Chris Crocker

For the athlete, see Chris Crocker (American football).
Chris Crocker
Born Christopher Darren Cunningham
December 7, 1987 (1987-12-07) (age 24)
Nationality American
Years active 2006–present[1][2]
Known for Comedy, performance art,[2][3] LGBT and youth issues
Internet information
Web alias(es) Chris Crocker
Web hosting service(s) YouTube, MySpaceTV.com, ShareNow
Meme "Leave Britney alone!"
September 10, 2007
Website
MySpace.com/ChrisCrocker
YouTube.com/ItsChrisCrocker
Twitter.com/ChrisCrocker

Chris Crocker (born Christopher Darren Cunningham; December 7, 1987)[4] is an American Internet celebrity, songwriter, blogger, and recording artist. Crocker gained international fame in September 2007 from his viral video "Leave Britney Alone", in which he tearfully defended pop singer Britney Spears's comeback performance at the MTV Video Music Awards; his video had over four million views in two days.[5] The video received international media attention, hundreds of parodies and criticism for Crocker.[6][7][8][9][10][11]

He is a self-described "edutainer" who produces and acts in multiple videos.[1][2][12][13] In almost all of Crocker's work he presents himself as an openly gay and effeminate Southern adolescent in a "small-minded town" in the Bible Belt where his sexual orientation and outspokenness are a "subtext... rarely addressed directly and never completely accepted."[1][12] The Tennessee-based Crocker, a stage name, keeps his identity and exact location private because according to him, and as seen in the public comments to his work; there were safety concerns and death threats in response to his YouTube and MySpace video blogs and profile.[1][14][15][16][17] According to his MySpace profile, Crocker lived in Los Angeles as of January 2008.[18] As of May 2010, Crocker has returned home to Tennessee and solely travels to Los Angeles for business ventures.[19]

His work consists mainly of short-form self-directed monologues shot in his grandparents' home.[20] As of October 2010, Crocker's videos have received a combined 50 million plays on MySpace, and his vlog channel on YouTube is the 100th most viewed of all time in all categories, with over 205 million video views.[21][22] Crocker's detractors and critics have accused him of narcissism, melodramatics, histrionics, and using Spears' personal shortcomings to bolster his own fame.[10][23][24][25][26] Others have accused Crocker of acting in the "Leave Britney Alone" video, although he insisted it was genuine on a September 2007 appearance on Maury Povich's Maury show.[17][27][28]

Contents

Early life

Crocker was born in Eastern Tennessee to a teenage couple and was raised by his grandparents.[20] Crocker said he "raised eyebrows" by bringing Barbie dolls to kindergarten for show and tell rather than the toys or action figures usually associated with boys.[20] He lived in Eastern Tennessee and was homeschooled in response to constant "death threats, bullying and glares at his clothes and makeup"[1][18][20] specifically after allegedly being "harassed by a homophobic high school gym coach".[14][29] Crocker lived with his fundamentalist[30] Pentecostal grandparents who continued raising him when his teenage parents were not able; while his grandfather reportedly knows little about his Internet fame, his grandmother has reluctantly appeared in some of his videos.[1][20][31]

Career

Crocker's uncensored and "unfiltered" work has been attributed to his isolation as an "effeminate, Southern, flamboyantly gay" adolescent in a "small-minded town" in the Bible Belt.[1] His sexual orientation and outspokenness have been described as a "subtext... rarely addressed directly and never completely accepted" in his hometown.[1] According to Crocker, when his grandmother found out that he was gay, she initially "said that [he] needed an exorcism".[1] Crocker, who laments his town's lack of gay culture, said, "The only gay pride parade where I live is in my bedroom" as he held up a rainbow frosted cupcake.[32] He added, "We don't have pride and rainbows here. We have MySpace. We don't have bathhouses, we have outhouses."[33]

Crocker's earliest experience with online networking was as an editor of an e-zine, where he met his first boyfriend, with whom he was only able to interact online and by phone. Crocker later found another online forum, where his acting skills helped him blend in on a free phone party line run out of Los Angeles "filled with flaming black men, black drag queens, and trannies from Compton", where he was outed as white and dubbed "Cracker".[1] In June 2006, after years of experience on the Internet, Crocker started uploading self-produced videos, characterized as his "singularly bizarre and angry take on gay life and his intolerant town".[1]

Building a following

Although his chart-topping video defending Britney Spears drew the attention of the wider public, Crocker had already become one of the most-watched video producers on MySpace and YouTube, having gathered what MSNBC described as a "cult following".[11][17][34] Prior to Crocker's defense of Spears, some of the more than sixty videos he had posted to the two social networking websites had already been viewed more than a million times each, and his YouTube channel was in the top rankings.[17] In May 2007, Crocker was the subject of a lengthy profile in the Seattle alternative weekly The Stranger.[1]

