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Victor Kiam

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Entrepreneur

The Resume

    (December 7, 1926-May 27, 2001)
    Born in New Orleans, Louisiana
    Former salesman for Lever Brothers and Playtex
    Purchased Remington Products in a leveraged buy-out (1979)
    Bought the New England Patriots (1988)

Why he might be annoying:

    He was a chain smoker.
    He had never used an electric razor before he decided to take over Remington.
    When reporter Lisa Olson claimed to have been sexually harassed by several Patriots players, he said the Boston Herald had ‘asked for trouble’ by sending a female reporter to cover the team.
    When it was reported that he had called Olson ‘a classic bitch,’ he initially denied making the comment, then backtracked and claimed he had called her ‘a classy bitch.’
    At a male-only sports banquet, he made a Gulf War-themed joke: ‘What do the Iraqi army and Lisa Olson have in common? They’ve both seen Patriot missiles up close.’ (February 4, 1991)

Why he might not be annoying:

    When his wife asked why he thought he could run Remington when he had never owned an electric razor, he pointed out, ‘I’ve been selling brassieres for 13 years and never worn one.’
    Before purchasing the company, he tested Remington’s electric razor against the competition and decided it was best.
    He appeared in Remington ads, famously announcing, ‘I liked the shaver so much, I bought the company.’
    At Remington, he introduced profit sharing plans and opened the executive restrooms and cafeteria to the entire workforce.
    He took out newspaper ads apologizing for his comments about Olson. (Albeit, only after N.O.W. threatened to organize a boycott of Remington products.)

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 10 Votes: 90.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 17 Votes: 5.88% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 7 Votes: 71.43% Annoying