The Internet sensation Grumpy Cat, whose real name is Tardar Sauce, is said to have an income close to $100 million. So how does a ragdoll cat make more money than you? Let´s have a look…
Basically, Grumpy Cat is the Hollywood star of social media and became an Internet meme for being a very grumpy looking cat. Her YouTube page now has more than 16 million views, which landed her an endorsement deal with Friskies cat food. She also has “authored” two books, the first of which became a New York Times bestseller, and has a movie, “Grumpy Cat’s Worst Christmas Ever”, currently airing on the American channel Lifetime. Clearly, she´s very busy and is working very hard.
The look of a fur bundle with a lovably cantankerous punim and a mouth like an isosceles triangle where the bottom has come detached, made the Arizona cat a moneymaker. Actually she is making more money than all but a handful of actors and athletes in the world (see pictures), even when you include their endorsements, licenses, and filmed appearances. The $100 million income comes from the sale of branded merchandise, sponsorships, and other revenue streams associated with the Grumpy Cat brand.
Some fun facts about our friend Grumpy Cat:
1. Grumpy’s unique look comes from feline dwarfism and an underbite. She became an Internet hit when it got posted a photo of her on Reddit in September 2012.
2. Grumpy has a brother named Pokey.
3. Grumpy’s not actually that grumpy—in fact, most of the time, Grumpy is very calm, but she can also be playful (she particularly likes to hide behind curtains).
4. Her favorite Friskies food is Savory Shreds.
5. In 2013 Grumpy attended The Friskies award show in New York, and won the Lifetime Achievement Award.
We can all try and be moralistic about a cat´s fortune, but it is somewhat pointless. It is the power of The Internet. It is a whirlwind of massive media exposure, and random memes and personalities and mobile games and artists get super-duper-famous for reasons that can’t be fully explained – all the time.
