Fads

These goos are from the Fads category, people famous for their connection to societal trends and short-lived fads. Browse another way.

Al Dvorin

This goo's claim to fame resulted from notifying the local populace that "The King" would not be returning any time soon. Go »

Alec Greven

Americans must really need help if they're taking romance tips from a nine-year-old. Go »

Alemuel

Before South Korea got in on the fad, this German YouTuber scored a record deal with a song about a juvenile selachimorph. Go »

Alex Laboeuf

This retail worker scored a bullseye with Ellen's audience. Go »

Andrew Meyer

Some students really get charged up about politics. Go »

Anna Jarvis

After you thank your mom today, she has someone else to thank. Go »

Anna Thomas

This author and film director has been helping Americans eat dinner for decades, but I doubt much of it was meat. Go »

Billy Blanks

If you draw a blank trying to figure this one out, well, so will everyone else. Go »

Bob Wells

If you live in a vehicle, whether out of choice or necessity, you've probably turned to this author and YouTuber for advice, or attended one of his large gatherings of nomads. Go »

Bryan Gaw

When you're dancing on the biggest stage in sports while wearing a fish costume, it's easy to forget whether to turn left or turn right with the beat. Go »

Candace Payne

The simple joys in life can lead to a whole lot of views on YouTube. Go »

Carlos Ramirez

After his toothy grin leapt from 4chan to the Internet at large, the six-figure income that he's made from it has given him plenty to smile about. Go »

Charles Atlas

When you carry the world on your shoulders, it's easy to develop such a muscular physique that you can sell guides on how to replicate it. Go »

Craig Shergold

don't tell your friends to guess this or they'll never stop Go »

Daniel Lara

Some teens just can't help looking damn good. Go »

Danielle Bregoli

This meme refuses to go outside, or away in general. How about that. Go »

David Tutera

How ironic that he had to travel all the way to Vermont for his own wedding. Go »

Deborah Warner

Ang'jmizin t'sai is etum, ah? Go »

Dominique Ansel

You have to get up pretty early in the morning to run circles around this chef and his limited creation. Go »

Dori Hartley

Audience sing-a-longs at midnight screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show might not have happened if this superfan hadn't dressed up like her favorite doctor. Go »

Drew Scanlon

His meme was not the sort of blink-and-you'll-miss-it kind, as it has lasted for three years so far. But he's tried to do some good with his 15 minutes of fame, raising money for a multiple sclerosis charity. Go »

Ed Hardy

His nominal clothing line has shown up in more and more stores lately, but he's more famous for putting ink somewhere besides a contract. Go »

Eleanor Rigby

She has memorialized the struggle of all the lonely people to find a place they have in common with four musicians. Go »

Ernö Rubik

I wish my puzzles took as much effort to figure out as his. Go »

Esther Howland

I love not having to write something myself Go »

Franz Mesmer

This German physician's magnetic personality allowed him to control his patients by dangling a watch and telling them that they were getting very sleepy. Go »

Gary Gygax

That this gy is the seminal figure of RPGs is true, sure, and real. Go »

Giovani Faenza

By raising a single digit, anyone can become a villain ready to tie victims to railroad tracks, thanks to this artist. Go »

James Marshall

Surprisingly, the sawmill operator who kicked off the biggest gold rush in American history never made a cent from it. Go »

Jay Aubrey Jones

This Broadway actor became much more famous online when his pronunciation of a single word was taken two different ways by Internet users. Go »

Jenna Karvunidis

She regrets the fad spawned by her viral blog post in 2008, both for the effect it has on gender-fluid children and for the dangerous stunts that have gotten party-goers killed. Go »

Jheri Redding

In the 1980s, this chemist's creation was one of the slickest fads around. Go »

Joe the Plumber

John McCain was a decorated POW and Sarah Palin was mother to a baby with Down syndrome, but this ordinary man brought the real waterworks to their campaign appearances. Go »

Ken Bone

The danger of making a meme out of an ordinary guy who can't decide between Clinton and Trump is that ordinary guys have all of the same personal foibles as the rest of us. Go »

Ken Hakuta

This game show host is famous for online herbs and wall-traversing arachnids. Go »

Ken Hakuta

This Korean toymaker drove parents up the wall in the 1980s, and helped kids invent their own toys despite falsifying his postgraduate credentials. Go »

Knut

Papa's circus show was too hot, and Mama's ice floe was too cold, but this Baby's habitat at the Berlin Zoo is just right. Go »

Krista Suh

Just in time for a march on Washington, she came up with something fashionable for the president to grab women by. Go »

Marie Kondo

If your life feels out of control, try cleaning up your condo. Go »

Martha Stewart

It's a good thing I cleaned up the site just before this goo showed up. Go »

Mason Ramsey

Ironically, this Internet star lives in a tiny Illinois town too small for a Walmart. Go »

Matty Roberts

His unserious post about trespassing in an Air Force test facility provoked an out-of-this-world response. Go »

Michael Senatore

Kids flipped for his well-balanced trick. Go »

Miles Scott

When the Penguin left Gotham City to threaten San Francisco, Batman needed help from this wishful assistant, and an entire city pitched in to make it happen. Go »

Nathan Apodaca

Now, here you go again. You say you want your freedom. Well, who am I to keep you down? It's only right that you should play the way you feel it. Go »

Nikki Forte

Is "tattoo maven" a job description? Go »

Obama Girl

There's nothing sexy about middle-aged senators who would rather talk about universal health care and gun control than talk dirty, but maybe that's why this woman's crush is so funny. Go »

Orly Taitz

Her theories couldn't be any wilder if they had originally come from Kenya. Go »

Penelope Laingen

A Tony Orlando lyric gave her the colorful inspiration to rally Americans around the hope of her husband's return. Go »

Punxsutawney Phil

Pennsylvania's most famous weatherman isn't a man at all. Go »

Q

Quick question: Which quasi-king (or queen?) of 4chan, without qualm, took up the digital quill to quicken a once-quaint, now-quantifiable movement that, for all its quirks and queasy qualities, won't quit trying to quell a global conspiracy between a quite enormous quantity of quarry, even if their quest is quixotic? Go »

Rebecca Black

"Friday" might be the worst song of all time, but it launched a career for its young singer. Go »

Rebecca Black

This singing YouTube star's 15 minutes of fame happened on a Friday. Go »

Robert Cornelius

His selfie received zero likes or comments, because he took it more than a century and a half before Facebook was invented. Go »

Robert John Burck

Some people have started a new job in New York with only the clothes on their backs, but this guy didn't even have that much. Go »

Robert Opel

The most famous streaker in American history was also the most famous person to upstage David Niven on live television. Go »

Sal Piro

Come midnight, this comedian combined film with theater resulting in a horrifying phenomenon that he has presided over since. Go »

Samir Mezrahi

This social media expert serves up a healthy "salad" of retweets of the original authors, but what made him a hit on iTunes was ten minutes of very good silence when you get into your car. Go »