Featured  

Where Are They Now: 6 "Stars" of Embarrassing Viral Videos

article image

Being famous is awesome. That's what we heard, anyway.

But fame isn't so great for people who didn't ask for it, particularly the ones who got caught on video acting like a dumbass and turned into YouTube superstars overnight. We at Cracked have often wondered what becomes of those people who had their 15 minutes, whether they wanted it or not.

#6.
Aleksey Vayner, Impossible is Nothing

If you haven't seen the video ...

Everyone brags a bit on their resume, but no one did it as dramatically or badly as Aleksey Vayner when he submitted this video to banking giant UBS along with an 11-page cover letter and resume. In the video, Vayner shows that he's a dancer, a weightlifter, a karate expert and the least concise yet only correct answer to the question: what is a douchebag?


Online Videos by Veoh.com

The Rest of the Story:
First, let's answer the question everyone asks after watching this video: no, he didn't get the job. In fact, it was probably someone at UBS that took the first step in turning him into a national laughingstock. That can safely be considered the opposite of getting the job.

After this video went viral, Vayner did what any "model of personal development and inspiration" would do: he moved back in with his mother and complained to the press about how he'd been victimized. Vayner said he underwent an "extremely stressful time" after the video was released and took a leave of absence from Yale, prompting Yale to cough douchebag under its breath and deny he ever went there. Vayner then sent a cease and desist letter to the blog that posted the video (IvyGate) to get them to take it down. They didn't. He also said he was exploring legal action against UBS for being the first to decide his video was simply too ridiculous not to share with the world.

So what has the whole adventure taught Alexsey? Well, when he eventually graduated from Yale he did stop sending the douchey video along with his resume when job hunting. What he has added to the resume, though, is the claim to have authored a book called Millionaires' Blueprint to Success. What kind of a man would write such a book before becoming a successful millionaire himself? The same kind who would steal the cover from another book already on the market:

Copies of Vayner's book don't seem to be for sale anywhere, but he did post excerpts on his site, which include the boast that his viral clip "received international publicity" and practically invented the concept of the resume video.

#5.
Andrew Meyer, "Don't Tase Me, Bro" Guy

If you haven't seen the video ...
When Andrew Meyer stepped up to the microphone during a forum with former presidential candidate John Kerry, he had resolved to speak truth to power and challenge authority. Authority responded by pinning him down and filling him with thousands of volts of electricity. The video of this incident gained notoriety due to Meyer's pathetic plea to the police, asking them to allow this bro to go untased.

His cry went unheeded, hilarity ensued, and your moronic co-worker who thinks he's so damn funny had yet another annoying catchphrase to recite during meetings.

The Rest of the Story:
Meyer was thrown in jail for the night, on charges of resisting an officer and disturbing the peace. Students protested outside the jail, chanting "Don't tase me, bro!" even though Meyer had already demonstrated they were not the magic words to prevent a tasing. A movement was started online to ban Tasers by campus police, and John Kerry himself said there was no need for the cops to intervene (though we like to think this just means Kerry was armed with his own Taser).

By then the incident was national news. Meyer had public opinion on his side and the moral authority of a martyr. With this ammunition in hand, he courageously tucked his tail between his legs and issued a public apology to the university and the police for behaving inappropriately.

Prosecutors agreed to drop all charges if Meyer would complete a voluntary 18-month probation, though we tend to think that badly violates the definition of the term "voluntary." Meanwhile the Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigated the incident and declared that the cops' actions were justified.

Today, University of Florida police are still allowed to carry and use tasers on campus, the protesters have forgotten about it, and Meyer is back on campus where he presumably spends his days living with the knowledge that the pain he suffered brought about a change, albeit a temporary one ... in the world of 2007 novelty T-Shirt slogans.

#4.
Michael Scott, The Lizard King

If you haven't seen the video ...
During a morning newscast in 2002, Michael Scott was surrounded by some of the creepiest reptiles Texas has to offer, and it was a tiny lizard that transformed him from a polished newsman into a stuttering, inarticulate, flailing mess.

The Rest of the Story:

Scott's run-in with the attacking gecko led to national publicity (Jay Leno showed it on The Tonight Show). A few years later, Scott left KAXS (the Dallas TV station where he was the anchor) and eventually wound up at WAAY in Huntsville, Alabama, presumably because there are fewer lizards there. At that point, things again took a turn for the strange.

According to The Huntsville Times, Scott was let go earlier this year after a "dispute with a producer." The Huntsville Times has a serious gift for understatement, because in this case "dispute with a producer" means "committing an act of career self-immolation so complete that he's unlikely to ever get hired in his field again."

According to BET, the "dispute" was that during a commercial break, Scott referred to a co-worker as a Negro. When that co-worker asked him not to use that word, Scott, in an act of mind-blowing asshattery, decided to use the, um, other N-word and was fired shortly thereafter.

Although he's since denied using that word, at this point, we don't think even a humorous response to a dozen lizards jumping on him would resuscitate his career. Though we'd like to see him try it.


