Before the tribute...

I love products sold on TV. I have the Magic Bullet, ShamWow towels, Oxi-Clean, the 'Ove Glove, some Hercules Hooks, a bottle of KABOOM! and my next birthday request is for the Snuggie. Now that Billy Mays is no longer with us, I flip through the channels, hoping that one of the channels runs his infomercial. Oh, Billy! Why you?

I first knew of Billy Mays when he pitched Oxi-Clean, which only sometimes gets stains out if you treat right away, but isn't much help for those "hard to remove" stains, like miraculously shown. Billy's blood pressure seemed to rise as he yelled his way through a sales pitch--I believe June 28 is ALL CAPS DAY to commemorate his passing.

Here is a classic from 1998. Billy looks so young! And he wasn't as loud.

Here is his last interview, celebrating the idea for their new show: Pitchmen.

Now, I wasn't just a Mays fan; there are too many info-jewels to be loyal. Another favorite of mine is the Slap Chop, with Vince. He, by far, says the best stuff.

"This tuna looks boring. Stop having a boring tuna, stop having a boring life."

"You're gonna love my nuts. Watch this. Almonds, walnuts..."

See for yourself...

Now I hope you will understand why we thought it a good idea to celebrate these jewels. Tonight, we gather in memory of Billy Mays. We will exchange our favorite products sold on TV and talk about how our lives wouldn't be the same without them...