Ransom Riggs
The Late Movies: What the Dramatic Squirrel Begat
by Ransom Riggs - June 7, 2010 - 10:30 PM

You’re probably all familiar with the dramatic squirrel, a meme that began a few years ago when someone added some over-the-top music to a clip from a Japanese game show, and created this:

Since then, a million imitators have come and gone, leaving in their wake a whole zoo of dramatic animals — and people, too. For instance, the Beautiful Mind dog:

As well as the dramatic cat:

Not to mention the Dramatic Wagner Lemur:

Or the Dramatic Justin Bieber. You’ve got to admit, he does look a little like a chipmunk.

Dramatic Bieber from Justin Bieber

Then there are the variations on the original, like the Kill Bill dramatic chipmunk:

Or this Bond remix:

Or the Star Wars remix:

This one isn’t exactly faithful to the original, but I like the weirdness.

Yes, the guy in the video above was arrested for, among other things, possession of a toad with intent to lick. Here’s some more info, courtesy of a local newsteam who can barely contain their giggles:

Whoops, got a little off-topic there. Here’s one last dramatic chipmunk!

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Comments (5)

  1. Not to be a pedant, but the lemur should be the Dramatic Strauss Lemur, as Richard Strauss (and not Richard Wagner) composed that particular piece of music.

    posted by kittering on 6-8-2010 at 1:26 am

  2. You’ve called it a squirrel and a chipmunk, neither of which is correct. Some have even said it’s a ground hog, but it’s a prarie dog (I’ve never, ever heard it referred to as a squirrel before!).

    posted by Bullwinkle on 6-8-2010 at 8:29 am

  3. Bullwinkle is right. It’s a prairie dog. Dramatic Prairie Dog is actually funnier.

    posted by Touch on 6-8-2010 at 8:33 pm

  4. I’ll chime in for #3 on this insistence.

    It is indeed a prairie dog.

    And while we’re making sure we get our facts straight, why not send all our future readers to the Know Your Meme section of YouTube where they can discover the history of our furry friend, as well as his many uses in comedy?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ta-Cg6nPhng

    It’s informative, funny, and less than 80 seconds long: Perfect for my fellow flossers!

    posted by Josiah on 6-8-2010 at 10:49 pm

  5. They’ve all been done to death in the CarMax ads.

    posted by PartiallyDeflected on 6-9-2010 at 12:18 am

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