In addition to the "Leave Britney Alone" videos Crocker has produced and posted dozens of others with over fifty posted on both MySpace and YouTube, although some are only posted on one site or the other, many becoming "viral video hits".[1] Some consider them to be bold and seething "flares sent up by a young gay man marooned in a sea of rednecks" who is stuck in a small town that "can't tolerate homosexuality and punishes flamboyance."[1] Crocker's videos include "sex-filled confessions" and "wild monologues" talking "about everything from AIDS to pubic hair."[1][17] In many of the videos he portrays characters, such as an older deeply religious woman in the "The Earl Annie Edna show" series and exaggerated comic characterizations of Southern stereotypes earning comparisons to Andy Kaufman and being called "an insidious satiric mastermind".[35][36]

"Leave Britney Alone!"

Crocker is best known for his Britney Spears videos, posted to YouTube in September 2007. The first part of the infamous work though was posted September 9, 2007 called "Leave Britney Alone pt.1" to his Myspace page, while the better-known "LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!" (part 2) was posted to both MySpace and YouTube. In "Leave Britney Alone pt.1", an emotional Crocker stated that he did not want fellow Southerner[20] and gay icon Britney Spears[37] to spiral out of control like Anna Nicole Smith, who had died in February 2007. As of November 2010, the video had been viewed over 35 million times and has accumulated a total of over 500,000 comments.[38] It is just a few seconds shorter than the second part, and Crocker, although emotional, remains relatively calm and composed, becoming teary only at the very end.

In the videos, Crocker lashes out at gossip columnists such as Perez Hilton, and at reality TV star Simon Cowell, who criticized Britney Spears' onstage music performance at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards in Las Vegas.[39][40][41][42] Within the first 24 hours of its posting, the video had accumulated over 2 million views.[17] As of January 2009, it has accumulated a total of 24 million views and is the second most discussed video of all time on the site (in all categories), with over 350,000 comments.[39][43] "LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!" is one of YouTube's fastest "climbing" videos, reaching the minimum seven million views needed (as of September 2007) to be included in the "Top 100".[44] The video was nominated in the Commentary category in the 2007 YouTube Awards.[45] The video received worldwide attention and earned Crocker interviews on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, The Today Show, Maury, The Howard Stern Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Ryan Seacrest's KIIS-FM morning show. Crocker and his video were also commented on in the mainstream media by shows like The View and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.[17][46] YouTube said "the melodramatic two-minute clip made Crocker an instant YouTube star" and named it one of the top videos of 2007.[47] Wired magazine named it the top video of 2007.[48]

Although sometimes shown in conjunction with news footage of Spears' performance, the "pure performance art" video has become its own story, with the news media and gossip industry offering opinions on the phenomenon and even joking that Crocker could be "an insidious satiric mastermind" and compared him to Andy Kaufman.[10][35][49] In the video, Crocker proclaims, "All you people care about is readers and making money off of her. She's a human! Leave Britney alone!"[7][50][51] Crocker stated that although he is often acting in his videos, his emotions were genuine and "straight from the heart"; although he described the clip as a "second take" in one interview, he clarified on Jimmy Kimmel Live that he meant that it was the second part of a longer video, the first part being "Leave Britney Alone pt. 1".[15][17][31][52]

The "LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!" video became a satire target with parody videos as well as references in mainstream television spoofs, and films.[53] Actor Seth Green's parody, which included him applying eyeliner several times and promoting his show Robot Chicken, called for people to "leave Chris Crocker alone!"[3][54] Some video responses characterized Crocker as a drama queen and, Wired magazine noted, "sent world Schadenfreude levels zooming to heights unseen since the Fatty Arbuckle scandal."[48][55]

The January 2008 parody film Meet the Spartans used pop culture references and met with generally poor reviews; the Electronic Urban Report called Crocker's cameo the "film's funniest moment".[53][56] Both Crocker and the video were also parodied in the South Park episode "Canada on Strike" with a cartoon Crocker running around in a fight between various Internet memes, telling them to "leave the others alone".[57][58] In March 2008, a "trance remix" dance single "Leave Britney Alone" was released on iTunes and other sites by "Double J" featuring quotes from Crocker's video.[59] On the Hannah Montana episode, "Welcome to the Bungle", when Lilly phones the journalists to tell them to leave Hannah alone, she accidentally shouts "Leave Britney alone!". Miley questions "Britney?" and Lilly corrects herself by responding, "Oh, oh, sorry, my bad.. 'Leave Hannah alone!'".[60]

