Most recently, she revived the character for General Mills’ French Toast Crunch cereal campaign previous year.
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The star rose to fame in 1997 when she became a spokesperson for a psychic pay-per-call service.
Miss Cleo was actually born in L.A. – she just nailed the accent. “Miss Cleo!’ and I try to run”. Her ads were famous enough as it was, but the catchphrase “CALL ME NOW!” was definitely the most memorable part. I say, “Who?” She say, “Miss Cleo”.
“She was not Jamaican when I met her”, Crawford said.
Miss Cleo, the television psychic whose Jamaican character and commercials turned her into a cult hero, has died at the age of 53. The Federal Trade Commission said the psychic service promised a free reading, but consumers calling a toll-free number were directed to a 900 number charging $4.99 per minute.
She eventually started her own hotline where she took calls for a fee.
According to a report from TMZ, Miss Cleo was suffering from advanced colon cancer.
The federal lawsuit ordered the companies to forgive $500 million in customers fees and later in court, PRN’s owners Steven Feder and Peter Stoltz settled the suit to a $5 million fine.
She told The Advocate that she was terrified about being public about her sexuality.
We have fond memories of Miss Cleo’s delightful late night infomercials. “Unfortunately, yes”, she said when asked if she still got recognized.
She used a variety of aliases besides Cleo over the years, including LaShawnda Williams, Corvette Mama, Elenore St. Julian, Desiree Canterlaw, Janet Snyder, Maria Delcampo, Christina Garcia, Cleomili Harris and Youree Perris. That year, she did an interview with Vice, saying that she is still recognized on the street. ‘People give me mad love, sweetheart.
While Harris went on to other work, including voice work in video games and advertising campaigns, she’s been best known for the “Miss Cleo” character.
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But her notoriety also led to questions about her past.
