Real People Behind The Memes

28. The ‘Ermahgerd’ Girl

Poor Maggie Goldenberger could never have imagined that an old photo from her childhood of her dressing up would become a famous meme. 

It all started when a Reddit user found the photo via a public Facebook profile and decide to turn it into a viral sensation. Of course, Maggie was unaware of her newfound fame, since she was vacationing in India at the time.

27. Years of Torture

Maggie was only 11-years-old in the pictures, but the memes were pure torture for her for years.

Thankfully, she gained back her confidence and can now see the humor. Sometimes you just have to laugh along with them.

26. The Possessive and Creepy Girlfriend

Laina Morris had no idea when she uploaded a video to YouTube making fun of Justin Bieber, that someone would screen cap it and turn her into the “Overly Attached Girlfriend” meme.

Thankfully, she’s been a really good sport about it.

25. Building Social Media Fame

Over the years, Laina has used her social media fame to build up her YouTube channel and create more funny videos.

In fact, she now works full-time creating content. Now that meme paid off.

24. The Super Hot and Photogenic Marathon Runner

It was only moments after finishing a marathon that a photo of Zeddie Little took the internet by storm. 

Why do you ask? Well, people were amazed by how great he looked right after finishing such an intense run.

23. The Media Love Him

His photograph garnered the attention of the media and he has been interviewed by newspapers and national news stations. 

Not bad for simply looking good during a run, right?

22. The Determined “Success” Kid

This cutie was only 11-months-old when he became the “success kid” due to his determined look.

His identity was revealed as Sammy Griner and he would go on to be one of social media’s most famous babies.

21. Using Fame for Good

Thankfully, his viral fame was able to be used for some good and helped fund a campaign to pay for his father’s dialysis. 

Success kid, indeed!

20. The Chubby Run With Bubbles Girl

One of the more hilarious memes, the Chubby Bubbles girl was taken from a little girl running with bubbles. 

It went viral pretty quickly and has been photoshopped into famous movies and photographs.

19. Identity Unknown

Unfortunately, no one has been able to identify the girl. 

We wouldn’t be surprised if she went into hiding.

18. Bad Luck Brian

Poor Brian. He not only had to sit for his school picture once but twice because his principal thought he was making a funny face (fact check: he wasn’t). 

Of course, the photo somehow made it online and the “Bad Luck Brian” meme was born.

17.  Laughing with the Crowd

In reality, Brian is actually Kyle Craven and he has found his social media fame to be quite amusing.

He also doesn’t have bad luck, so that’s a good thing!

16. The Disaster Girl

Sweet little Zoe Roth had been watching the local fire department complete a drill when her dad took this photo that went on to become a viral sensation.

This was due to Zoe’s creepy look, which many dubbed as “evil.”

15. Perfectly Normal

Thankfully, fame didn’t affect Zoe and she had a normal childhood.

She’s also really smart and speaks Chinese fluently and is darn good at math. She also enjoys signing an autograph every so often.

14. Sheltered College Freshman

Born in Columbia, Kerin Portillo never could have guessed the stock photo she modeled for would become so popular. 

When someone decided to post it on social media, the “Sheltered College Freshman” meme soon became a viral hit!

13. Benefiting from Fame

In the end, Kerin didn’t sweat the small stuff. 

In fact, her modeling requests for stock images actually multiplied exponentially. Make that money, girl!

12.  Side Eye Chloe

Chloe’s parents didn’t get the reaction they were hoping for when the filmed her reaction to their surprise trip to Disney.

Skeptical and a little confused, Chloe’s response became a viral hit on social media channels.

11. Still Popular

Today, Chloe has her own YouTube channel with her sister called Lily & Chloe Official. 

Let’s just say she is putting that meme fame to good use.

10. Typical Freshman Cliche

While in college, Griffin Kiritsy posed for a stock photo that would get picked up by a Reddit user and skyrocket him to meme fame. 

Who knew he had such a “cliche” look about him?

9. College Graduate

You’ll be happy to know that Griffin is no longer a college freshman. 

He did graduate and has moved on with his life.

8. First World Problems Girl

While there are quite a few “First World Problems” memes, this one has become the most popular in terms of social media shares.

Originally posted on Buzzfeed, this woman’s photo became quite the hit.

7. Beauty Behind the Meme

So, who is the woman? Well, it’s actually model Silvia Bottini from Varese, Italy. 

While she has starred in a few productions here and there, surprisingly her meme is the most popular.

6. Scumbag Steve

The “Scumbag Steve” meme originated when Blake Boston’s mother snapped this photo of him when he was 16. 

Of course, someone from Reddit snatched it up and the rest is meme history.

5. Blake is Not Scum

Today, Blake is a father and pursuing his passion–a career in music. 

Maybe it’s time to cash in a bit on that internet fame, right Blake?

4. Hipster Barista

The “Hipster Barista” meme was generated as a Quickmeme when Dustin Mattson was photographed at his job Octane Coffee in south Atlanta. 

Sadly, he wasn’t too pleased with the meme attention.

3. Not So Funny

“I do find it discouraging and disappointing that there was so much exposure brought to an attempt at making a joke of a culinary industry and the professional barista. To me, it’s very telling on how we laud farm-to-table food, craft beer, cocktail mixology, but it’s ok to have no respect for the specialty coffee world and the people who are committed to it.”

2. Successful Black Man

The “Successful Black Man” meme first started on 4chan when a photo was pulled from Shutterstock. 

Let’s just say it spread quite a  hit on social media.

1. He’s Actually Successful

According to sources online, the man in the photograph graduated with a degree in electrical engineering and now lives in Texas. 

We wonder what he thinks of his internet fame?