What was the first meme? Many believe «baby cha-cha» (also known as the dancing baby) was the first viral internet meme to ever exist. The 3D rendered animation of a creepy dancing baby first appeared in 1996 on several episodes of Ally McBeal and various local news broadcasts. For nearly 30 years, baby cha-cha has been an internet icon. But some argue that there’s an even older meme—a cartoon from 1921 that is perhaps the earliest expression of the classic «expectation vs. reality» meme.
The cartoon first resurfaced in 2018 after Twitter user @YoRHaw shared the image along with a caption that read, «this comic strip from 1921 is really relatable to this day.» The image was sourced from a 1920s literary magazine called The Judge. @YoRHaw‘s tweet went viral and the cartoon has since been heralded as the first meme ever. Whether the cartoon can be considered a meme or not, the image expresses something timelessly universal through humor. One can argue that this is what makes a meme good. 

To honor the history of memes, we’ve put together a random collection of dank content, both new and old.