While numerous news and media outlets reported on the viral video, Fox News Channel's morning program Fox & Friends commentators questioned his gender and compared the fabric backdrop in his video to Osama Bin Laden's videos.[61][62][63] Crocker produced two response videos – Poor FOX "News".. and Rosie O'Donnell was right about FOX "News" (originally posted as "Dear Fox 'News'") – addressing what he characterized as biased treatment while he called Fox News the "Republican, conservative, homophobic channel".[64][65] Crocker's stated concerns were the commentators calling him a "she/he" and what he felt was their needless questioning of his gender instead of commenting on the content of his video.[64][65]

Crocker's video was referenced in an episode of American TV series Glee, "Britney/Brittany", in which Brittany Pierce tells the glee club she does not want to perform Britney Spears' music because she feels she has been overshadowed by her fame due to the similarity in their names. Kurt is angry at Brittany, but Santana replies, "Leave Brittany alone!"

Onch promotional deal and lawsuit

In October 2007 TMZ.com reported that Crocker was being sued by Onch Movement Jewelry for 1 million dollars, for fraud and breach of contract and provided a copy of the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles.[66] Jewelry designer Nelson Chung, professionally known as Onch and a fan of Crocker, hired him as a celebrity spokesmodel for more than two days' worth of publicity work as well as appearance at World of Wonder's Just Britney art show in exchange for airfare.[67] It was speculated by DMW Media that Crocker had no legal representative as the agreement seemed unbalanced.[68] Crocker did make appearances including at gay club Rage and the art show where he was interviewed by MTV showing artwork of him in homage to Spears.[69][70] Onch's YouTube channel also posted videos of appearances which were later removed.[71]

Mainstream media exposure

Prior to the attention from his September 2007 Leave Britney Alone video, Crocker was seen as viral and was asked by MTV pioneering vlogger and news staffer Matt Sunbulli to provide video for MTV's website which also broadcasts on MTV itself.[1][72][72] Crocker has indicated that he hopes to develop his acting career and has agreed to develop ideas for a TV show with Los Angeles producer Glenn Meehan and has met with representatives from MTV's gay-themed channel LOGO.[1][15] According to Variety, Crocker has signed a development deal with 44 Blue Productions to create a "docusoap" reality television show, which will be called Chris Crocker's 15 Minutes More.[73] Said Rasha Drachkovitch, the production company's co-founder: "It's going to pretty much be the Chris Crocker experience. We consider him a rebel character that people will find interesting. He's going to be a TV star."[34]

Post-meme career

After the widespread recognition of Leave Britney Alone, Crocker has been involved in several projects. In a June 2007 autobiographical comic strip, where Crocker discusses future plans, he states, "I'm going to make the leap from living with my Pentecostal grandparents to living with drag queen roommates. I'm going to star in my own TV show. I'm going to make the leap from outhouses to bathhouses...to my very own house."[33] In October 2007, Crocker opened Fox Reality channel's "Reality Remix Really Awards".[74]

Crocker was one of Lily Allen's Internet correspondents on the February 2008 premiere episode of BBC's Lily Allen and Friends where he posed questions for the guest celebrities, in this case David Mitchell and later, Cuba Gooding, Jr.[75][76][77]

In an April 9, 2008 video blog Crocker announced he refused the television network's offer to star in his own show on the grounds that it would be censored.[78] Crocker was outraged and refused the deal and claimed he would continue to post his videos on YouTube.com in an effort to draw in more viewers to the video hosting web site."[78]

On May 23, 2008 rock band Weezer released a viral music video for their song "Pork and Beans" – "a natural anthem for the self-expression that's been taking shape on YouTube" – which featured various mash-ups of viral videos and Youtube celebrities, including Crocker, all playing themselves.[79][80][81][82] On May 22, 2009 Crocker made a video showing a Grammy plaque that he received for his contribution to the band's video.

On July 25, 2008 Crocker posted a video, "www.MsChrisCrocker.Com", in which he states he is leaving YouTube citing issues of censorship from YouTube for removing him from the most viewed and talked about lists and excluding him from their events.[83] Despite this statement, he has since returned to using YouTube as a means for publishing videos. In August 2008, Crocker was featured in a Sierra Mist commercial.[84] On July 9, 2009 Crocker appeared on the Comedy Central show Tosh.0.[85]

Music

In September 2008, Crocker kicked off a music career when he released his debut single "Mind in the Gutter".[86] The song was initially meant to be the lead single from his unreleased debut album, Turned On. In March 2009, Crocker leaked an unreleased song entitled "Fell for the Enemy".[87] After the leaking of "Fell For the Enemy", Crocker did not return to the music business for awhile, stating he felt as though producers saw him as "just another paycheck." However, April 2010 saw the release of Crocker's second single, a ballad titled "Love You Better". The single came in two versions, the studio version as well as an acoustic version. Shortly afterwards, in July of the same year, Crocker's third single, "Best of Both Worlds" was released to generally negative reception. October 13 saw the official release of "Fell For the Enemy", the song Crocker had previously leaked online. The following month, Crocker released his fifth single, "Freak of Nature". In January 2011, Crocker released his first music video, for his latest song "Freak of Nature" and in February, Crocker released "I Want Your Bite", which peaked at #12 on the iTunes Dance Charts.[88][89] Crocker also confirmed a music video for "I Want Your Bite", which will be released in March 2011.

