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63-549: PitchMen (original name: But Wait...There's More ) is a docudrama television program produced for the Discovery Channel in the United States. The show followed infomercial producers and talent Billy Mays and Anthony "Sully" Sullivan as they attempted to sell various inventions through direct marketing , mainly through Telebrands , one of the largest direct response/infomercial companies. The series

126-403: A Chicago home and houseware convention to hear some sometimes crazy pitches for the "next big thing", including an easy stringer and a tater tornado. Then, Sully heads to the circus to test a revolutionary new needle. Sully sifts through thousands of inventions to find a robot whisk, but design problems loom. A man's desire to make his wife's life easier leads to a sharp food wrap invention. And

189-657: A French firefighter who came up with the idea for his product after a fellow firefighter lost an eye using a circular saw in a rescue attempt. Shuffles – microfiber pads that are worn on the feet and used as a mop. Jupiter Jack – a cellphone handsfree device that transmits using a vehicle's FM radio. It was originally named Black Jack , but changed due to the trademark not being available. Sharkstopper – an acoustic shark repellent. What Odor? – An odor removing spray that claims to be non-toxic and environmentally friendly The Vertical Grill – A small folding grill-like grate for grilling food Spot Sucker –

252-517: A Frisbee flying fishing tool. An inventor also hooks Sully's heart with a fitness tool a man invents to save his best friend's life. Sully and Kennedy field test a patent pro's new suction device. Sully shares his tricks of the trade with 3 junior pitchmen and endures some of the adults' less successful pitches. A fighter pilot pitches his new fitness tool, and a friend comes out of his own pitchman retirement with "Flippin Sticks." On July 1, 2009, as

315-441: A career that included a tour as sailing master of the sloop Resolution during the third voyage of James Cook , which lasted from 1776 to 1780. The ship's complement consisted of 46 men, with Bligh as the sole commissioned officer, two civilian gardeners to care for the breadfruit plants and the remaining crew consisting of enlisted Royal Navy personnel. On 23 December 1787, Bounty sailed from Spithead for Tahiti . For

378-403: A fitness fanatic pitches Sully gravity-defying workout boots. A young inventor hooks Sully with a collapsing trashcan, but a manufacturing short-cut may destroy the product's future. Two friends think a simple piece of plastic can keep you safe from intruders. A legendary knife man gets a chance at one last pitch. An inventor risks everything to get his Stadium Back chair - and his face - on

441-483: A full month, the crew attempted to take the ship west, around South America's Cape Horn , but adverse weather prevented this. Bligh then proceeded east, rounding the southern tip of Africa ( Cape Agulhas ) and crossing the width of the Indian Ocean , a route 7,000 miles longer. During the outward voyage, Bligh demoted Sailing Master John Fryer , replacing him with Fletcher Christian . This act seriously damaged

504-527: A handicapped fellow pitchman make his latest invention a success; and Billy and Sully pitch iCan Benefit's health insurance, a type of product they had never pitched before. Billy also launches a new advertising campaign for the Awesome Auger. A former pitchman and cancer survivor gets assistance from Billy and Sully, who pitch his handmade product, the Grater Plater; Billy and the team shoot

567-505: A hatchet!"  – Marden dived for several days in the dangerous swells near the island, and found the remains of the ship: a rudder pin, nails, a ships boat oarlock, fittings and a Bounty anchor that he raised. He subsequently met with Marlon Brando to counsel him on his role as Fletcher Christian in the 1962 film Mutiny on the Bounty . Later in life, Marden wore cuff links made of nails from Bounty . Marden also dived on

630-483: A period of nearly 40 months. The gun was subsequently returned to Pitcairn Island, where it has been placed on display in a new community hall. Several other pieces of the ship were found but local law forbids removal of such items from the island. When the 1935 film Mutiny on the Bounty was made, sailing vessels (often with assisting engines) were still common; existing vessels were adapted to act as Bounty and Pandora . For Bounty , Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) had

