I know that's part of it. I also know that he had already become a celebrity of sorts because he was making TV appearances all the time to talk about his life story and his politics.
A normal CEO doesn't have time for that. Whenever I see a local business owner operating that way, I look for signs that his business is in trouble. I'm rarely wrong.
Lots of CEO’s who have obtained celebrity status have done this, so I dont know if your assertation is true.
You can probably film about a years stock of commercials in about 6 hours.