Miss Cleo

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(Redirected from Youree Cleomili Harris)

Image:Cleo6.jpg Youree Cleomili Harris, better known as Miss Cleo (born August 12, 1962, in Los Angeles) is a self-proclaimed psychic who claims to be able to tell the future. During her career as a television infomercial psychic, she claimed that she was originally from Jamaica. Harris sent spam e-mails, which stated, "[Miss Cleo has] been authorized to issue you a Special Tarot Reading! ... it is vital that you call immediately!..."

Starting in 2001, Miss Cleo has been sued in a number of lawsuits brought by (among others) the U.S. states of Missouri and Florida, and the Federal Communications Commission. Later in 2002, a Florida newspaper reported that Miss Cleo's birth certificate said she was actually Youree Dell Harris, and born in the United States.

Miss Cleo used the catchphrase, "The cards never lie!" and "Call me now!" She often referred to her viewers as "babies," as in "Call me now, babies!"

Miss Cleo claims to have been paid a one time flat fee of $1,700 to appear in the psychic commercials. It is important to point out Miss Cleo did not have any ownership interest in the Miss Cleo hotline and was simply paid to appear in the commercials.

Miss Cleo has been researched by the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP). Bob Steiner, CSICOP Fellow & Magician has observed that her techniques and methodology were at best, questionable.

The character has been parodied on a number of different TV shows including That's So Raven where Raven needs extra money and plays a psychic, Chappelle's Show, The Man Show on an episode of That's My Bush in which George and Laura Bush were both addicted to calling up telephone psychic "Miss Clea" for advice, and on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno in which singer Vicki Randle imitated her. Also, Modest Mouse referred to Miss Cleo in their hit song "Float On" ("A fake Jamaican took every last dime with that scam"). Recently, on an episode of The Simpsons about outsourcing jobs to India, the cousin of Apu answers a phone call by saying, "This is Queen Mama Jama!" in a fake Jamaican accent. A Wilmington, Delaware public access television skit-comedy show, Franks and Weiners, parodied Miss Cleo with a skit involing a man in blackface, called "Madam Dark Nipple".

She also landed a brief voice acting job for Rockstar Games to voice a Haitian gang leader character, Auntie Poulet, in the Rockstar Games title Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

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