The Dark Side of YouTube Fame: “Tron Guy” Forced Into Fire Sale
by Peter Kafka
Posted on June 22, 2009 at 4:27 PM PT
Jay Maynard, a.k.a. “The Tron Guy,” is famous for dressing up like, well, one of the guys from the movie “Tron.”
But while that distinction made him one of the early breakout stars on Google’s (GOOG) YouTube, it hasn’t made him rich. Or at least, not wealthy enough to afford the customized airplane he bought last year for $140,000. He’s auctioning it off on eBay (EBAY) at a fire sale price. UPDATE: Maynard notes, good naturedly, that his auction has an unmet reserve price. So it’s not fair to call this a fire sale without knowing what that amount is. My apology.
As I type this, the high bid for Maynard’s 2008 AMD Zodiac XLi is $22,6000. Maynard told Wired that he has put about 150 hours on the customized two-seater.
Wired makes reference to Maynard encountering “turbulence” at his day job as a computer programmer and notes that being “Tron Guy” has brought him notoriety but not much money. It seems the only paying gigs the distinction earned him were multiple appearances on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”
I’m not sure if this is the original “Tron Guy” video that launched Maynard into YouTube fame. But it is the first one that pops up when you Google “Tron Guy YouTube” (and tellingly, the “related” videos that populate the right side of the screen star a who’s who of YouTube celebrities: The “Numa Numa” guy, “afro ninja,” “Asian Backstreet Boys,” etc.
Comments
I sure hope that the price it goes for isn’t a fire sale price…that’s why I put it up on eBay with a reserve.
BTW, I’ve flown it for a little over 150 hours, not 150,000 miles. It’s not that fast. If there were no wind, that would be just under 20,000 miles.
Posted by Jay Maynard at June 22nd, 2009 at 5:23 pmMy apologies, Jay. I’ve noted that in the story. Thanks for catching, and being a good sport.
Posted by Peter Kafka at June 22nd, 2009 at 8:45 pm