On August 29, 2010, Crocker announced via a YouTube video, titled "Me 2 u. [A lil' update]" that he will be "self releasing" his own album in 2011. However, recording will take place in 2010.[90] The album later was pushed back and instead Crocker announced his first EP titled "The First Bite". The EP will include "Freak Of Nature", "I Want Your Bite" as well as three completely new songs. The EP peaked at #3 in the iTunes Electro Album charts.[91] "The First Bite" was released digitally on iTunes on March 19, 2011. Crocker released a preview video for his EP on March 15, 2011 and a full song titled "One Day" on 17 March, 2011 on YouTube. On August 7, Crocker's new song Tug of War was released. His new single, "Taking My Life Back" was released on November 1, 2011. A preview of a Ryan Adames song, titled "BANG", in which Crocker is featured with Lou, was uploaded onto Crocker's YouTube channel on November 30. The single will be released on December 13. [92]

On December 10, 2011, Crocker revealed the title of his second EP, "Beyond" and that it would be released in Spring 2012. [93]

Documentary

Chris Crocker announced in August 2011 that a film documenting his life over the past few years would be released, being titled "Me at the Zoo". [94] He urged his fans to help him raise enough money to fund the movie for release. Within less than a month, Crocker received more than enough money and thanked his fans in a viral video. [95] On November 30th, 2011, Crocker revealed via Twitter that the documentary had been selected to premiere at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. [96]

Adult Film

In July 2011 it was announced that Crocker had been signed by Chi Chi LaRue to appear in an adult film.[97]

Selected videography

Crocker has posted dozens of videos, often to both YouTube and Myspace and has sometimes also removed videos or renamed them. In 2008 he also launched his own website which also hosted his work. As of October 2010, he has 63 videos on his MySpace page and 246 on YouTube.[2][21]

