Viral Stars: 2015’s Biggest Internet Celebrities

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Poot Lovato

A photo of Demi Lovato taken by a fan become a meme after a Tumblr user claimed the image was of Demi’s twin sister, Poot Lovato, who had been trapped in a basement her whole life. For the record, Demi doesn’t have a twin. 

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Drake

Drake’s “Hotline Bling” music video was a meme gold mine. The rapper’s ridiculous dance moves — tennis racket included — sparked numerous memes including everything from Drake making a pizza to Drake being terrified of a spider.

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Pizza Rat

There’s nothing more terrifying than seeing a rat on the subway in New York City unless the rat is attempting with all its might to confiscate a large slice of pizza down a massive flight of stairs. After the determined rodent was caught on tape by a civilian, hundreds went as Pizza Rats for Halloween.

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Cats With Trump Hair

Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential candidacy sparked numerous headlines and jokes, but nothing trumped (pun intended) cats with trump hair.

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Amazon Prime Day Fail

Amazon promised more deals than Black Friday with its Amazon Prime Day only to seriously let shoppers down with their lack of deals. The sale included the most random items ever - think Vincent van Gogh-themed lanyards and 15 percent off Pop-Tarts — and consumers took to Twitter to mock the site. One tweeter noted, “Damn been waiting for the PS4 to go down 10 cents.”

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Raccoon on Alligator

A man walking in central Florida captured a raccoon riding on top of an alligator and it gave us all kinds of feels and hope. According to the photographer, Richard Jones, the raccoon was just chilling until he was startled by the photograph.

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Tom Brady Fail

When Tom Brady appeared in court for Deflategate, the sketch artist failed to accurately depict the handsome athlete, causing the sketch to go viral. The Internet then paired the horrifying-looking sketch with E.T., Michael Jackson’s “Thriller," and Edvard Munch's famous painting "The Scream."

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Rachel Dolezal

Think it's as easy as black and white? Not so when it comes to Rachel Dolezal, the disgraced former NAACP leader from Spokane, Wash. who was accused of lying about her race in June 2015. Born to two Caucasian parents, Dolezal has identified as African-American. "I definitely am not white," Dolezal said. "Nothing about being white describes who I am."

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The Escaped Llamas

Llama drama in Arizona! A black and white llama became a viral sensation in February, when the animals escaped their Sun City, Ariz., owners and took authorities on a chase through the city. The black llama was captured first, while his pal continued running until he was lassoed and taken into custody.

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The Dress

After a photo of a striped dress went viral on Tumblr, the world — including celebs like Kim Kardashian and Taylor Swift — weighed in on if the dress they saw was white and gold or blue and black. Spawning memes, and even a tattoo, #TheDress was determined by its designer, Roman Originals, to be blue and black once and for all.

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Baltimore Mom Toya Graham

#MomoftheYear! Parents across America applauded when Graham stepped in and pulled her son — protesting the Freddie Gray Baltimore riots in April — away from a crowd before things got physical. "Is he the perfect boy? No, he's not! But he's mine," Graham said.

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Eclipse the Dog

Man's best friend and now your fellow commuter! In January, a black lab/mastiff mix named Eclipse blended in in her local Belltown, Wash., community by riding the bus to the dog park on her own. "She's a bus-riding, sidewalk-walking dog. If we get separated, she gets on the bus without me and I catch up with her later," the dog's owner Jeff Young said.

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Human Barbie

Valeria Lukyanova proved that in 2015, plastic really is fantastic. The Eastern European model was everywhere in social media feeds after admitting that she Photoshopped pictures of herself wearing denim shorts and a bustier. "Beautiful people are often envied. That's why negativity does not surprise me. Instead, it touches me," the viral sensation has said.

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The Hot Hamburglar

To herald the arrival of their new Sirloin Third Pound hamburger in May, McDonald's gave its iconic mascot The Hamburglar a makeover from a roly-poly one-toothed cartoon character to a hot suburban dad. "He's had some time to grow up a bit and has been busy raising a family," the fast food chain said of the revamp. "His look has evolved over time."

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Britt McHenry

Sidelined for all the wrong reasons. ESPN reporter McHenry was suspended by the sports network in April after surveillance video of her berating a parking attendant went viral. In the clip, McHenry tried to retrieve her car from an Arlington, Va., compound after it was towed, and called out the employee's weight, education, and socioeconomic status when things didn't go her way.

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Danielle Perez

It's every Price Is Right contestant's dream to win big on the game show, but Nicole Perez found herself winning a cringeworthy memento on the show in May. The wheelchair-bound comedian participated in 1 Right Price before winning a sauna and...a treadmill. Though viewers thought the Price Is Right took it too far, Perez wasn't angry. "I won a treadmill and a sauna on national television and my hair looked really good. I'm popping wheelies of joy!" she tweeted.

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Sarah Stage

Lingerie model Sarah Stage ignited a mommy blogger firestorm when she posted a nude photo of herself while 29 weeks pregnant, showing off abs any woman would envy. "As long as the baby is healthy, I don't think anything else matters," Stage, who gained 20 pounds before welcoming son James, told Good Morning America in March. "That should be the most important thing."

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Hot Math Teacher

Sign Us up for detention! Pietro Boselli's double life as a super sexy male model was uncovered in March by a Google-savvy student at University College London. When the student posted his findings on Facebook, Boselli's nickname of the "world's hottest math teacher" was coined.

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World's Most Excited Weatherman

Reporting on Winter Storm Neptune in Boston this year, the Weather Channel's Jim Cantore couldn't contain his excitement when several instances of thundersnow interrupted his live broadcast. "Oh yes, yes, yes! We got it, baby!" he yelled, jumping up and down in the ankle-deep snow. "We got it, we got it! Woo, woo! We got it! Yes! Listen to that!"

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"Dancing Man"

When London's Sean O'Brien was fat shamed on social media, the Internet rallied around him to mobilize and take a stand against cyber-bullying. Two months after his virtual hug, O'Brien had the dance party of his dreams, attended by 1,000 supporters — including Monica Lewinsky — and DJ'd by Moby.

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Left Shark

Dancer Bryan Gaw made history when rocking the Super Bowl XLIX stage with Katy Perry in a shark costume, dancing in a confused manner that made him an overnight Internet sensation as Left Shark. While many fans assumed the dancer was simply out of sync, Perry's choreographer said it was all part of the act.

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Jordan James Parke

Professional makeup artist Parke is such a fan of Kim Kardashian that he spent a whopping $150,000 on plastic surgery in an effort to look like his idol. "My look is all about the shock factor," he explained to The Sun. "I love all the attention and stares I get in the street," Parke said. "I welcome the hate — it just means more attention. And if anything, it just spurs me on to get more work done."