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Ted Williams, the homeless man whose YouTube video has made him the #1 celebrity in America, is getting more job offers and recognition. Today he met his mother for the first time in 20 years.
Kraft spokeswoman Lynne Galia told the Mashable blog that it’s hiring him to do voice-overs for Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. “Like many others, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese and our ad agency was moved by Ted Williams’s story. His amazing voice is perfectly suited to our campaign. We were in the middle of making our TV spots and in a unique position to help Ted use his great voice to gain employment. Kraft Macaroni & Cheese has a tradition of bringing families together and helping those in need and we’re thrilled to help Ted on his journey to re-establish himself.”
The Cleveland Cavaliers have also reportedly given him a full-time job.
Williams has been making the rounds of the morning TV shows.
You know who’s not getting much attention? The reporter who “discovered” him.
His name is Doral Chenoweth. “My husband feels good about it because that’s his big issue, that’s been his big issue for as long as I’ve known him,” his wife said today. “Most of the homeless people in Columbus know him. He keeps them in the forefront all the time.”
Chenoweth revealed to the New York Daily News the source of many great news stories: desperation. “I had a slow news day Monday,” Chenoweth said.
His editor was begging for Chenoweth to find some video. (I got one of those “runaway stories” that way once)
None of his other videos for his newspaper’s Web site are about the homeless. This one, for example, didn’t go quite as viral:
Sign guy is crazy for pizza from Doral Chenoweth on Vimeo.
As far as we know, nobody’s offered this kid a job or a trip to a TV show. Life is funny like that.
