Damn Daniel is a 2016 viral video. Daniel Lara and Joshua Holz, students at Poly High School in

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...

, reached Internet fame after Holz's video, an edited collection of

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videos, became popular on

Vine A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselv ...

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

and

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. In March 2016 ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' magazine listed Lara and Holz as two of "The 30 Most Influential People on the Internet".

Origin

The original video was retweeted more than 300,000 times, liked 400,000 times on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

and looped more than two million times on

. The original video clip is a 30-second compilation of Lara striding around school, with Holz complimenting his style of dress by repeatedly saying "Damn, Daniel!" and occasionally following the catchphrase with: "Back at it again with the white

Vans Vans is an American manufacturer of skateboarding shoes and related apparel, established in Anaheim, California, and owned by VF Corporation. The company also sponsors surf, snowboarding, BMX, and motocross teams. From 1996 to 2019, the comp ...

." In the video, Lara wore a navy blue hoodie, skinny chinos, a burgundy backpack, and the slip-on sneakers. This led to Lara and Holz guest appearing on ''

The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was prod ...

'', soon after, where Lara received a lifetime supply of Vans' shoes. Lara donated the shoes to patients at Loma Linda University Children's Hospital in California.

Reception

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'' stated in an article that "It's hard to explain why it's so funny." As a result of the video's popularity, companies such as

Clorox The Clorox Company (formerly Clorox Chemical Company) is an American global manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products. As of 2020 the Oakland, California based company had approximately 8,800 employees worldwide. Net sales ...

Denny's Denny's (also known as Denny's Diner on some of the locations' signage) is an American table service diner-style restaurant chain. It operates over 1,700 restaurants in many countries. Description Originally opened as a Diner, coffee shop un ...

and

Axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

used the phrase "Damn Daniel" as a part of their marketing campaigns. Vans' profits peaked shortly after the video as well. In addition, the video's rise in popularity created price inflation for "Damn, Daniel Vans", which have received eBay bids for upwards of $400,000. The video has also been turned into a song by rappers Little, Teej, and LeBlanc. According to ''

Wired ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Fra ...

'', the viral video lasted for 14 days before Josh Holz, the creator of the short video, had his Twitter hacked. Daniel and Josh were later featured in the video for the song "California Kids" by

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing v ...

, which appears on the band's 10th album, the

White Album White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

. The meme was also turned into a house song by Australian electronic comedy duo Bombs Away, adding to its popularity. Lara was also featured in

YouTube Rewind ''YouTube Rewind'' (stylized as ''YouTube ЯEWIND'') was an annual video series produced and created by YouTube and Portal A Interactive from 2010 to 2019. The videos were an overview and a recap of each year's viral videos, events, trends, an ...

2016, seen at 2:10 wearing white Vans in a white van.

References

{{Reflist, 30em 2016 in California Viral videos Internet memes introduced in 2016 Culture of Riverside, California 2010s fads and trends