693-413: A producer at 20th Century Fox in 1943. There he brought the newsreel aesthetic to films, producing a series of movies based upon real events using a realistic style that became known as semidocumentary . The films ( The House on 92nd Street , Boomerang , 13 Rue Madeleine ) were imitated, and the style soon became used even for completely-fictional stories, such as The Naked City . Perhaps

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756-528: A product that could save lives. After an exhaustive search, Sully finds a teenage inventor who developed the Select-A-Wrench, a multi-wrench tool that allows for multiple wrench sizes in one unit. However, the youngster is heartbroken after learning that his invention has already been patented. Sully then enlists help from a veteran duo of inventors to tweak the teenager's idea to gain a patent of his own. Sully teams up with an LA radio host to find

819-515: A production company of the same name. The influence of New Journalism tended to create a license for authors to treat with literary techniques material that might in an earlier age have been approached in a purely journalistic way. Both Truman Capote and Norman Mailer were influenced by this movement, and Capote's In Cold Blood is arguably the most famous example of the genre. Some docudrama examples for American television include Brian's Song (1971), and Roots (1977). Brian's Song

882-460: A scene for Mighty Putty , by using the product to tow HMS  Bounty . The team is also invited to lecture at Princeton University . Bill Mays, Sr. (Billy's father) pitches the "Turn, Don't Burn", and Billy and Sully help Billy Mays III (son) direct his first commercial for a local restaurant owned by his brother-in-law. Billy and Sully pitch the Gator Blades using a device named

945-407: A stain remover developed by a teenage high school student that removes stains by way of a vacuum sucking the cleanser through fabric Heel Stick (Marketed as Heel Tastic ) – balm designed to treat dry cracked skin on a person's foot GrabIt – a drill bit designed to remove broken or stripped screws by cutting a new hole into the screw and extracting it using a second bit Tool Band-It –

1008-493: A strap that fits around the arm and contains Neodymium magnets to keep tools attached and easy to reach. A successful TV pitchwoman, Forbes Riley, hopes to make herself a household name with her new "Spin Gym," but making her infomercial could damage her friendship with Billy and Sully; Billy appears as a guest on The Tonight Show . Billy and Sully have hit a dry spell and hit the road looking for new inventions; Billy helps

1071-409: A term which implies a greater degree of dramatic license, and from the concepts of historical drama , a broader category which may also incorporate entirely fictionalized events intermixed with factual ones, and historical fiction , stories generally featuring fictional characters and plots taking place in historical settings or against the backdrop of historical events. As a portmanteau , docudrama

1134-608: A tribute to the late Billy Mays, the Discovery Channel aired an all-day marathon of PitchMen leading up to the show's season finale. Commercial breaks during the marathon included one of several brief montages saluting Mays. The channel's digital on-screen graphic featured his photograph, along with the words Billy Mays Jr. 1958–2009 . Docudrama Docudramas typically strive to adhere to known historical facts, while allowing some degree of dramatic license in peripheral details, such as when there are gaps in

1197-522: A voyage of exploration under Captain Frederick William Beechey , arrived on Christmas Day off Pitcairn and spent 19 days there. Beechey later recorded this in his 1831 published account of the voyage, as did one of his crew, John Bechervaise, in his 1839 Thirty-Six Years of a Seafaring Life by an Old Quarter Master . Beechey wrote a detailed account of the mutiny as recounted to him by the last survivor, Adams. Bechervaise, who described

1260-485: A wealthy botanist and influential figure in Britain at the time. That, together with his experience sailing with Cook, familiarity with navigation in the area, and local customs were probably important factors in his appointment. Bounty reached Tahiti, then called "Otaheite", on 26 October 1788, after ten months at sea. The crew spent five months there collecting and preparing 1,015 breadfruit plants to be transported to

1323-428: Is a mode of representation. Educator Benicia D'sa maintained that docudramas are heavily impacted by filmmakers' own perspectives and understanding of history. The impulse to incorporate historical material into literary texts has been an intermittent feature of literature in the west since its earliest days. Aristotle 's theory of art is based on the use of putatively historical events and characters. Especially after

