Wally Amos - Wikipedia Wally Amos This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. ( May 2012 ) Wally Amos Wally Amos takes children on a reading adventure during Springfest, an event that celebrates children during the Month of the Military Child on Naval Station Pearl Harbor, April 21, 2007 Wallace Amos Jr. ( 1936 - 07 - 01 ) July 1, 1936 ( age 81 ) Tallahassee, Florida Residence Kailua, Hawaii Known for Famous Amos, Learn to Read Signature Wallace `` Wally '' Amos Jr. ( born July 1, 1936 ) is an American TV personality, entrepreneur and author from Tallahassee, Florida. He is the founder of the `` Famous Amos '' chocolate - chip cookie brand. He also was the host of the adult reading program, Learn to Read. He resides in Kailua, Hawaii where he runs The Cookie Kahuna gourmet cookie brand. Biography Amos lived in Tallahassee, Florida, until he was twelve. When his parents divorced, he moved to Manhattan, New York with his aunt, where he enrolled at the Food Trades Vocational High School. He showed his interest in cooking at a young age, and it was from his aunt, who would bake cookies for him, that Amos would develop his chocolate chip cookie recipe. Amos improved on his aunt 's recipe, which was already uncommon because it included several ingredients not generally associated with chocolate chip cookies. Shortly before graduation, Amos dropped out of high school to join the United States Air Force. He earned his high school equivalency diploma before being honorably discharged from the military, where he had a distinguished career. Returning to New York City, Amos went to college to become a secretary, and following graduation, took a clerical job with the William Morris Agency. Eventually, he became the agency 's first African American talent agent. He signed Simon & Garfunkel and headed the agency 's rock ' n ' roll department. Amos attracted clients by sending them chocolate chip cookies along with an invitation to visit him. He represented musicians such as Diana Ross & the Supremes, Sam Cooke, and Marvin Gaye. In 1975, a friend suggested to Amos that he set up a store to sell his cookies, and in March of that year, the first `` Famous Amos '' cookie store opened in Los Angeles, California. He started the business with the help of a $25,000 loan from Marvin Gaye and Helen Reddy. The company began to expand, and, eventually, `` Famous Amos '' chocolate chip cookies could be found on supermarket shelves across the United States. He became known figure culturally that he appeared as himself in the Taxi episode `` Latka 's Cookies '' in 1981. Thanks in part to the success of his cookie company, he was hired to deliver speeches. He has written ten books, many of which have a self - help theme, including The Cookie Never Crumbles and The Power in You. Due to financial troubles, Amos was forced to sell the Famous Amos Company, and because the name `` Famous Amos '' was trademarked by his former company, he had to use `` The Uncle Noname 's Cookie Company '' as his new company 's name. A Famous Amos distributor at the time, Lou Avignone, heard Amos on a local radio talk show and, inspired by Amos ' story of his early business success with Famous Amos and his spirit, contacted Amos with the idea for starting a new business. In 1994, the two became partners and subsequently launched `` Uncle Noname Gourmet Muffins ''. The company focused on fat - free, nutritious muffins at that time. Uncle Noname became Uncle Wally 's Muffin Company in 1999. The muffins are sold in more than 3,500 stores nationwide. In 2014, an article in Fortune Magazine lauded `` The cookie comeback of `` Famous '' Wally Amos '' as Amos bought back his handmade cookies under a new name `` The Cookie Kahuna ''. These cookies were marketed in a store in Hawaii, where Amos is based. They come in the flavors original chocolate chip, chocolate chip with pecans and butterscotch with macadamia nuts. In 1979, Amos ' long - time friend and publicist John Rosica