Ron Popeil, the inventor and infomercial icon whose kitchen and direct-to-consumer products generated billions of dollars in U.S.

Popeil first appeared on television in 1959 in an infomercial for the Chop-o-Matic, and his company, Ronco, founded by his father, eventually went on to produce products including Hair in a Can and Pocket Fisherman.

In one infomercial, Popeil pitches his automatic pasta maker with characteristic enthusiasm:

Popeil promised consumers they could make "thousands and thousands" of types of pasta with his machine "in under three minutes."