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1386-540: Is sometimes confused with docufiction . However, unlike docufiction—which is essentially a documentary filmed in real time , incorporating some fictional elements—docudrama is filmed at a time subsequent to the events portrayed. The docudrama genre is a reenactment of actual historical events. However it makes no promise of being entirely accurate in its interpretation. It blends fact and fiction for its recreation and its quality depends on factors like budget and production time. The filmmaker Leslie Woodhead presents

1449-465: Is the biography of Brian Piccolo , a Chicago Bears football player who died at a young age after battling cancer. Roots depicts the life of a slave and his family. This list is ordered by release date. HMS Bounty HMS Bounty , also known as HM Armed Vessel Bounty , was a British merchant ship that the Royal Navy purchased in 1787 for a botanical mission. The ship was sent to

1512-513: The 1962 film , a new Bounty was constructed in 1960 in Nova Scotia. For much of 1962 to 2012, she was owned by a not-for-profit organisation whose primary aim was to sail her and other square rigged sailing ships, and she sailed the world to appear at harbours for inspections, and take paying passengers, to recoup running costs. For long voyages, she took on volunteer crew. On 29 October 2012, sixteen Bounty crew members abandoned ship off

1575-523: The Admiralty as the mission's commander. Bligh, in turn, was promoted in rank via a prize offered by the Royal Society of Arts . In June 1787, Bounty was refitted at Deptford . The great cabin was converted to house the potted breadfruit plants, and gratings were fitted to the upper deck. William Bligh was appointed commanding lieutenant of Bounty on 16 August 1787 at the age of 33, after

1638-516: The Fiji and Cook Islands , but feared that they would be found there. Continuing their quest for a safe haven, on 15 January 1790 they rediscovered Pitcairn Island , which had been misplaced on the Royal Navy's charts. After the decision was made to settle on Pitcairn, livestock and other provisions were removed from Bounty . To prevent the ship's detection, and anyone's possible escape, the ship

1701-834: The South Pacific Ocean under the command of William Bligh to acquire breadfruit plants and transport them to the British West Indies . That mission was never completed owing to a 1789 mutiny led by acting lieutenant Fletcher Christian , an incident now popularly known as the Mutiny on the Bounty . The mutineers later burned Bounty while she was moored at Pitcairn Island in the Southern Pacific Ocean in 1790. An American adventurer helped land several remains of Bounty in 1957. Bounty

1764-672: The 'Bug Bazooka.' and pitch the "EZ Crunch Bowl" which was invented by Survivor: Africa winner Ethan Zohn . After Vince Offer pitches similar products ( ShamWow and the Slap Chop ), Billy and Sully counter by relaunching the similar products they advertised, Zorbeez and Quick Chop . Billy and Sully then compete against each other in a pitch-off in Philadelphia. Sully hires two workers to bother Billy, and pays people to buy his product, although Billy still wins. On July 15, 2009, Discovery Channel announced they were renewing

1827-625: The Fridge Locker, while celebrity addiction doctor, Dr. Drew Pinsky, helps pitch the RX Locker. Meanwhile, two experienced brother inventors pour their life savings into the ShaveMate, a razor blade with six razors and a shaving cream dispenser built into the handle. Billy Mays was set to shave off his iconic beard for the product, but following his passing, Sully struggles with pitching the new product. Sully and assistant Kennedy head to

1890-875: The West Indies. Bligh allowed the crew to live ashore and care for the potted breadfruit plants, and they became socialised to the customs and culture of the Tahitians. Many of the seamen and some of the "young gentlemen" had themselves tattooed in native fashion. Master's Mate and Acting Lieutenant Fletcher Christian married Maimiti, a Tahitian woman. Other warrant officers and seamen were also said to have formed "connections" with native women. After five months in Tahiti, Bounty set sail with her breadfruit cargo on 4 April 1789. Some 1,300 mi (2,100 km) west of Tahiti, near Tonga , mutiny broke out on 28 April 1789. Despite strong words and threats heard on both sides,

