Gary from Chicago knows, there’s no need to dress up for the Oscars. During the 89th annual Academy Awards, Jimmy Kimmel welcomed an unsuspecting group of tourists into the award show, where they met and took selfies with Hollywood’s biggest stars on live television. A long line of tourists walked in, shocked at their big surprise. Only one of them became a full fledged internet meme.
The first tourist to walk in was Gary. He’s from Chicago.
His fiancé was with him, and Jimmy Kimmel introduced them both to Denzel Washington.
Gary from Chicago and his fiancé literally got married minutes after waltzing into the #Oscars thanks to Denzel. pic.twitter.com/3pcs63ZsHP
— Casey Clemmons (@casey_clemmons) February 27, 2017
But it was Gary who really stole the show, with his purple phone.
He took a few selfies, too.
Gary, Oscar & Mahershala! #Oscars pic.twitter.com/BghTbtzqba
— Jimmy Kimmel Live (@JimmyKimmelLive) February 27, 2017
Keith Urban filmed it from his seat.
Sharing the love !!!!!!!!! #Oscars pic.twitter.com/yCE64U98Cp
— Keith Urban (@KeithUrban) February 27, 2017
Gary’s popularity grew quickly, and he may even appear on Good Morning America with his Fiancé.
Please get Gary and his fiancé on @GMA tomorrow. I wanna know their story. They are so funny and cute together 🙂
— Drew Tuma (@DrewTumaABC7) February 27, 2017
The Chicago Bulls invited Gary to a game.
Gary from Chicago! We've got you covered if you want to come to a game! #Oscars
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) February 27, 2017
It didn’t take long for folks to notice his fashion choice. It is the Academy Awards, after all.
Gary’s shorts are the most amazing fashion move at the Oscars this year.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) February 27, 2017
Gary’s shorts took on a life of their own. His shorts started to Tweet.
And Gary became a real meme.
Before arriving at the #oscars tonight, Gary single-handedly repaired our service outage. Thank you Gary.
— Netflix (@netflix) February 27, 2017
And we welcome #GaryfromChicago #Oscars to the #Memes calendar for March: pic.twitter.com/mZ4Izic7tz
— 𝕁𝔻 (@jdwuxd) February 27, 2017
Gary from Chicago won the Oscars, and he did it wearing basketball shorts. He had no idea what was in store for him when he got on the tour bus today, wearing a Hollywood sweatshirt and basketball shorts. One can only imagine what kind of tour he thought he was taking, or who he thought he might meet along the way. It’s safe to say, he probably didn’t think he’d get to take a selfie with Mahershala in the front row at the Oscars. But dreams do come true, even in la la land. To follow all the latest fun, check out #GaryFromChicago.