Look up order in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Order may refer to:

Sequencing[link]

• An arrangement of items in sequence
• The result of enumeration of a set of items
• Collation, the sequencing and ordering of text
  • Alphabetical order
• Order of precedence
• A mathematical structure modeling sequenced items, dealt with in order theory

Philosophy[link]

• Natural order (philosophy)
• Implicate and explicate order according to David Bohm

Science and mathematics[link]

• Order (mathematics), various meanings
• Order (biology), a rank between class and family, or a taxon at that rank
• Order (optics), the category number of lighthouse Fresnel lenses, defining size and focal length
• Order and disorder (physics), measured by an order parameter or more generally by entropy
• Ordered system or universe, the cosmos, antithetical concept of chaos
• Order of hierarchical complexity, quantified by the Model of Hierarchical Complexity, the ordinal complexity of tasks that are addressed
• Order of reaction, a concept of chemical kinetics
• Social order in sociology, history and other social sciences, referring to the conduct of society
  • World order (disambiguation), including the concept of a world government
• Topological order in quantum mechanics, an organized quantum state

Computer science[link]

• Order of computation, the computational complexity of an algorithm
• Canonical order (disambiguation), the order of elements that obeys a certain set of rules or specifications
• Z-order, which graphics cover up others on computer screens

Electronics and telecommunications[link]

• First-order hold in signal processing
• Modulation order, the number of different symbols that can be sent using a given modulation
• The polynomial order of a Filter (signal processing) transfer function

Economics and commerce[link]

• Order (business), an instruction from a customer to buy
• Order (exchange), customer's instruction to a stock broker
• Money order
• Work order

Legal, political, and military[link]

• Court order, made by a judge, e.g. a restraining order
• Executive order (disambiguation), issued by the executive branch of government
• General order, a published directive from a commander
  • Standing order (disambiguation), a general order of indefinite duration, and similar ongoing rules in a parliament
• Law and order (politics)
• Military command
• Tactical formation, an arrangement or deployment of moving military forces

Architecture and urban planning[link]

• Architectonic orders: see classical order
• Public order, a concept in urban planning

Honors[link]

• Order (honour), medal or award

Religious, chivalric, fraternal, and ideological[link]

• The Order (group), an underground American neo-Nazi organization active in 1983 and 1984
• Chivalric order, established since the 14th century
• Fraternal order
• Religious order
• Monastic order, established circa 300 AD
• Military order, established in the crusades
• Tariqa or Sufi Order
• Holy Orders, the rite or sacrament in which clergy are ordained
• Order of Mass, the set of texts of the Roman Catholic Church Latin Rite Mass that are generally invariable

Media and entertainment[link]

• Order (album), 2009 album by German band Maroon
• Orders (film), a 1974 film by Canadian filmmaker, Michel Brault

See also[link]

• Collation (disambiguation)
• Coordination (disambiguation)
• Ordinal (disambiguation)
• Ordinate in mathematics, the y element of an ordered pair (x, y)
• Ordination, process by which individuals are consecrated
• Subordinate

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Billy Mays
Mays at Flatiron District in June 2009, a few weeks before his death
Born	William Darrell Mays, Jr. (1958-07-20)July 20, 1958[1] McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, United States
Died	June 28, 2009(2009-06-28) (aged 50) Tampa, Florida, United States
Other names	Billy Mays, King of the Pitch
Occupation	Television direct-response advertisement salesman
Years active	1993–2009
Home town	McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania
Spouse	Dolores "Dee Dee" Mays[2] Deborah Mays[2]
Children	Billy Mays III Elizabeth Mays
Parents	Billy Mays, Sr. Joyce Palm

William Darrell "Billy" Mays, Jr. (July 20, 1958 – June 28, 2009)^[3] was an American television direct-response advertisement salesperson most notable for promoting OxiClean, Orange Glo, and other cleaning, home-based, and maintenance products on the Home Shopping Network, and through his company, Mays Promotions, Inc. He and his business partner, Anthony Sullivan, were also featured on PitchMen, a TV series that documented their work. His distinctive beard and impassioned sales pitches made him a recognized television presence in the United States and Canada.^[4][5] Mays was found unresponsive by his wife in his Tampa, Florida, home on the morning of June 28, 2009.^[6] He was pronounced dead at 7:45 am, appearing to have died sometime overnight.^[3][7]

Early life[link]

Mays was born in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, attended Sto-Rox High School, and was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[1][8] He later attended West Virginia University, where he was a walk-on linebacker on its football team during his two years there.^[9] After dropping out, he worked for his father's hazardous waste company before moving to Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1983.^[1]

Career[link]

On the Atlantic City boardwalk Mays sold the Washmatik portable washing device to passersby,^[10] along with other "As Seen on TV" products.^[1] In Atlantic City, he was taught how to sell by the older salesmen, saying "I was taught to pitch by a lot of old pitchmen. That's the kind of style I have."^[1] Mays then traveled to home shows, auto shows, and state fairs across the United States for a period of twelve years, selling various maintenance products and tools, including cleaning products and food choppers.^[10]

