One day when Cynthia and I were sitting in my living room watching David Letterman’s show, we had a brilliant idea that ended up making CNN news and making us a lot of money.
It all started on June 5, 1992 when the famous Dan Quayle, president George Bush Sr., known for his intelligence, went to the sixth grade class at the Luis Munoz Rivera School in Trenton, New Jersey and started spelling. Bec when you were Vice President Quayle gave 12 year old William Figueroa to write the word “potato” on the board .
William Young wrote correctly on the board: POTATO. Dan Quayle suggested William to add an E to the end, which William did to appease Mr. Quayle, knowing full well that without the E in the end it was zea!
So there we were, Cynthia and I, watching David Letterman when I introduced the guest, none other than William Figueroa! As we listened to William recount the incidents we had already seen all over the national and local news stations, we suddenly had what can only be described as a telepathic moment of genius!
Cynthia and I looked at each other and in the same second, they both said “Dan Quayle Potato Head T-Shirts!”
that was the beginning. We created a project with the help of his brother David. He had a photograph of all parts of Mr. Potato all together with Dan Quayle’s face on the front of the annual head. Above the picture it said “PotatoE’s head”, and underneath it said “Brain not included”.
We took them to a local screen printer and had hundreds of shirts made, and then we started taking them to popular companies all over the country and selling them.
We first met in St. Louis, Missouri at Union Station. Bill Clinton and Al Gore were traveling with their wives and other members of the Democratic Party. We waited for all the good things of the people, walking in line, meeting and greeting everyone who was there to hear what they had to say. When Bill Clinton stopped saying hi and shake hands with me, I handed him a brand new brand new Dan. Quayle PotatoE’s head t-shirt and said, “This is for you!” He smiled a huge genuine smile and graciously accepted the gift and said, “Thank you! I’ll be wearing this in my daily trudges.” Then he took my one-year-old son Brandon from me, holding him by the hip, picked him up for a few moments and kissed him on the cheek, saying, “What a beautiful baby!” Then came Hillary Clinton to whom I also handed the PotatoE Head Shirt and said “and this is for you, so you and your husband have a matching PotatoE Head Shirt”. She smiled and thanked me in a very sincere voice.
Next in line was AL Gore, then Tipper. At this time I was handed Al-shirt, and at this point cameras were everywhere. Dan Quayle held up his Potato Head T-shirt as a CNN camera caught him on tape, and he smiled. He thanked me for the shirt and then asked how I came up with such a funny idea. I told him how my friend Cynthia was inspired by David Letterman’s show. He smiled and said, “Good luck with your hiring! Tipper was going to receive the next gift.”
Afterwards we walked as Al Gore and then Bill Clinton spoke to the crowd, answering questions put to him by the audience. Meanwhile, I am 32 years old, trying to buy a shirt! The beginning of a long and exciting war.
When I got home, my phone rang! Every time I got hung up, someone I knew would call and tell me that they had just seen me on CNN News, and then CBS news and KDNL news, the local news channel. I was surprised, especially since the next day the Illinois Democratic Party called me from Decatur, Illinois and asked if they could buy some of my shirts. They ordered 100, and if I could deliver them, they would like to meet the man who created “that shirt”. Of course I had to.
It became a whirlwind later when Cynthia and he were going to popular parties, especially where either Bill Clinton, Al Gore or both were present. Within a 5 month period, we made more than $30,000 in profit each. We have both been on different news channels across the country many times. We simply had a lost count. We always get phone calls from people wanting to take orders for T-shirts.
An exciting moment happened one evening, when Dan Quayle was scheduled to fund-raisers”>raiser and have dinner with the Republican Party. I felt that since Dan had been the one to start off the successful PotatoE, I must thank him personally. hotels”>Marriott Airport Hotel near Lambert Airport in St. Louis, MO. I waited just outside the silver poles enclosed by short yellow ropes on either side. As Dan Quayle descended the island, secret-service”>Secret services almost enveloping the body, I maintained. shirt to Mr. Quayle and said to him; “Mr. Quayle, I made this tee in your honor! I want you to have one as a keepsake.” Dan’s eyes lit up and stopped in front of me, he gave me a huge happy smile, took the shirt from me and held it for the middle of the roll. He said, “Hey, I have a picture!” Thank you! I’m really flattering!”. All this while many news media cameras were covering the whole incident, then he walked forward and soon disappeared into the ballroom.
I laughed as I spent the night at home, and I wondered if anyone had seen me and Dan on television together. At that moment I felt more proud to be an American than I had ever felt before, and maybe since! I will always remember Dan Quayle very much.
Written by
Diana Smith
