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Ever wish you could see the expression on your loved one's face when she hears the voice of Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino on the other end of her cell phone, wishing her a happy birthday?
I know, right—who hasn't wished that?
Enter a new business called CelebritiesCallYou.com. The site, started by Louisvillian Chris Webb, has a stable of 30 celebrity callers that is growing. “We thought it would be nice for celebrities to be able to communicate with their fans for special occasions,” Webb said, “and we found there is a huge demand in the marketplace."
Not that different from a mad lib, the celebrity of your choice delivers an audio message of general goodwill, peppered with a few specifics of your choosing. You enter your loved one's phone number, pay $3.99, and the site calls with the recording.
For instance, with the Pitino example, the coach calls with well wishes for a special occasion (birthday, graduation, secretary's day, etc.), and says to celebrate by eating a favorite food (like Italian food—maybe at Porcini's), watching a favorite show (again, numerous options), and spending time with loved ones in the callee's home state. He ends with a word of encouragement to live each day to the fullest and a shout out to one of two Bluegrass basketball teams.
The specifics of the call vary from celebrity to celebrity. For instance, Ice T's call has only a handful of choices for the special occasion, but includes options for both food AND drink (and yes, Hennessy is on the list).
Webb said the site is trying to provide a celebrity option for every possible demographic. “If a kid plays baseball, we want to have his favorite player be able to call and give advice on his little league game,” he said.
The celebrities are paid a percentage of each call they “make,” and several of them donate their proceeds to charity. Webb wouldn't say which celebrity has had the most call requests, only that “it would definitely surprise you.”
It needs to be said that the term “celebrity” should definitely be used loosely with some of your options—Paul Sr. from American Choppers and top-40 DJ Rick Dees are both seriously pushing it, and 13 of the 30 celebs are pro wrestlers.
But at $4 a call, the service can make for a unique gift at a pretty low price.
“This truly is a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience, and something that your friends and family will always remember,” Webb said.
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John LaFollette