Reverend Billy is the kitschy faux-preacher who organizes rallies against consumerism and corporate monoliths like Starbucks and Disney. The Reverend and his 40-member Earthalujah Choir tour the world (but primarily the United States), racking up arrests as they spread the gospel of their Church of Stop Shopping.

Born to Dutch-Calvinists in Minnesota, Reverend Billy (née William C. Talen) adopted his alter ego in the late 1990s, as then-mayor Rudy Giuliani lay waste to the remaining diversity of New York's Times Square. Talen abandoned his other theatrical pursuits and began giving impassioned "sermons" throughout the burgeoning commercialist mecca. Before long, Talen's message caught on and he amassed a small group of followers who joined him in his unconventional protests. That message has evolved over the years - beginning with a focus on neighborhood preservation, but now including labor rights, climate change, deforestation, and consumer awareness… among other things.

Reverend Billy's methods, though always attention-grabbing, often perplex spectators (at least initially). He's hexed JP Morgan Chase (an act which led to his arrest), exorcised Victoria's Secret cash registers, and been banned from every Starbucks location. His 2005 arrest at Disneyland was documented in the 2006 documentary What Would Jesus Buy? (produced by Morgan Spurlock). Talen has never officially been ordained by any organization - he and his followers refer to themselves as a "post-religious church".

In 2009, Reverend Billy ran for mayor of New York on the Green Party ticket. In late 2011, he spoke (and was arrested) at an Occupy Wall Street action near Zuccotti Park.

Some speculate that Talen has been consumed by his nearly two decades in character. [Image via AP]