In 1982, professional speed talker John Moschitta became one of those individuals destined to be remembered for a single commercial role. That iconic role was Mr. Spleen, white-collar office manager, who was pictured sitting at his desk engaged in a phone call and talking at a dizzying rate.
Most of us have a hard time just saying "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers." Moschitta, who has competed in speed-talking contests, went at it at roughly 450 words a minute--very, very fast, even for a New Yorker like himself. Good thing he hadn't been born in the South.
The commercial was for Federal Express; it was meant to convey the notion that shipping by that service was also very fast. The company eventually did around 80 versions of this commercial using Moschitta.
Moschitta also appeared on a number of TV shows, including Matt Houston, The A-Team, Ally McBeal, and Hollywood Squares. He put his talents to work in several movies, too, such as Young Doctors in Love, Transformers, and Dick Tracy.
Moschitta's claim to celebrity, however, overwhelmingly comes from his Federal Express commercial role.
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