  • First
  • ←  Previous
  • Page 1 of 2
  • Next  →
  • Last

Submit to: Reddit Facebook StumbleUpon Digg Del.icio.us Fark

Oh man that Afro Ninja movie is fail.

Posted on 10/1/2008 9:38:40 AM

What a lovely painting you made Jeremiah Palecek. I laughed hysterically.

Posted on 9/17/2008 10:35:46 AM

wow Jenna. . .
me too! :D

Posted on 8/10/2008 2:32:18 PM

Afro Ninja rocks.

Posted on 7/29/2008 7:46:30 AM

Afro Ninja earns points in my book because he totally screwed the pooch with the backflip, but he got back up and tried to save it. Also, props to the camera man for continuing to film and not busting out laughing.

Posted on 7/25/2008 11:52:16 PM

Raise your hand if you're actually going to see the Afro Ninja movie??? And the room fell silent. This is almost as funny as the new DFT NEWS from Digitalfuntown.com . . . hilarious

http://www.digitalfuntown.com/homepage.php

Posted on 7/23/2008 10:25:42 AM

man they really were walrus like sounds! funny, funny stuff

Posted on 7/22/2008 5:09:14 PM

Yes, well, now the question is were you impressed or horrified by it? Perhaps, like me, a little of both, maybe? If you laughed then simply "horrified" is off the table.

Posted on 7/22/2008 9:56:53 AM

I remember Michael Scott. He used to anchor in Omaha until he got a job at Entertainment Tonight. He's gotten fat.

Posted on 7/22/2008 8:36:15 AM

wow thats f*****g sick jenna_tullwortz.


& i played the afro ninja video over and over and over and over again

Posted on 7/22/2008 2:32:47 AM

In my fantasies that grape stomping lady made those same exact noises the first time she tried anal sex.

Posted on 7/21/2008 5:16:58 PM

No, he was told to sit down and shut up by campus security for asking a rude question. He got arrested and tazed for resisting and being a total asshat of the sort that college campuses are known for breeding.

Posted on 7/20/2008 9:57:58 PM

MichaelFurlong Posted on 7/18/2008 2:49:11 AM
"Jesus, that kid got arrested, man-handled and then tasered, for what? Asking the nominee a rude question? That is fucked up."

Yeah... USA! USA! USA!
(we're awesome like that)

Posted on 7/20/2008 5:14:42 AM

Jesus, that kid got arrested, man-handled and then tasered, for what? Asking the nominee a rude question? That is fucked up.

Posted on 7/18/2008 2:49:11 AM

Ha! I totally remember the Lizard incident! I watched that LIVE! I was in college in Arlington & I totally saw that happen. Great stuff...

Posted on 7/17/2008 10:36:58 PM

On these articles that are two pages, why is there a "Next" button and a "Last" button? They both go to the same page. Also, what's the deal with the way kids dress nowadays?

Posted on 7/17/2008 10:00:32 PM

Casemon,

Black and white, Right and wrong, Good and evil....Conservative and Liberal. These are my beliefs, and they are undeniable. This gray, "progressive" area that you would like to move me to is not the best place always to be in. I agree that the Aleksey Vayner's of the country are elitist and snobs. I will argue that he is not a product of middle America or "fly over" country, but a resident of the eastern United State, probably a Ivy leaguer or Stanford student. (Yes, I know Stanford is West coast, but you get my point.) To label him as purely "American" is also being black and white. He actually reminds me of a Brit and perhaps comes from the New England area.

The intention of my last post was not to insult anyones political views. I simply find it useless to try to convert a persons viewpoint when I have no personal interest in that person. And its silly to try to do so over a message board!

Posted on 7/17/2008 8:08:07 PM

Rusty: I guess you need to paint things black & white to help you justify your lack of knowledge surrounding your "beliefs"? If you moved your "beliefs" to be based more on information & understanding, I think you'd start to be able to see things in a different light. Which obviously you're not interested in. FWIW, I've never claimed adoption to any ethos, yet you have me slotted into one. All I'm doing is responding to factual information while leaving my ego behind. All of this distracts from the point of my comment; the Aleksey Vayner's of the world are a natural result of the society's priorities. You have a good day too! :)

Posted on 7/17/2008 6:32:20 PM

Where's Star Wars Kid???

Posted on 7/17/2008 2:29:39 PM

@lanitabonita: That is a great picture! I love bears! They are the greatest animal ever.

Posted on 7/17/2008 1:27:58 PM

More Tech


Avatar
Daniel O'Brien
Posted: 10/10/2008 9:07:10 AM
Post Subject: An Interview with McCain and Obama (In the Year 2012)

Prologue: I have a time machine. November 20, 2012. 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington DC. The office of President John McCain. 2:00pm. President John McCain has refused to give int ...

Avatar The 5 Most Clearly Insane Public Figures Endorsing McCain
In the arena of politics, celebrity endorsements are everything. Take out mudslinging, avoid ...
Avatar 15 (Worthless) Things We Learned from the Town Hall Debate
After almost two weeks of tense anticipation, we sat down last night to watch history ...