Wally Amos's net worth: Fortune explored as founder of beloved Famous Amos Cookies passes away at 88

Famous Amos founder Wally Amos, 88, unexpectedly passed away on August 13, 2024. He was suffering from dementia, leading to his sudden demise, and was at his residence in Honolulu. The news was first announced by his children Shawn and Sarah to The New York Times.

Apart from being the mastermind behind the cookies company, he gained recognition for being the author of books such as The Power In You and Watermelon Credo: The Book. Wally's net worth stood at $20,000 at the time of death, as per CelebrityNetWorth.

The official Facebook page of the Famous Amos Cookies also expressed grief over Wally Amos's death. They shared a black-and-white photo of Wally and wrote:

"He brought joy to millions with his cookies and is an inspiration to generations of entrepreneurs. We will continue to work to honor his legacy."

Wally's company was launched back in 1975 and started earning profits worth millions by the next six years. There was a point where the company had to undergo some loss and he was later joined by a distributor named Lou Avignone, leading to the formation of Uncle Noname Gourmet Muffins.

He was also helped by the Keebler Company in 1999 who signed a deal with him. Although he managed to sample the cookies made by Keebler, he was not satisfied with them. He appeared for an interview with The New York Times the same year and addressed more details about Keebler's cookies by saying:

"They were using a real low-grade vanilla flavoring, and I always used vanilla extract. One of the first things I shared with Keebler when we met was that I couldn't promote the product they were currently selling, that if I were going to be a part of it we had to make some adjustments so that it could be closer to a Wally Amos product."

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Wally Amos's cookies company accumulated a lot of profit over the years: Earnings and other details explained

Although the Florida native gained recognition for his association with the Famous Amos, he tried his luck in other jobs before getting into this field. Back in 2007, he was the owner of a shop called Chip & Cookie, which was located in Kailua. He wrote around eight books and later became a motivational speaker, earning somewhere between $10,000 and $20,000 for his appearances. He spent his teenage years with his aunt Della Bryant and enrolled in the Air Force after dropping out of high school.

Wally Amos initially worked in companies such as William Morris Agency and Simon & Garfunkel. He eventually developed an interest in baking due to his love for cookies and decided to launch a cookie company after borrowing $25,000 from Marvin Gaye and Helen Reddy. The successful journey of Famous Amos began in Los Angeles.

The company accumulated profits of around $12 million by the 80s and the cookies were made with a recipe that was originally used by his aunt. However, Famous Amos soon began to suffer losses and after selling a few equity stakes, he decided to exit the company.

Wally tried to return to the cookies business with a new company called Wally Amos Presents in 1991. However, he was involved in a legal issue when the owner of Famous Amos filed a lawsuit on charges of trademark infringement. The company's name was changed to Uncle Noname and opted to sell muffins.

Wally Amos also had multiple TV shows under his credits, including Learn to Read, where he was a host. He also participated in the reality show Shark Tank in 2016 to get funds worth $50,000 for his company The Cookie Kahuna. However, he failed to get an offer and the company later brought financial issues, forcing him to launch a GoFundMe page the following year.

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Wally's survivors include his children, Shawn, Sarah, Michael, and Gregory, alongside seven grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.