dream. He rose from hawking a portable washing device on the Atlantic City boardwalk in the 1970s to becoming the most successful direct-response TV salesman in history.

Sullivan, the cheerful and witty host of infomercials such as Swivel Sweeper, One Sweep and Smart Chopper, has one of the most successful production companies in the world.

The two men formed a bond after they both settled in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area. They have been called the "megastars" of the $300 billion direct-response advertising industry. Over the past decade, the products they've hawked on TV have racked up combined sales of more than $1 billion.

"One of the things that we hope to do with 'Pitchmen' is to give people an appreciation of what we do," says Mays. "I don't take on a product unless I believe in it. I use everything that I sell."

'PITCHMEN'

The Discovery Channel show, premiering at 10 p.m. Wednesday, follows two Bay area men as they search for the next great product.

Reporter Walt Belcher can be reached at (813) 259-7654.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT