Ron Popeil, Infomercial Personality, Has Died at Age 86

It's nearly guaranteed that you saw him on TV at one time in your life while waiting for Sunday afternoon football to kick off or maybe after seeing one of his 30-minute infomercials at 2 AM you decided, "Yeah, I need that!" --- Ron Popeil, the infomercial personality and inventor, died Wednesday morning at the age of 86 after suffering a ‘medical emergency.’

The Ronco Website says that throughout his career, he’s “been on more television channels for more hours in more markets for more years than virtually all other celebrities in American television history.”

Ron Popeil was born in New York in 1935, and became the face of television marketing in the mid-1950s through his Ronco products, like the Chop-O-Matic, the Showtime Rotisserie & BBQ, Mr. Microphone, and Hair in a Can.

But his catchphrases became more well-known than his inventions like “Set it, and forget it!” and “But wait, there’s more!”

According to his website, the Showtime Rotisserie & BBQ grossed more than $1 BILLION in sales, shattering QVC and other sales records.

He created the famous Chop-O-Matic in 1959 and it sold over two million units. He followed that up with the Veg-O-Matic II --- it was one of the first products to feature the red and white “As Seen on TV” logo.

Popeil also created the Rhinestone Stud Setter, which later became the Bedazzler. He created Mr. Microphone (the very first karaoke machine) and the Inside the Eggshell Egg Scrambler.

In 1964 he formed his own company -- Ronco -- and marketed hundreds of products to global TV audiences.

He also made dozens of cameos in TV and film ... and was parodied multiple times on Saturday Night Live.

Ron Popeil also owns the Guinness World Record for ‘Largest Collection of Olive Oil Bottles’ with at least 2,440.

His net worth was estimated at $200,000,000. Ron is survived by his wife, four daughters, and four grandchildren.