1953-455: The air. A mother of four puts it all on the line with her simple alternative to the chip clip. Then, Sully and Kennedy try out an electric skateboard. Sully puts out a call for fitness products; a female fitness star comes back to the spotlight with her "Chest Magic" machine. Also, BMXers test two new concepts: one, a "bicycle meets elliptical trainer," and the other, a "bicycle meets rowing machine." Sully mixes business and pleasure testing

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2016-460: The bare facts of an event in history to tell a story. Some degree of license is often taken with minor historical facts for the sake of enhancing the drama. Docudramas are distinct from historical fiction, in which the historical setting is a mere backdrop for a plot involving fictional characters. The scholar Steven N. Lipkin considers docudrama as a form of performance through recollection which in turn shapes our collective memory of past events. It

2079-545: The coast of North Carolina after getting caught in the high seas brought on by Hurricane Sandy . The ship sank, according to Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City , at 12:45 UTC Monday 29 October 2012 and two crew members, including Captain Robin Walbridge , were reported as missing. The captain was not found and presumed dead on 2 November 2012. It was later reported that the Coast Guard had recovered one of

2142-444: The development of modern mass-produced literature, there have been genres that relied on history or then-current events for material. English Renaissance drama, for example, developed subgenres specifically devoted to dramatizing recent murders and notorious cases of witchcraft . However, docudrama as a separate category belongs to the second half of the twentieth century. Louis de Rochemont , creator of The March of Time , became

2205-618: The docudrama dilemma in the following manner: [instead of hunting for definitions] I think it much more useful to think of the form as a spectrum that runs from journalistic reconstruction to relevant drama with infinite graduations along the way. In its various mutation it's employed by investigative journalists, documentary feature makers, and imaginative dramatists. So we shouldn't be surprised when programs as various as Culloden and Oppenheimer or Suez , or Cabinet reconstructions refuse tidy and comprehensive definition. Docudramas producers use literary and narrative techniques to flesh out

2268-407: The historical record. Dialogue may, or may not, include the actual words of real-life people, as recorded in historical documents . Docudrama producers sometimes choose to film their reconstructed events in the actual locations in which the historical events occurred. A docudrama, in which historical fidelity is the keynote, is generally distinguished from a film merely " based on true events ",

2331-409: The inventors are notified of the amount of success that the commercial generated. For products that generated a successful level of consumer interest, high praise is given by Billy and Sully. For products that did not fare as well, the inventor is notified, and the future of the product is discussed briefly including the possibility of collaboration on tweaking the commercial for a later airing date. It

2394-560: The island of Tubuai , where they tried to settle. After three months of bloody conflict with the natives, however, they returned to Tahiti. Sixteen of the mutineers – including the four loyalists who had been unable to accompany Bligh – remained there, taking their chances that the Royal Navy would not find them and bring them to justice. HMS  Pandora was sent out by the Admiralty in November 1790 in pursuit of Bounty , to capture

2457-448: The life of the islanders, says he found the remains of Bounty and took some pieces of wood from it which were turned into souvenirs such as snuff boxes . The details of the voyage of Bounty are very well documented, largely due to the effort of Bligh to maintain an accurate log before, during, and after the actual mutiny. Bounty ' s crew list is also well chronicled. Bligh's original log remained intact throughout his ordeal and

2520-554: The missing crew members, Claudene Christian, descendant of Fletcher Christian of the original Bounty . Christian was found to be unresponsive and pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital in North Carolina. A second Bounty replica, named HMAV Bounty , was built in New Zealand in 1979 and used in the 1984 film The Bounty . The hull is constructed of welded steel oversheathed with timber. For many years she served

2583-460: The most significant of the semidocumentary films was He Walked by Night (1948), based upon an actual case . Jack Webb had a supporting role in the movie and struck up a friendship with the LAPD consultant, Sergeant Marty Wynn. The film and his relationship with Wynn inspired Webb to create Dragnet , one of the most famous docudramas in history. The particular portmanteau term "docudrama"

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2646-619: The mutineers and bring them back to Britain to face a court martial . She arrived in March 1791 and captured fourteen men within two weeks; they were locked away in a makeshift wooden prison on Pandora ' s quarterdeck. The men called their cell "Pandora's box". They remained in their prison until 29 August 1791 when Pandora was wrecked on the Great Barrier Reef with the loss of 35 lives, including four mutineers (Stewart, Sumner, Skinner, and Hildebrand). Immediately after setting

