Fox Business pundit sells sex potion on the side; wife, Meredith Whitney, benefits

The New York Times has it all -- a story that mixes wrestling, Fox Business News (FBN), a hawker of sex potions, and bank analyst extraordinaire -- Meredith Whitney. This could well be the best business story of 2008.

John C. Layfield is the FBN commentator, former wrestler and hawker of a sex potion. Layfield sells Mamajuana Energy, a berry-flavored liquid that he developed and sells for $4.99 or less. He bills the two-ounce shots as an all-natural "sexual endurance drink" for men. Mamajuana - typically made from soaking tree bark and herbs in rum - has long been part of Dominican culture. And Layfield now bills it as liquid Viagra.

Is his wife, Meredith Whitney, a beneficiary of this potion? It's not clear how much profit it generates for Layfield's company but the Times reports that she is an investor in the company. And health supplement retailer, The Vitamin Shoppe, decided to stock Mamajuana Energy in its 340 stores. No doubt Layfield is relishing the chance to join his wife in the media spotlight with the publicity over Mamajuana. I only wonder whether the Times will regret the help it's giving to arch-rival, News Corp. (NYSE: NWS).

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in News Corp.