Westbury Christian School, Top Stories, WCS Senior on TV Commercial with Yao Ming

WCS senior, William Crouch (left), even at 6'9" has to look way up to
Houston Rockets Yao Ming at 7'5".

WCS Senior on TV Commercial with Yao Ming

(March, 2006 ) Westbury Christian School senior William Crouch will be boasting to all his friends for the rest of his life – he was on a TV commercial with the Houston Rockets Yao Ming! According to Crouch, “During a WCS middle school basketball game, a referee told me that a TV production company was looking for tall basketball players to be on a TV commercial with Yao Ming.” That tip may have changed William Crouch’s life.

At WCS everybody looks up to William Crouch – literally. At 6’9”, he is easily one of the tallest guys at the school. But Crouch is not only tall – he is a WCS varsity basketball player, and this year, he had game time during the final TAPPS Division 5A championship game in Tyler, Texas. So Crouch went in and tried out for a part. According to Crouch, the agent said they were looking for a diverse group to play with Yao Ming. And, the rest is history.

According to Crouch, the shooting was done on a huge 3-sided green screen background. In one scene, a white 8-foot strip was placed on the floor, and the cast were asked to dribble basketballs on the cloth. The director said if they got off the strip, they would fall off the train! Then, according to Crouch, he was asked to pass the ball to Yao! An overhead camera on a crane was directly above him as he threw the ball to Yao Ming, and the camera moved along with the ball as Yao Ming received it. Crouch said it took about 10 times before they got the timing just right.

Crouch said Yao Ming was a calm and cool guy to work with. Crouch said they made jokes about the NBA, and Yao interacted with all the players on the set. Crouch said he got to keep the jerseys they wore on the set. But his biggest prize was the autographed pair of tennis shoes that Yao Ming wore during the shoot. According to Crouch, the TV commercial will air in Yao Ming’s native country of China.

Westbury Christian School is a private, non-profit, culturally diverse school offering unique educational opportunities for K3 through 12th grade students. The school is located at 10420 Hillcroft at Willowbend.

For more information, call Ann Arnold in the Admissions Office at 713-551-8100.

See all Stories

Westbury Christian School
10420 Hillcroft
Houston, Texas 77096-9946
713-551-8100
713-551-8117 (fax)

Greg J. Glenn, Executive Administrator
gregjglenn@westburychristian.org
Ann Arnold, Admissions: Grades 5-12
admissions@westburychristian.org
Sheila Kaldis, Admissions: Age 3 to Grade 4
skaldis@westburychristian.org