That’s what Neil Cavouto says, but it bothers me too dammit!
Who is Wendy Kaufman? Besides a long islander who went to the High School all my neighbors went to (it was about a mile away, but I went to private school), she is the Snapple lady!
According to an interview with Fox News, Wendy was fired in March by an executive of Cadbury Schweppes, the most recent owner of the Snapple brand. This information was disclosed during an interview with Neil Cavuto, which aired on his Fox News TV show, “Your World with Neil Cavuto” on May 8, 2008. Wendy’s appearance on the show prompted the creation of many fan sites, including a Facebook group entitled “We Love You Wendy,” which can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=13161379790
HISTORY OF WENDY AS THE SNAPPLE LADY:
From her Wikibio: In 1991, she began working for Snapple Beverage Corporation for her best friend’s father, Arnie Greenberg, one of the three founders of Snapple.
When Kaufman was a young child, she wrote her one and only fan letter to Greg Brady (Barry Williams), which went unanswered. So, at Snapple, when she realized how many people where trying to connect with the company, she took it upon herself to answer all the letters, since she remembered how terrible she felt when he never replied. This led to her being referred to as “The Snapple Lady”.
When it was discovered that Kaufman had been answering Snapple fan-mail in her free time (because nobody in the office wanted to do it themselves), their brand new advertising agency, Kirshenbaum & Bond, developed a campaign around her energetic personality. She appeared in television, radio, and print advertising until 1994 wherein she answered letters written to Snapple with witty responses. Kaufman’s 1990s Snapple ad trademark was to appear on camera with her head barely peeking out over the Snapple reception counter, giving the viewer the impression that she was incredibly short in stature (She is officially 5′2″). Wendy continues to get a kick out of telling people that she was the real “Head of Snapple”. She would begin each commercial by saying in a thick New York accent that she received a letter from a particular Snapple fan, who would then be included in the commercial.
Kaufman’s humorous Snapple ads were well-received, especially among members of Generation X, and she was partially responsible for a jump in Snapple’s sales from 23 million dollars a year to 750 million a year in 1995. She was let go in 1994, upon Snapple’s sale to Quaker Oats. However, when Quaker sold Snapple to Triarc brands in 1997, they reinstated Wendy as the Snapple goodwill ambassador.