Discography

Main article: Chris Crocker discography

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Sanders, Eli (2007-06-30). "Escape from Real Bitch Island". The Stranger. http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=232684. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  2. ^ a b c d Crocker, Chris (2007-09-13). "Chris Crocker channel page". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/user/itschriscrocker. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  3. ^ a b Westbrook, Bruce (September 21, 2007). "Internet rant reaps its rewards: Performance artist finds fame with Britney skit". Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2007_4428821. Retrieved 2008-01-18. 
  4. ^ "22 on Monday!". YouTube. 2009-12-06. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xevk9MWI43k. Retrieved 2010-02-05. 
  5. ^ Ramirez, Ramon (2007-09-13). "Britney Spears: Bombshell or just plain bomb?". The Daily Texan. http://media.www.dailytexanonline.com/media/storage/paper410/news/2007/09/13/LifeArts/Britney.Spears.Bombshell.Or.Just.Plain.Bomb-2966398.shtml. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  6. ^ "Video: Gay Men's Online War Over Britney Spears". Javno.hr, Croatia. 2007-09-12. http://www.javno.com/en/lifestyle/clanak.php?id=80116. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  7. ^ a b Davies, Shaun (2007-09-12). "Screaming Britney Defense Becomes Net Phenomenon". National Nine News, Australia. http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=295392. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  8. ^ Sankey, Daniel (2007-09-12). "Leave Britney alone!". Sydney Herald News. http://www.smh.com.au/news/people/leave-britney-alone/2007/09/12/1189276861545.html. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  9. ^ Teckemeier, Nanna Louise (2007-09-12). "Gal Britney-fan hitter på Youtube". Ekstra Bladet (Norway). http://ekstrabladet.dk/flash/udlandkendte/article958682.ece. Retrieved 2008-01-18. 
  10. ^ a b c Roeper, Richard (2007-09-13). "Coffee, tea, or how 'bout a decent outfit?: Now THAT'S a performance". Chicago Sun-Times. http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:sCnMqojUUlYJ:findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20070913/ai_n20509494+%22Coffee,+tea,+or+how+%27bout+a+decent+outfit%3F%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us. Retrieved 2008-01-18. 
  11. ^ a b Popkin, Helen A.S. (2007-09-13). "'Leave Britney Alone!': Tear-stained video plea makes YouTube vlogger an Internet rock star". MSNBC. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20750575/. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  12. ^ a b Nesti, Robert (2008-01-02). "2007 YouTube Celebrity Trainwrecks". Edge Boston. http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=entertainment&sc=celebrities&sc2=features&sc3=&id=54235. Retrieved 2008-02-05. 
  13. ^ Crocker, Chris (2007-09-11). "MySpace Chris Crocker 20". MySpace. http://www.myspace.com/chriscrocker. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  14. ^ a b Dempster, Michael; Jason Kaplan (September 12, 2007). "More From "Real Bitch Island"". Howard Stern.com. http://www.howardstern.com/rundown.hs?d=1189569600#10371. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  15. ^ a b c Goldman, Russell (2007-09-12). "Legions of the Loyal Britney's Fans Defend Her Online". ABC News. http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=3592492&page=1. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  16. ^ Azzopardi, Chris (2007-10-04). "15 Minutes... More; Chris Crocker can't make pizza. But he's cooked up a smart way to super stardom: Defending Britney". Between The Lines; PrideSource.com. http://www.pridesource.com/article.shtml?article=27184. Retrieved 2007-10-16. 
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Manjoo, Farhad (2007-09-12). "Talking to the "Leave Britney Alone!" guy". Salon.com. http://machinist.salon.com/blog/2007/09/12/chris_crocker/. Retrieved 2007-09-17. 
  18. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (February 5, 2008). "MySpace Chris Crocker 20". MySpace. http://www.myspace.com/chriscrocker. Retrieved 2008-02-05. 
  19. ^ Chris Crocker's YouTube Channel
  20. ^ a b c d e f Jafari, Samira (September 22, 2007). "Crocker hopes to find TV stardom after Britney video". Associated Press in USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2007-09-22-crocker-britney_N.htm. Retrieved 2007-09-22. 
  21. ^ a b "Chris Crocker's Videos". MySpace. 2007-09-13. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.viewVideos&channelid=113936924. Retrieved 2008-03-29. 
  22. ^ YouTube, LLC (2009-01-16). "Channels Most Viewed : (All Time)". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/members?s=mv&t=a&g=0&p=1. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
  23. ^ "Me Me Me". The Times (from Esquire (magazine)). 2008-06-08. Archived from the original on 2008-06-11. http://web.archive.org/web/20080611032046/http://www.thetimes.co.za/PrintEdition/Magazine/Article.aspx?id=777445. Retrieved 2008-06-13. 
  24. ^ Elsworth, Catherine (2007-09-21). "YouTube Britney Spears fan to get own show". London: Daily Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/09/21/wbritney121.xml. Retrieved 2007-09-22. 