2709-418: The next great invention and discovers a young inventor who made millions during the dot com boom and is now searching for another purpose in life. The inventor came with two products, the Fridge Locker, a small cage to protect food from co-workers, as well as the RX Locker, a lockable medication case to keep children and addicts from others' prescription drugs. Sully risks life and limb with a grizzly bear to test

2772-492: The open boat 30 nmi (56 km) to Tofua in search of supplies, but were forced to flee after attacks by hostile natives resulted in the death of one of the men. Bligh then undertook an arduous journey to the Dutch settlement of Coupang , located over 3,500 nmi (6,500 km) from Tofua. He safely landed there 47 days later, having lost no men during the voyage except the one killed on Tofua. The mutineers sailed for

2835-641: The outside world. Luis Marden rediscovered the remains of Bounty in January 1957. After spotting remains of the rudder (which had been found in 1933 by Parkin Christian, and is still displayed in the Fiji Museum in Suva), he persuaded his editors and writers to let him dive off Pitcairn Island, where the rudder had been found. Despite the warnings of one islander – "Man, you gwen be dead as

2898-420: The relationship between Bligh and Fryer, and Fryer later claimed that Bligh's act was entirely personal. Bligh is commonly portrayed as the epitome of abusive sailing captains, but this portrayal has recently come into dispute. Caroline Alexander points out in her 2003 book The Bounty that Bligh was relatively lenient compared with other British naval officers. Bligh enjoyed the patronage of Sir Joseph Banks ,

2961-445: The second season was undecided until July 15, when a press-release was put out by Discovery to announce that the show would be renewed for a second season, with Mays' eponymous son taking his late father's place. The second season premiered on August 19, 2010 with solely Anthony Sullivan starring in commercials. Sully sometimes brings in others to help him decide with product such as Telebrands CEO AJ Khubani. However, without Billy Mays on

3024-464: The ship was taken bloodlessly and apparently without struggle by any of the loyalists except Bligh himself. Of the 42 men on board aside from Bligh and Christian, 22 joined Christian in mutiny, two were passive, and 18 remained loyal to Bligh. The mutineers ordered Bligh, two midshipmen , the surgeon's mate (Ledward), and the ship's clerk into the ship's boat . Several more men voluntarily joined Bligh rather than remain aboard. Bligh and his men sailed

3087-418: The show for a second season, with Mays' eponymous son Billy Mays III joining Anthony Sullivan and Thom Beers . The second season premiered on August 19, 2010. Starting September 2, 2010, Discovery Channel has removed Pitchmen from its regular Thursday night at 9pm slot without any explanation. However, new episodes returned to Discovery Channel beginning January 18, 2011 but with only Anthony Sullivan helming

3150-399: The show, PitchMen was cancelled after two seasons. Impact Gel – A shoe insert that cushions a person's heel and toe. GPS Pal: – A device that allows a user to place a GPS navigation system in a cupholder instead of on the windshield. DualSaw – a dual-bladed circular saw with blades that revolve in opposing directions allowing a cleaner cut without kickback. It was invented by

3213-404: The show. But on its website, Discovery Channel has trimmed the list of season 2 episodes to five, indicating the possibility the series has been cancelled, although no official cancellation announcement has been made. Invention season is back in full force with Sully leading the charge. A Marine puts his innovative flashlight to the test, while an inventor tries to pass on his father's legacy with

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3276-473: The sixteen men ashore in Tahiti in September 1789, Fletcher Christian, eight other crewmen, six Tahitian men, and 11 women, one with a baby, set sail in Bounty hoping to elude the Royal Navy. According to a journal kept by one of Christian's followers, the Tahitians were actually kidnapped when Christian set sail without warning them, the purpose of this being to acquire the women. The mutineers passed through

