This is the story of how two men got very rich from the scent of ‘liquid ass’.
When he was in high school Alan Whitman created a smell using a chemistry kit his parents gave him, Vice reports. He describes the scent as: “butt crack, kind of sewer smell, with a hint of dead animal in there.”
This delightful concoction was named Liquid Ass.
Later in life, when Whitman discovered he was about to be laid off from the truck manufacturing company he worked at, he decided to bring the pungent smell out of retirement.
With his friend Andrew Masters they decided to pull a few farewell pranks at the office. The pair left some Liquid Ass near the microwave in the break room, causing management to freak out. In an attempt to remove the stench they replaced the microwave, fixed a water main, pulled up the carpet, and shut the bathrooms. No luck.
Seeing how powerful their product was, Whitman and Masters decided to try and turn their putrid stench into a profit, packaging and selling their product. Now, two years later, the spray has taken off. Not only as a prank to pull on your mates, but also as a useful tool to train medical professionals, as KQED reports.
In the words of Drake: “Started from the bottom now we’re here.” Literally.