  25. ^ Jafari, Samira (2007-09-21). "Leave Britney Alone Guy Is New Web Star". The Washington Post. Associated Press. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/21/AR2007092101280.html. Retrieved 2008-01-18.  (original released on AP wire and reprinted elsewhere including The Washington Post)
  26. ^ Kearney, Syd; Andy Olin, Kyrie O'Connor, Bobby Hankinson, Lana Berkowitz, Nadya Shakoor (2007-10-17). "Too Much Information". Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2007_4444541. Retrieved 2008-01-18. 
  27. ^ Jalees, Sabrina (2007-09-20). "Britney Proves Awful is The New Awesome". Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/columnists/article/258280. Retrieved 2007-09-22. 
  28. ^ Jupiter, P (2007-09-20). "Crocker on Maury Povich". The Maury Povich Show. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX-OsSQBDDM. Retrieved 2007-09-22. 
  29. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQzJdA_Tgew
  30. ^ Flanigan, Kathy (September 14, 2007). "Tops of the Tube". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=672588. Retrieved 2007-10-11. 
  31. ^ a b visiontellie2 (September 14, 2007). "Chris Crocker "Leave Britney Alone" Jimmy Kimmel Live". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOR5lzVvMic. Retrieved 2007-09-15. 
  32. ^ strangervideo (August 14, 2007). "Chris Crocker on Seattle Gay Pride". YouTube. http://youtube.com/watch?v=AVRmAzpoMJ8. Retrieved 2007-09-16. 
  33. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (2007-06-20). "What You Need To Know About...2008". The Stranger. http://thestranger.com/chriscrocker. Retrieved 2007-09-16. 
  34. ^ a b Adalian, Josef (September 18, 2007). "'Britney' guy may get TV gig". Variety (magazine). http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117972243.html?categoryid=1009&cs=1. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  35. ^ a b Schlenker, Dave (September 28, 2007). "Little Man, Big Mouth: Internet star cries for help". Ocala Star-Banner. http://www.ocala.com/article/20070928/FEATURES09/209280360/1001/NEWS01. Retrieved 2007-09-28. 
  36. ^ Weinberger, Jill (September 12, 2007). "Leave Britney Alone, Chris Crocker Cries!". The Daily Reel. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20071011192711/http://thedailyreel.com/spotlight/coffee-break/archive/2007/09/12/leave-britney-alone-chris-crocker-cries. Retrieved 2007-09-15. 
  37. ^ May, Leigh (May 11, 2006). "Baby One More Time: Gay icon Britney Spears is pregnant". PinkNews.co.uk. http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-1446.html. Retrieved 2009-04-03. 
  38. ^ Crocker, Chris (September 9, 2007). "Leave Britney Alone pt.1". MySpace. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=17979243. Retrieved 2007-09-15. 
  39. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (September 11, 2007). "Leave Britney Alone!". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHmvkRoEowc. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  40. ^ Camp, Todd; Robert Philpot (September 14, 2007). "Blab!: All-Britney Terror Alert:Things We Should Be Worried About This Week". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. http://www.star-telegram.com/entertainment/story/379184.html. Retrieved 2008-01-18. 
  41. ^ Archer, Lincoln (September 13, 2007). "Leave Britney alone, she's not well". Melbourne Herald Sun. http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22411455-2902,00.html. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  42. ^ "Simon Cowell says Britney Spears's career may be over". News.com.au. 2007-09-12. http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/story/0,23663,22405392-10388,00.html. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  43. ^ YouTube, LLC (May 24, 2007). "Most Discussed : (All Time) : All Categories". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/browse?s=md&t=a&c=0&l=. Retrieved 2008-05-24. 
  44. ^ YouTube, LLC (September 18, 2007). "Most Viewed : (All Time) : All Categories". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/browse?s=mp&t=a&c=0&l=&e=en_US&p=1. Retrieved 2007-09-18. 
  45. ^ Carlson, Erin (2008-03-20). "Will the Obama Girl win a YouTube award?". The Boston Globe. Associated Press. http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2008/03/20/will_the_obama_girl_win_a_youtube_award/?rss_id=Boston.com+--+Education+news. Retrieved 2008-03-20. 
  46. ^ "Monday, January 28, 2008". [Tonight Show with Jay Leno]. January 28, 2008. No. 3485, season 17.
  47. ^ Adegoke, Yinka (December 28, 2007). "Obama Girl, Britney Boy Top YouTube Videos". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN2743102720071228. Retrieved 2008-01-18. 
  48. ^ a b Sjöberg, Lore (December 28, 2007). "The Year in Online Video 2007". Wired. http://www.wired.com/entertainment/theweb/multimedia/2007/12/YE_onlinevideo2007. Retrieved 2008-01-18. 
  49. ^ "The Situation Room: Transcripts". CNN. September 11, 2007. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0709/11/sitroom.03.html. Retrieved 2007-09-15. 
  50. ^ "Britney Spears fan Chris Crocker screams for fans to "leave Britney alone!"". TransWorldNews. September 13, 2007. http://www.transworldnews.com/NewsStory.aspx?storyid=22786&ret=Default.aspx. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  51. ^ Sankey, Daniel (September 12, 2007). "Leave Britney alone!". The Age (Melbourne). http://www.theage.com.au/news/people/leave-britney-alone/2007/09/12/1189276804214.html. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  52. ^ Lyn Pesce, Nicole (September 13, 2007). "Obsessive Britney Spears fan lashes critics in YouTube video". New York Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/2007/09/13/2007-09-13_obsessive_britney_spears_fan_lashes_crit-1.html. Retrieved 2007-09-13. 