introduced him to Literacy Volunteers of America. Amos has advocated literacy and helped thousands of adults learn to read. In 1987, he also hosted a television series designed to teach others how to read, entitled Learn to Read, produced by Kentucky Educational Television and WXYZ - TV. In 2012, Amos appeared in the February 16 episode of The Office, entitled `` Tallahassee '', as himself. In 2014, Amos launched his new cookie business, The Cookie Kahuna, which is sold at Costco 's store in Iwilei, Hawaii, where Amos is based and also online. Three flavors are offered : original chocolate chip, butterscotch with macadamia nuts, and chocolate chip with pecans. In 2014, an article in Fortune Magazine lauded this as `` The cookie comeback of ' Famous ' Wally Amos '' as Amos brought back his handmade cookies under the new name `` The Cookie Kahuna. '' In 2016, Amos appeared in the October 6 episode of Shark Tank seeking $50,000 funding for 20 % equity of Cookie Kahuna. The Sharks all passed on the opportunity. In 2018, Content Media Group will release `` The Great Cookie Comeback : Re-Baking Wally Amos '', a documentary on the life of Wally Amos. References Jump up ^ `` Wally Amos Bio Premiere Motivational Speakers Bureau ''. premierespeakers.com. Retrieved 2018 - 01 - 09. Jump up ^ Canedy, Dana ( 1999 - 07 - 03 ). `` A Famous Cookie And a Face to Match ; How Wally Amos Got His Hand And His Name Back in the Game ''. New York Times. Retrieved 2010 - 02 - 26. Jump up ^ `` Wally Amos biography ''. Amazon. Retrieved 2010 - 02 - 26. Jump up ^ `` The Cookie Never Crumbles : Practical Recipes for Everyday Living : Wally Amos, Eden - Lee Murray : 9780312304980 : Amazon.com : Books ''. amazon.com. Jump up ^ `` The Power in You : Wally Amos : 9781556110931 : Amazon.com : Books ''. amazon.com. Jump up ^ `` Wally Amos - Leading Authorities Speakers Bureau ''. Leading Authorities. Retrieved 2007 - 10 - 30. Jump up ^ `` No longer Famous, Wally Amos still baking ''. msnbc.com. 2007 - 07 - 13. Retrieved 2018 - 01 - 09. Jump up ^ Canedy, Dana ( 1999 - 07 - 03 ). `` A Famous Cookie And a Face to Match ; How Wally Amos Got His Hand And His Name Back in the Game ''. The New York Times. ISSN 0362 - 4331. Retrieved 2018 - 01 - 09. Jump up ^ Kell, John. `` A cookie connoisseur 's comeback ''. Fortune. Retrieved 2017 - 08 - 25. Jump up ^ `` Learn to Read ''. TV.com. CBS Interactive. Jump up ^ `` Shark Tank : The Cookie Kahuna, from Famous Amos Creator, Crumbles in the Tank, Fails to Get A Deal ''. Business 2 Community. Retrieved 2018 - 01 - 09. Jump up ^ `` Shark Tank - Cookie Legend Wally Amos Pitches New Cookie Kahuna Brand - Chew Boom ''. Chew Boom. 2016 - 10 - 05. Retrieved 2018 - 01 - 09. External links Uncle Wally 's Famous Amos Cookies Book : `` The Famous Amos Story : The Face That Launched a Thousand Chips '' The Great Cookie Comeback : Re-Baking Wally Amos -- Documentary The Cookie Kahuna African American portal LCCN : n83005166 VIAF : 94570998 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wally_Amos&oldid=842687993 '' Categories : 1936 births Living people African - American non-fiction writers American non-fiction writers African - American businesspeople American businesspeople American food company founders American self - help writers Simon & Schuster authors United States Air Force airmen Writers from Tallahassee, Florida Businesspeople from Florida Hidden categories : BLP articles lacking sources from May 2012 All BLP articles lacking sources Biography with signature Articles with hCards All Wikipedia articles needing clarification Wikipedia articles needing clarification from January 2018 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from January 2018 Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Talk About Wikipedia 日本 語 Edit links This page was last edited on 24 May 2018, at 01 : 13. 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Question: who is the founder of famous amos cookies
Answer: Wallace "Wally" Amos Jr.