If some of the channels on your television seem a little more quiet lately you've noticed the absence of an infomercial star.
Billy Mays died last week of heart problems.
Today (7-3) he was laid to rest in Pennsylvania.
He was the loud talking host of numerous infomercials, some of them produced right here in Springfield by Opfer Communications.
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"He's the yell and sell master of direct TV,” said Scott Opfer.
But Opfer says the other side of Billy Mays sold him.
"Everybody who knew this guy loved him. I never met anyone that didn't really really love Billy if they knew him,” he said.
Scott worked with Billy for years, most recently on projects like the Awesome Auger and Simonize Fix It scratch remover.
"He really became an icon and put polish to an industry that really didn't have a whole lot of polish for a long time,” Scott said.
And Scott says despite his fame, Billy was just a regular guy.
Beyond the personal loss to Billy's friends, family and business partners, Scott says the infomercial industry is hurting right now.
Many of Billy's infomercials are off the air for the time being.
"When you look at the brands that Billy is behind Oxyclean, Kaboom, Orange Glo, Simonize... it equates to millions,” Scott said.

But wait there's more. Billy became bigger than the 2 minute or the 30 minute infomercial... the Discovery Channel featured Billy on its series Pitchmen. Scott is even on some of the website clips with him.

"This is a guy that wasn't even close to reaching his peak but was gaining momentum so quick... it was fun to watch,” he said.

Scott says they spoke for an hour on the phone the night before Billy's death about several projects they were working on and about their families and their future.
"When you talk to somebody like that just hours before... it makes it a little more painful little more surreal I still don't think it's set in still,” he said..
Scott attended Billy's funeral in Pennsylvania. .
He says Mays was on the verge of a major endorsement deal at the time of his death.
He's heard the family wants the infomercials to continue running.
Whether you'll see Billy Mays on television in the future is up to the companies he pitched.