15 Real Life People Behind Their Memes

Memes… they are ever present and amusing as hell. They seem to have skyrocketed in the internet world more than ever in the past few years and continue to circulate like wild fire. They hold comical undertones and are just for good old fashion fun and amusement. Anybody can make a meme out of anything or anyone at anytime, nobody is safe. Life hack: if you don`t want your face potentially going viral on a meme, be careful of what pictures you post on the internet! People get really creative when making these memes; there are no boundaries or limits in the meme world. The power of the internet is crazy these days; overnight you can find yourself totally famous because of something that blew up and was passed around like hot cakes. If you fall victim to becoming a meme, there is no question that it will change your life. To the real people behind the most hilarious internet memes, they have experienced the impact full force. For some, it has launched their careers and given them more opportunity than they could have ever received without the popularity of their meme. To others, it royally pissed them off and somewhat destroyed their lives. Take a look at the following 15 real life people and what’s behind their memes…

15. Mr. Bad Luck

Kyle Craven is a huge part of the meme world and makes us laugh almost because we feel so bad for the kid. His high school class photo went viral with a million different sayings smeared across it. He is portrayed as the kid who just always has bad luck. He is kind of nerdy looking and is the butt of the joke. His posts got so popular and were circulated so much that even celebrities began to notice. Funny man himself, Seth Rogan even pointed him out! The real Kyle is very content with his life and is a pretty regular Joe at the end of the day. He is known as Bad Luck Brian in the meme world today. 

14. Real life hipster 

If you have ever frequented any of the new age type coffee shops that have popped up all over town recently, you have definitely seen this type of barista. The hipster… ugh. How we loathe the hipster; the one who takes life a bit too seriously, including their coffee making skills. The hipster always seems to make every simple thing seem just a little bit more than what it actually is; they are a special breed of person that’s for sure. This gem is actually a barista in real life, and it’s funny that his meme actually turned out to be a depiction of reality. There is something about this guy that just makes you kind of want to punch him in the face. But of course we won’t, we’ll have a latté half caff instead.

13. First world problems girl

This woman from Italy goes by the name of Silvia Bottini. She is actually a model and an actress in real life. This meme changed her life in a positive way as it gave her a lot of visibility and fame. The image circulated the world like rapid fire and enhanced her call backs and career goals immensely. She landed parts in Alice in Wonderland, a remake of Romeo and Juliet as well as several commercials. The image has been circulated with several different captions that always depict some minor “first world problem”. These problems are really not problems of course when compared to the travesties that go on in other parts of the world. These meme actually help open our eyes to the trivialities that we complain and fret about on a regular basis.

12. This girl is on fire

This meme can’t help but make us laugh. It has such an innocent looking girl smiling in front of what looks like a catastrophic fire, leaving us thinking that there is a creepy horror movie evil about her. The little girl is kind of bad ass and looks like she does not take any crap. The burning house was actually set on fire on purpose in order to help train firefighters for a drill. The photographer captured her in the side of the photo and it created a very unique image. The photographer actually entered the photo in a magazine contest. It was selected and published and its popularity spread quickly. People went on to use the girl only, photoshopping her with other backgrounds. A fire definitely started with this one…

11. The college guy

This is Grffin Kiritsy and he is very much real. The image was originally staged and used for a Reader’s Digest article about college. It entailed the typical transition into college and all the ups and downs that goes with it. Kiritsy actually makes people laugh when tells how the actual photo was taken. He says: “The story behind the picture is the worst part though. I did this interview over the phone and I thought that was the end of it, but a few weeks later the guy who set me up with the interview called and said a photographer was coming to take my picture. “No big deal,” I told this guy “I can pose for a few snapshots.” Little did I know that the f****ng Picasso of photos was coming to frame me for this shot, and I ended up on Thompson Hall lawn in the middle of the day in the middle of the week. For those of you who aren’t UNH-ers, it’s like walking in the middle of Main Street during rush hour. And I was there while he took 137,000 photos. Talk about committing social suicide as a first semester freshman.”

10. Senior freshman

As opposed to our younger college freshman, this is another freshman photo that made the rounds for an obviously different reason. This is Nola Ochs, she was 95 years old at the time, amazing! This was taken at Fort Hays State University in Kansas, USA. She was actually so old that she broke a Guinness World record as the oldest student to graduate. It is actually very admirable and impressive and she was a definite asset to her classmates and teachers since she lived during most of the history being taught. The world had their eyes on her and she became famous. It was no wonder that the memes began to circulate because it was just so unique to see this nowadays!

