This is a sad commentary on life and gives new meaning to the phrase "independent contractor."
My guess is that this type of advertising has been in existence in the Seattle area for a decade.
Maybe longer. People, whether in costume or not, stand on a busy street corner---usually in a
commercial area---acting as advertisers for a business. Often they wear no costume but just hold
a sign. Waving at drivers is a big feature, as if that will endear them to motorists. One tax
service recently had people dressed as the Statue of Liberty! I thank my lucky stars that I was
never in the position to have to consider such employment. This person is promoting Quiznos, a
sandwich restaurant. I was inspired to post this after seeing John Cooper's version of the same thing.
Shot in Renton on 17 Feb 2008.

After I posted this on Flickr, I got this response.