Email
Print
Pitch by pitch
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: November 5, 2009
TAMPA - The Singing Faucet was a hit, but the Noodle Nanny didn't make the cut.
More than 170 inventors pitched their inventions Wednesday at an audition to find a product for the second season of the Discovery network reality show "Pitchmen."
The Noodle Nanny, a caddy for those long, skinny foam swimming floats, came up short along with dozens of inventions such as an electric cigarette with a nicotine injector, a fly swatter cleaner, little plastic furniture for fish tanks and a tiny hook that keeps lime slices from falling to the bottom of beer bottles.
The inventors presented their products to a panel of local judges who set up at the Ritz Ybor.
"We had people coming in from all over the country and hundreds more who wanted to come," said WFLZ radio morning producer Uncle Fester (Dominic Siciliano). The audition was sponsored by "The MJ Morning Show" on WFLZ, 93.3 FM, and "Pitchmen" host Anthony Sullivan, of Sullivan Productions in Tampa.
The inventors were narrowed down to 20 by 6 p.m. Sullivan said five will be picked today to make the pitches Friday during MJ Kelli's morning show on WFLZ.
"We're always looking for products, and if we get one good one, it will be great; if we get as many as three, it will be a bonanza because this is a tough business," Sullivan said.
"We think we've got something every family needs," said Tara Mollick of Clearwater. She and co-inventor Canna Mercer are among the 20 semifinalists. Their singing faucet attaches to faucets and plays 20-second songs when the water is turned on to encourage kids to wash their hands.
Also still in the running is Bob Wilson, a Valrico house painter who showed up at 5:30 a.m. dressed as a caveman to tout his plastic plate with a thumb grip and cup holder - for outdoor gatherings where there are no tables.
Helping judge the inventions was Billy Mays III, son of the late "Pitchmen" co-star Billy Mays. The younger Mays said they are looking for items that solve a problem, can be easily demonstrated, already have a patent and are not expensive to produce.
Sullivan said production is under way on a second season of "Pitchmen," which takes viewers behind the scenes of how products are developed and marketed via infomercials.
TBO.com - Tampa Bay Online ©2009 Media General Communications Holdings, LLC. A Media General company. | Member Agreement | Privacy Statement | Work With Us
