As Andy Warhol's prophecy goes, "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." Well, 2016 certainly was the future, and we saw many people and animals achieve their 15 minutes. Raise a glass—and pour one out—for the people who saw their fame come and go this year.
1. The "Damn Daniel" Kids
Joshua Holz contemplating his friend Daniel Lara's outfits in an Eric Cartman-y voice became a massive meme for teens. These dudes quickly went from the schoolyard to Ellen to teenage girls' hearts to oblivion. It's the circle of life.
2. Chewbacca Mom
2016 was so bleak that a woman became an international hero simply by smiling and laughing. Chewbacca Mom (real name: Candace Payne) brought so much awareness to the previously forgotten Star Wars franchise that she got to visit headquarters, as well as bike with everyone's favorite walking carpet around the Facebook battle station.
3. Ken Bone
Ah, yes. Ken Bone. An undecided voter who was cute and meme-able until the stakes became so damn high. The winner of the second presidential debate charmed voters on both sides of the aisle. While we never got to hear his political opinions, the people did get to read his opinion on Jennifer Lawrence's butthole.
4. Harambe
In 2016, it was possible to check any page on the internet without encountering a Harambe meme. The furry gorilla was just too pure for this world and was martyred on May 28th, 2016 after a three-year-old boy jumped into his enclosure at a Cincinnati zoo. Unlike Harambe himself, the meme did not die and tributes popped up everywhere with the tongue very, very much in the cheek.
5. The "Dicks Out For Harambe" Guys
It takes two to make "Dicks out for Harambe" to come to life: One guy to come up with the phrase and one guy to meme it. Brandon Zaboklicki, a 22-year-old student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee was first to think of dropping trou for the gorilla and 24-year-old comedian Brandon Wardell spread the word. The meme was later co-opted by racists, when "alt-right provocateur" Milo Yiannopoulos spread it amongst his army of trolls. The original guys told Cosmopolitan they hope the flashing phrase doesn't follow them forever.
6. Bikini Cop
While it sounds like a new NBC show pitched by Jack Donaghy, Bikini Cop is a real person. Mikaela Kellner is a Swedish policewoman who was off-duty sunbathing when a homeless man tried to steal her friend's phone. A day off didn't stop Kellner for catching a perp, so she ran after him and made an arrest, while wearing a bikini. Who should play her in a movie?
7. Russian Leo
He looks like Leonardo DiCaprio, but he isn't Leonardo DiCaprio. He is Roman Burtzev, a 33-year-old emergency dispatcher outside of Moscow. While DiCaprio fulfilled his destiny and finally won an Oscar in 2016, Burtsev also had a momentous year by bursting onto the scene as an uncanny doppelgänger.
8. Hot Pakistani Tea Guy
There is beauty all around us if you open your eyes and look into the eyes into the tea seller in front you. Arshad Khan, an 18-year-old chaiwala (tea vendor) in Pakistan went viral after being Instagrammed by photographer Jiah Ali. Living the millennial dream, Khan joins the ranks of Hot Felon in parlaying viral success into a modeling contract.
9. The Snapchatting, Body-Shaming Playboy Model
Dani Mathers, 2015's Playmate of the Year, is 2016's Playmate to Fear. Mathers is facing jail time for snapping a pic of a naked stranger at an LA Fitness. Not everybody wants to be photographed naked, especially without their consent, and TMZ reports that the 70-year-old woman in the picture is proceeding with prosecution. Mathers was charged with invasion of privacy, which is a misdemeanor that could carry up to six months in jail. Good luck in 2017.
10. Kenny's Mom
Celebrities such as the Fonz were moved by Kenny Okwara's mom's impassioned plea to voters: vote. Hats off to Kenny's mom for giving over 90,000 people a kick in the butt.
11. The Zombie Prank Family
The Zombie Prank Family (formerly known as the Phillips family) lived the dream by going straight from wisdom teeth surgery to Ellen. Millicent Phillips' brothers put together an intricate plot with a fake CDC broadcast warning against symptoms of fever, aggression, death, and cannibalism. Even mom is in on the joke, because the family that pranks together...ranks together.
Is there anyone who had their 15 minutes of fame in 2016 who we missed? Let us know in the comments!