Monday, February 13, 2012
Ted Williams, Homeless Golden Voice Guy, Back to Work
Posted by Kyle Swenson on Mon, Feb 13, 2012 at 10:44 AM
Now behold how we stretch that last minute of the famed 15 into overtime:
Ted Williams was the Columbus homeless man who mounted the heights of internet sensationdom thanks to a viral video of his honey-sweet vocal chords in action. The whole thing was an easy mark for those of us glued to computers all day, just begging for a little sunshine: here was a guy who's promising career in broadcasting tripped over addiction and personal problems, getting a second chance. After the video broke, Williams was all over the place on national TV and radio, fielding many a job offer.
But, like the man says, there's no second act for American lives. Williams got too wrapped up in his own story, dropping back into substance abuse and bouncing around rehab. All those offers suddenly dried up.
Today, we're happy to say Williams is back on track and gainfully employed. The Columbus Dispatch reports Kraft Macaroni & Cheese will use Mr. Golden Pipes for a Valentine's Day campaign they're launching to fight hungry bellies.
"As we developed this promotion for Valentine's Day and looked at our advertising plans for the year, we felt we were in a position to help Ted use his great voice again," Kraft spokeswoman Lynne Galia said in a statement. "Kraft Macaroni & Cheese has a tradition of bringing families together and helping those in need, and we continue to support Ted in his journey to build a better life."Kraft is asking consumers to use #VoiceofLove hashtag on Valentine's-themed tweets. From 100 selected tweets, Williams will record a personalized video message for each person to share with a loved one. Kraft will donate 100 boxes of macaroni to Feeding America for every tweet, up to 100,000 boxes.
All kidding aside, we're glad Mr. Golden Pipes in getting a third act, albeit with a little less hot spotlight glare. Best of luck.
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Comments (8)
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Kyle: Interesting news item, however, you need to beg someone on your staff to proof read your articles before they're published. e.g. "for a Valentine's Day campaign their (they're) launching", and "honey-sweat (honey-sweet)".
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Yeah lets not thrust him under the microscope of public eye...Maybe just a warm backlight...
I believe he can do it, he just has to remember the outcome are of his own choices, no one elses. Bless him Lord.
drives me crazy when these places promise boxes of food or pet food or money (always up to a certain amount) for every share, like or tweet. how about giving the food away regardless?!! if you were prepared to give away a million boxes of mac n cheese, just give the damn boxes to Feeding America and pat yourselves on the back. and good luck to you Ted.
Saw him on Dr. Phil a couple of months back. He and his girlfriend were getting some help from Dr. Phil. Must have helped. Ted's story kind of reminds me of the old movie about John Doe, who was a homeless guy played by ______________, who got conned into setting a suicide date by the hot and wild Barbara__________. I think he was about to jump or something when intervention was delivered....happy endings were so always going to happen back then The first three people to fill in the blanks will get one free Duct Aid Kit and a box of mac and cheese.