  53. ^ a b Williams, Kam (June 5, 2008). "EUR DVD Review: Meet the Spartans – Silly Spoof of 300 Released on DVD". Electronic Urban Report. http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur44079.cfm. Retrieved 2008-06-18. 
  54. ^ "Seth Green Chris Crocker Outtakes". MySpace. September 13, 2007. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=2059347815. Retrieved 2007-09-14. 
  55. ^ Moses, Asher (September 20, 2007). "Britney drama queen inks TV deal". Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/britney-drama-queen-inks-tv-deal/2007/09/20/1189881661178.html. Retrieved 2007-09-22. 
  56. ^ "Meet the Spartans – Bottom Line: "300" was funnier.". The Hollywood Reporter. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film/reviews/article_display.jsp?JSESSIONID=qpm9HhsDPFLpzJ9MfRpVc5QvzVf1Z16Kb64GVWKpFfFdcLTVcpfD!-1562314872&&rid=10537. Retrieved 2008-01-28. 
  57. ^ You don't want to 'Meet the Spartans'
  58. ^ "Canada on Strike". South Park. 2008-04-02. No. 171, season 12.
  59. ^ "Crocker releases 'Leave Britney Alone' single". Digital Spy. March 10, 2008. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/a91157/crocker-releases-leave-britney-alone-single.html. Retrieved 2008-03-14. 
  60. ^ <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannah_Montana_(season_3)">
  61. ^ "(CNN's) Glenn Beck on a Britney Spears Supporter (aka Chris Crocker)". YouTube. September 12, 2007. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofyLrdF_Ag4. Retrieved 2007-10-06. 
  62. ^ Blaze, Alex (September 19, 2007). "Chris Crocker on Fox News & Friends". The Bilerico Project. http://www.bilerico.com/2007/09/chris_crocker_video_on_fox_and_friends.php. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  63. ^ lacohenga, Connor (September 13, 2007). "Chris Crocker on FOX News". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KexjIWy5NE. Retrieved 2007-09-14. 
  64. ^ a b Jones, Anthony (September 14, 2007). "Poor FOX "News"..". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbdJcIG2YpM. Retrieved 2007-09-14. 
  65. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (September 17, 2007). "Rosie O'Donnell was right about FOX "News"". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQMR85Ak02Q. Retrieved 2007-09-17. 
  66. ^ Hack Chris Crocker Sued for Fraud – TMZ.com – Entertainment News, Celebrity Gossip and Hollywood Rumors
  67. ^ Malkin, Marc (2007-09-24). ""Leave Britney Alone" Heads West". E Online. Archived from the original on 2007-10-12. http://web.archive.org/web/20071012132147/http://eonline.com/gossip/planetgossip/detail/index.jsp?uuid=289c810a-efcf-4fbe-9938-d34b9002c4b1. Retrieved 2007-10-07. 
  68. ^ Goldberg, Scott (2007-10-05). "Jewelry Company Sues Chris Crocker for Fraud". DMW Media. http://www.dmwmedia.com/news/2007/10/05/jewelry-company-sues-chris-crocker-for-fraud. Retrieved 2007-10-07. 
  69. ^ Movement, Onch (2007-09-23). "EXCLUSIVE Onch Movement Presents Chris Crocker at RAGE in LA". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WoMNohzbvA&NR=1. Retrieved 2007-10-07. 
  70. ^ Carroll, Larry (2007-10-11). "Britney Spears' Highs And Lows Blown Up For Hollywood Art Show". MTV. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1571616/20071010/id_0.jhtml. Retrieved 2007-10-11. 
  71. ^ Movement, Onch (2007-09-19). "Chris Crocker wearing Onch Movement Pink Razor – Gay Army". YouTube. http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:joMZYEkIgb4J:www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DCnlJ74omsD8+Onch+crocker&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us. Retrieved 2007-10-07.  Link too recent for Internet archiving use.
  72. ^ a b Gannes, Liz (January 26, 2007). "The Deal with MTV's First Videoblog". NewTeeVee. http://newteevee.com/2007/01/26/the-deal-with-mtvs-first-videoblog/. Retrieved 2007-09-14. 
  73. ^ Azzopardi, Chris (2007-10-04). "15 Minutes ... More; Chris Crocker can't make pizza. But he's cooked up a smart way to super stardom: Defending Britney". PrideSource.com. http://www.pridesource.com/article.shtml?article=27184. Retrieved 2007-10-16. 
  74. ^ "Fox Reality Really Awards: Charm School Rap (Crocker introduces the first act)". Fox Reality. 2007. http://really.foxreality.com/2007/channels.html. Retrieved 2009-01-18. 
  75. ^ "Lily Allen and Friends (Premier – February 12, 2008)". [Allen and Friends]. February 12, 2008. No. 1, season 1.
  76. ^ "David Mitchell: Confirmed for Show One – Feb 12, 10:30pm on BBC Three". BBC. 2008. http://www.bbc.co.uk/lilyallen/celeb_davidmitchell.shtml. Retrieved 2008-06-19. 
  77. ^ "Cuba Gooding Jr.: Confirmed for Show One – Feb 12, 10:30pm on BBC Three". BBC. 2008. http://www.bbc.co.uk/lilyallen/celeb_cubagooding.shtml. Retrieved 2008-06-19. 
  78. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (2008-04-09). "Chris Crocker Tells All". YouTube. http://youtube.com/watch?v=p48f0ZLQn9w. Retrieved 2008-04-24. 
  79. ^ "Spot the memes in Weezer's Pork and Beans". News Limited. 2008-05-28. http://www.news.com.au/technology/story/0,25642,23772877-5014108,00.html. Retrieved 2008-05-29. 