3339-414: The table below. Four were detained against their will on Bounty for their needed skills and for lack of space on the long boat. The mutineers first returned to Tahiti, where most of the survivors were later captured by Pandora and taken to England for trial. Nine mutineers continued their flight from the law and eventually settled on Pitcairn Island, where all but one died before their fate became known to

3402-575: The tourist excursion market from Darling Harbour , Sydney , Australia and appeared in a Tamil language Indian (1996 film) , before being sold to HKR International Limited in October 2007. She was then a tourist attraction (also used for charter, excursions and sail training) based in Discovery Bay , on Lantau Island in Hong Kong , and was given an additional Chinese name 濟民號 . She

3465-477: The wooden 19th century schooner Lily transformed into the three masted full square-rigged Bounty . Metha Nelson , which had been featured in movies from 1931 on, was given the role of Pandora . Both reconstructions, the modern Bounty and Pandora , sailed from the US west coast to Tahiti for film shoots at the original location. A model ship was built in two parts to serve as a set design in an MGM studio. For

3528-579: The wreck of Pandora and left a Bounty nail with Pandora . Some of the Bounty ' s remains, such as the ballast stones , are still partially visible in the waters of Bounty Bay. The last of Bounty ' s four 4-pounder cannon was recovered in 1998 by an archaeological team from James Cook University and was sent to the Queensland Museum in Townsville to be stabilised through lengthy conservation treatment via electrolysis over

3591-605: Was burned on 23 January 1790 in what is now called Bounty Bay . The mutineers remained undetected on Pitcairn until February 1808, when sole remaining mutineer John Adams and the surviving Tahitian women and their children were discovered by the Boston sealer Topaz , commanded by Captain Mayhew Folger of Nantucket , Massachusetts . Adams gave to Folger the Bounty 's azimuth compass and marine chronometer . Seventeen years later, in 1825, HMS  Blossom , on

3654-570: Was coined in 1957 by Philip C. Lewis (1904-1979), of Tenafly, New Jersey , a former vaudevillian and stage actor turned playwright and author, in connection with a production he wrote, in response to the defeat of a local school-funding referendum, for the Tenafly Citizens' Education Council addressing "the development of education and its significance in American life." Lewis trademarked the term "DocuDrama" in 1967 (expired, 1992) for

3717-460: Was equipped with four 4 pdr (1.8 kg) cannon and ten swivel guns . The Royal Navy had purchased Bethia for the sole purpose of carrying out the mission of acquiring breadfruit plants from Tahiti , which would then be transported to the British West Indies as a cheap source of food for the region's slaves . English naturalist Sir Joseph Banks originated the idea and promoted it in Britain, recommending Lieutenant William Bligh to

3780-455: Was narrated by Thom Beers . Each episode typically focused on two different products. Each episode typically begins with Billy Mays and Anthony Sullivan being pitched different products by their inventors. Two products are then selected and are field tested with peoples' opinions gathered on the products. If successful in the field test, Billy and Sully would create an infomercial which is then produced and played in test markets after which

3843-464: Was originally the collier Bethia, which was reportedly built in 1784 at Blaydes Yard in Hull , Yorkshire . The Royal Navy purchased her for £ 1,950 on 23 May 1787 (equivalent to £271,000 in 2023), and subsequently refitted the ship and renamed her Bounty. The ship was relatively small at 215 tons, but had three masts and was full-rigged . After conversion for the breadfruit expedition, she

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3906-415: Was unknown whether or not the series would continue following Mays' death on June 28, 2009. The Discovery Channel ran an all day marathon of episodes on July 1 as a tribute, which concluded with the season finale, itself edited to end with a tribute to Mays. On July 9, a special tribute episode entitled "Pitchman: A Tribute to Billy Mays" aired with comments from friends, co-workers and family. The status of

3969-543: Was used as a major piece of evidence in his own trial for the loss of Bounty , as well as the subsequent trial of captured mutineers. The original log is presently maintained at the State Library of New South Wales , with available transcripts in both print and electronic format. In the immediate wake of the mutiny, all but four of the loyal crew joined Bligh in the long boat for the voyage to Timor, and eventually made it safely back to England, unless otherwise noted in

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