oxiclean

As the direct-marketing industry copes with the sudden death of pitchman Billy Mays (right), it's worth considering the fragile relationship between celebrity endorsement and mortality. The tragedy of Mays's unexpected death at age 50, of a heart ailment in late June, has practical implications for...

The death of a direct-to-consumers product spokeman isn't ordinarily something that would send ripples through the media world. But Billy Mays, who died unexpectedly on Sunday at age 50, was no ordinary spokesman. He was, rather, both a true entrepreneur in an industry of pretenders and a budding...