  80. ^ Sarno, David (2008-05-30). "Mathew Cullen, director of Weezer's 'Pork and Beans,' shares some secrets". Los Angeles Times. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/webscout/2008/05/some-more-notes.html. Retrieved 2008-05-30. 
  81. ^ Snider, Mike (2008-05-29). "YouTube stars, Weezer dine out on 'Pork & Beans'". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2008-05-28-weezer-youtube-pork-beans_N.htm. Retrieved 2008-05-29. 
  82. ^ "The Man Behind the Memes: An Exclusive Interview With Weezer ‘Pork and Beans’ Video Director Mathew Cullen". MTV. May 30, 2008. http://buzzworthy.mtv.com/2008/05/30/the-man-behind-the-memes-an-exclusive-interview-with-weezer-pork-and-beans-video-director-mathew-cullen/#more-2778. Retrieved 2008-06-22. 
  83. ^ "YouTube – Broadcast Yourself". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cb5KydkJp4. 
  84. ^ "YouTube – Chris Crocker's Sierra Mist Commercial". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAs4ADPxknM. 
  85. ^ "Web Redemption – Chris Crocker Tosh.0 Comedy Central". http://www.comedycentral.com/videos/index.jhtml?videoId=233321&title=web-redemption-chris-crocker. 
  86. ^ "YouTube – Chris Crocker – Illegal Downloading". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5RGEwuN5I8. 
  87. ^ "YouTube – CHRIS CROCKER – "Fell for the Enemy"". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHfqASJmFH0. 
  88. ^ Chris Crocker - Freak Of Nature (Full Song - HQ). Youtube
  89. ^ I Want Your Bite - Single. Chris Crocker. iTunes
  90. ^ "YouTube – CHRIS CROCKER – "Me 2 u. [A lil' update ""]. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92NTXHBOT2M&feature=sub. 
  91. ^ Chris Crocker (March 19, 2011). "@ChrisCrocker – Twitter". Twitter. http://twitter.com/#!/ChrisCrocker/status/49005687958814720. Retrieved December 01, 2011. 
  92. ^ "Ryan Adames - BANG (Featuring Chris Crocker)". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKp84_73vzI. 
  93. ^ "Twitter/ @ChrisCrocker: The title of...". https://twitter.com/#!/ChrisCrocker/status/145616596612808704. 
  94. ^ "YouTube – About the documentary! "". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xb-hXD6rm3w. 
  95. ^ "YouTube – WE DID IT! Documentary WILL be released!!!! "". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7IOVF_Ml2o&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL. 
  96. ^ Chris Crocker. Twitter page
  97. ^ Johnson, Bob (2011-07-26). "C1R Signs Mainstream Entertainer Chris Crocker". XBIZ Newswire. http://newswire.xbiz.com/view.php?id=136675. Retrieved 2011-09-29. 
  98. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (December 28, 2006). "This & that.". MySpace. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=4841862. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  99. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (February 25, 2007). "Chris Crocker – This & that.". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrQX2Dhrl8I. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  100. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (December 29, 2006). "Bitch, please!". MySpace. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=4848648. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  101. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (February 25, 2007). "Chris Crocker – Bitch, please!". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6Bqf23u-40. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  102. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (January 24, 2007). "Watch it.". MySpace. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=5553691. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
  103. ^ Crocker, Chris (March 4, 2008). "Chris Crocker is Damaged!". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXiouCrEnG0. Retrieved 2008-06-22. 
  104. ^ a b Sevits, Matt (April 17, 2008). "I Don't Know Why I Love Chris Crocker". Daily Emerald. http://media.www.dailyemerald.com/media/storage/paper859/news/2008/04/17/Pulse/I.Dont.Know.Why.I.Love.Chris.Crocker-3330671.shtml. Retrieved 2008-06-22. 
  105. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (August 10, 2007). "Chris Crocker – Why I'm Gay..". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1VB3oNEEHI. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  106. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (August 10, 2007). "Why I'm Gay.". MySpace. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=15500315. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  107. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (August 23, 2007). "Chris Crocker – Kids SHOULD cuss!". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DuiRs09wz0. Retrieved 2007-09-19. 
  108. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (September 1, 2007). "Chris Crocker – Back up, Britney haters!". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dohJmVKcgQM. Retrieved 2008-03-13. 
  109. ^ a b Crocker, Chris (September 3, 2007). "Chris Crocker – Britney, this is for you". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h863nXDqCM0. Retrieved 2008-01-26. 
  110. ^ a b c d Crocker, Chris (March 17, 2008). "Watch Chris Crocker blink.". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbr1EiIC2Ro. Retrieved 2008-12-22. 
  111. ^ a b c Popkin, Helen A.S. (March 24, 2008). "Don't Cry for Chris Crocker: The 'Leave Britney Alone' Guy Isn’t Fretting His YouTube Awards Loss". MSNBC. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23748983/. Retrieved 2008-06-22. 

External links