Ted Williams’ Voice – Too Much Too Soon?

By Kristen Paquet, Account Executive, Leonard & Finco Public Relations, Inc.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past several days, you have heard the voice of Ted Williams. About a week ago, Ted was homeless, panhandling on the streets of Ohio until a reporter recorded a video of Ted - and his “golden voice” as it is now called – and put it on the Internet.

The video became a huge viral sensation and literally shot Williams into stardom. One day, he was a homeless man struggling with addiction and the next day he was a household name, and had too many job offers to handle. In a matter of days he was on just about every news station and entertainment show and even did a voice over for a Mac n’ Cheese commercial.

And then reality set in.

Williams announced yesterday that he was heading into rehab. A spokesperson for Williams stated that he needed time to decompress, rest and get the help he needs. It was also revealed that Williams had not been sober for two years, as previously claimed. He had fallen off the wagon on several occasions and was still struggling to overcome his addiction to alcohol and drugs.

I can’t even begin to imagine what someone goes through when dealing with the stress and difficulty of an addiction. Add the weight of the entire country watching your every move and it seems like the chances of succeeding would be pretty slim. Everyone says they wish Williams the best; that they want to see him succeed, but have we set him up to fail?

I am one of those people who are cautiously optimistic on how everything will turn out. It would be great to see Williams turn his life around and do well. He was on such a fast track – hopefully the time to reflect on himself and coping with his personal issues will help him make wise decisions about his career.

What do you think? Was the fame and fortune Williams received too much too soon? Could things have been handled differently by the media?