9. Wacky professor

The best thing about memes is that they are designed to make you laugh and that they do! Especially when looking at this guy who is a definite character in real life. This is Giorgio Tsoukalos, an alien expert. The snap was taken when he appeared on the History Channel to discuss aliens and it has gone viral ever since. He kind of captures the world’s attention because of his appearance. The hair is especially big and wild, he has a really intense fake tan and it just seems overall kind of silly. He is doing his best to be taken seriously while giving serious information about alien life forms, but the world just saw something else; the perfect meme.

8. Oh my God girl

If you were a 90’s kid you definitely remember the Goosebumps books and shows by R.L. Stine; they were a hit! This girl is very excited about her book collection and her face says it all. The image was uploaded onto Reddit and quickly got over 17,000 views in just a few days. It has since gone viral and portrays geek excitement over anything. The meme has been modified in many different ways to get the best laughs. It is easy to feel bad for the girl in the image because most of us want to bury our childhood photos and never let anyone see them after we grow up. This poor girl has had it circulate worldwide and she can only deny, deny, deny that it’s her!

7. Girlfriend from hell

Everyone has seen a version of this meme at least once in their lives. If you have experienced a partner who is this level of psycho, then you know exactly how creepy they can be. This shot depicts that girlfriend who does over the top things involving you and your relationship and it is just so crazy that it needs to be made fun of and shared. It is actually a snapshot from a video that the girl uploaded for none other than the famous Justin Bieber. He held a contest for his new perfume where fans submitted their versions of his hit song Girlfriend. The girl in the image is Laina Walker, who has since gained many followers from the meme. She has  gone on to take her fame and use it for a good cause. She makes videos to help charity organizations. See, some good can result from these crazy memes!

6. Grumpy cat 

OK, he may not be a person, but he is the real life cat behind the meme and you can’t help but love this cat! He looks so, so miserable and it just makes it so funny. He face is so unique and hilarious. He is born in Arizona and is a worldwide star due to his meme that went viral. He now actually has his very own website and merchandise. He has over 1.1 million fans on his Facebook page. He has also become so famous that his facial expression has been compared to famous characters from hit TV shows. According to many fans, Dwight Shrut from The Office bares a close resemblance to Grumpy cat. Some fans even go so far as to make art work in honor of the animal.

5. Really baked guy

This meme if for all of those people who love their cannabis. This guy makes us laugh with his ridiculous face and reminds us all of that one special friend we all have. The captions that usually come with this photo entail funny weed smoking stereotype scenarios. This is a difficult person to find; his real name is not plastered all over the internet which is really is shocking. Perhaps the meme really didn’t change his life, or perhaps it did? He is good at staying under the radar after his face being associated with marijuana for so long.

4. Dirtbag dude

This image makes you cringe when you look at it. We have all experienced this type of douchebag at some point in our lives. He’s the guy always asking you to spot him some money, drinking all of your beer and never paying his share for anything. He does not have his life together and is a definite mooch… according to the photo that is. In actuality, this is Blake and the photo was taken by his mother. The photo does not seem too far off from the man`s actual character in real life. He is a proud cannabis smoker and an eager rap artist looking to make it. He has gone on to say about becoming a meme, : `“I have no regrets in my life …no matter what I do. I can completely f*** up on something and I still don’t regret it. Because at the end of the day, that makes me who I am, so I wouldn’t go back and erase anything, if I were to go back in time.”

3. Gorgeous running man

Guys who run marathons or compete in Ironman races,  do NOT usually look like this guy. The photo surprises the world because it`s almost as if it is staged due to the above average looks of the runner. He is hardly even breaking a sweatwhile sporting a flawless smile and perfect hair, and looks totally at ease. HUH???? It doesn’t make sense, but he definitely caught the adoration and attention of the world with his picture. His name is Zeddie Little and he was participating in a run in South Carolina at the time. His head has been cropped and photoshopped and stuck on many photos since. All just to poke fun at his ridiculously photogenic look. Poor him. 

2. Mr. Nice guy

This guy has captured the hearts of many as his memes continue to sail across the internet. He is known as a kind, gentle and genuinely good human being. He is the type of guy to make the bed after he sleeps over as well as make breakfast. He is almost too nice that the poor guy gets made fun of. The identity of the meme is questionable. One man came forward on Reddit and posted his current photo next to the viral meme and they did not look a thing alike. People were very vocal even insinuating he was a fraud. Only the real good guy knows the truth. 

1. Heck ya! Baby

This is probably one of the cutest and most longstanding and popular memes ever made. The photo was actually originally taken by a photographer who snapped this shot of her own child, not knowing what the outcome would be. The picture captures facial expressions that can depict success and conquering or aggravation with a `darn it!` emphasis. The boy`s name is Sammy and all of his fame actually resulted in something amazing and life changing. His mother started a GoFundMe account in order to raise money for her husband`s kidney transplant. The fund actually ended up raising over $88,000! 

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