At a Pittsburgh home show in 1993, Mays struck up a friendship with rival salesman Max Appel, founder of Orange Glo International, a Denver-based manufacturer of cleaning products. He was then hired by the company to promote their line of cleaners, OxiClean, Orange Clean, Orange Glo, and Kaboom, on the Home Shopping Network in St. Petersburg, Florida.^[11] Customer response to Mays's sales pitches was enthusiastic, with a sharp increase in sales after his first day on the network, although some reviews were poor. He was very well known for shouting in an abrasive manner during infomercials. For example, Washington Post staff writer Frank Ahrens called him and other similar television salesmen "a full-volume pitchman, amped up like a candidate for a tranquilizer-gun takedown".^[12]

Mays was the CEO and founder of Mays Promotions, Inc., based at his home in Odessa, Florida.^[4] His services as a pitchman became highly sought-after, and he appeared in commercials for many diverse "as seen on TV" products such as Mighty Putty. Mays claimed to be an avid user of the products he promoted.^[13] In December 2008, Mays began appearing in ads for ESPN's online service, ESPN360.^[14] These ads were a slight departure for Mays as they were designed to be parodies of his and other infomercial cliches with Mays appearing to be doing a parody of himself. He also made a live appearance during the 2008 Champs Sports Bowl promoting ESPN's and ABC's January 1, 2009, bowl games.

On April 15, 2009, the Discovery Channel began airing PitchMen, a documentary series that featured Mays and Anthony Sullivan in their jobs in direct-response marketing.^[15] After Mays's death, Discovery Channel aired a special Billy Mays tribute episode of PitchMen called "Pitchman: A Tribute to Billy Mays".

On March 27, 2009, Mays appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He and Sullivan also appeared on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien on June 23, 2009.^[16]

Prior to his death, Mays had signed a deal with Taco Bell to film infomercial-style commercials for the chain. Shooting was scheduled to begin in August 2009.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

Mays's first marriage to Dolores "Dee Dee" Mays ended in divorce.^[17] He had a son with Dolores named Billy Mays III, who was 22 years old at the time of Mays's death and who worked as a production assistant alongside his father on the PitchMen television show.^[18] Mays had a daughter, Elizabeth, with his second wife, Deborah Mays. His daughter was three years old at the time of his death.^[17][19] Mays's mother is Joyce Palm,^[18] and his father is Billy Mays, Sr.; they both outlived him.

In an interview during the 2008 Presidential Campaign, Mays revealed himself to be a Republican.^[20]

Death[link]

Wikinews has related news: American pitchman Billy Mays dies at age 50

Mays was found unresponsive by his wife in his Tampa, Florida, home on the morning of June 28, 2009.^[6] He was pronounced dead at 7:45 am, appearing to have died sometime overnight.^[3][7] The Associated Press reported that there were no indications that the house had been broken into, and that police did not suspect foul play.^[7] Initially, there was wrong speculation that he had a head injury after he was struck on the head by luggage after an airline landing mishap where tires blew out.^[21]

After an initial autopsy on Mays's body on June 29, Dr. Vernard Adams, the Hillsborough County, Florida medical examiner, stated that Mays suffered from hypertensive heart disease and that heart disease was the likely cause of his death. According to a toxicology report released August 7, 2009, heart disease was the "primary cause of death" and cocaine was listed as a "contributory cause of death."^[22][23] In response to the release of the toxicology report, the Mays family issued a press release stating, "We are extremely disappointed by the press release released by the Hillsborough County medical examiner's office. We believe it contains speculative conclusions that are frankly unnecessary and tend to obscure the conclusion that Billy suffered from chronic, untreated hypertension..." and said in the release that they were considering "an independent evaluation of the autopsy results".^[24]

The medical examiner "concluded that cocaine use caused or contributed to the development of his heart disease, and thereby contributed to his death," the office said in a press release. The office said Mays last used cocaine in the few days before his death but was not under the influence of the drug when he died. Hillsborough County spokeswoman Lori Hudson said nothing in the toxicology report indicated the frequency of Mays's cocaine use. Cocaine can raise the arterial blood pressure, directly cause thickening of the left wall of the ventricle and accelerate the formation of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries, the release said. However, in October 2009, the results of a second medical examination, commissioned by Mays' family, concluded that "cocaine was not a significant contributing factor" to his death.^[25]

Longtime friend and colleague A.J. Khubani, founder and CEO of the "As Seen on TV" product company Telebrands, said Mays never exhibited any signs of drug use and was always prepared for his many commercial shoots. "I'm just shocked," Khubani said. "He was the model of a responsible citizen."

According to subsequent news reports^[26] the toxicology tests also showed levels of painkillers hydrocodone, oxycodone and tramadol, as well as anti-anxiety drugs alprazolam and diazepam. Mays had suffered hip problems and was scheduled for hip replacement surgery the day after he was found dead.

Mays's funeral was held on July 3, 2009 in his hometown of McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. The pallbearers for the funeral wore blue shirts and khaki pants at the funeral, much like Mays wore when he advertised his products.^[27]

Fictional representation[link]

In the South Park episode "Dead Celebrities", Mays's ghost appears repeatedly to Ike Broflovski, trying to sell him products from the afterlife with his catchphrase "Hi, Billy Mays here with the...". Mays's son, Billy Mays III, a self-proclaimed South Park fan, said he loved "Dead Celebrities", and found its portrayal of his father to be both tasteful and respectful.^[28]

Notable products pitched[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Biography portal

• Billy Mays at the Internet Movie Database
• Official Twitter page
• Billy Mays at Find a Grave