A Denison native recently for a taste of fame after appearing in a national commercial for the Whataburger chain of restaurants. Donald “Duce” Kimbrough appears in a commercial spot for the restaurant’s new mushroom Swiss burger, which went on sale earlier this month.
“I thought it was just a glimpse of me, but you can hear my voice all throughout it,” Kimbrough said in a phone interview Friday afternoon.
Kimbrough, who is from Bonham but currently lives in McKinney and works at a Whataburger location there, said he was first approached about the commercial in August or September when a film crew came to his location. The crew filmed workers as they talked about the products, including the mushroom burger.
“I actually love mushrooms, so that might be why I got chosen to do it,” he said with a laugh.
Following his first encounter with the film crew, Kimbrough said he forgot about the interview until he received a call back from corporate, who asked him to come to Dallas for an appearance in the commercial.
Kimbrough said he was one of two workers from the McKinney location who have been chosen to appear in commercials. Another worker appeared in a commercial late last year promoting the fast food chain’s chorizo burger, he said.
For the commercial, Kimbrough said he was taken to a Whataburger location in Dallas with other employees and actors who were to appear in commercials. In a 14-hour day of shooting, Kimbrough said he was asked to show how the burger is made and describe it in multiple takes.
Following the shoot, Kimbrough said he was unaware that the commercial had started to run until friends and family said they saw him on television. After seeing the commercial himself, Kimbrough said he was afraid he sounded corny, but has since gotten over that.
“The more I listen to it, the more I get used to it,” he said.
Since it started airing this week, Kimbrough said he has been approached by people who he doesn’t know who recognized him from the spot.
“It is a little bit overwhelming because it is like ‘wow,’” he said. “I posted it on my Facebook and I expected to get reactions from my friends and family, but I got tons of reactions from people I don’t know.”
This is the second time Kimbrough has been used in a promotion, after a rap he wrote and performed about the Dallas Mavericks was shown during several home games in 2007. With this latest brush with stardom, Kimbrough said people have advised him to find a talent agent.
While initially Kimbrough said he intended to pursue music as a career, following this commercial, he is now considering a possible acting career.