"Fred" is the star of the NewTeeVee Live conference
The star of the NewTeeVee Live conference in San Francisco: Fred.
Lucas Cruikshank, the hyper, screeching 15-year-old Internet sensation from Omaha who created the "Fred" series on YouTube, won over the adult audience at a conference that contained dry themes and language that would have bored most kids his age.
Since he created his video channel on YouTube, Cruikshank has become one of the biggest hits in YouTube history. His videos all get more than 1 million views. He has a die-hard base of teens and tweens who can't wait for Thursdays when he releases the latest episode. He's gearing up for season three, which will contain some real grown-up stuff: product placement and celebrity cameos.
Drawing envy from the cheap seats: Cruikshank is making money. He won't say how much. And don't ask him what his CPM is (that's advertising speak, cost-per-thousand impressions). But he has been successful enough to buy himself a Mac laptop and a BlackBerry.
The real upside of being an online video star while a freshman in high school? "Seniors talk to me," he said. And he recently closed a licensing deal so he hopes to soon go to the mall with his friends and see "Fred stuff."
His ambitions don't end there. Cruikshank wants to be a movie star. He called "Fred" his "Hollywood calling card." He dreams of making comedies in the vein of Jim Carrey and Will Ferrell.
So far he has taken "meetings," but he's not sure Hollywood gets him yet. "Most movie people are like 40-year-old men," Cruikshank said.
-- Jessica Guynn
Hollywood should wake up and see that FRED is the next big thing...I firmly believe that he'll be one of the first real internet sensations to sucessfully crossover to mainstream media. With #'s as big as he's putting up on youTUBE, its also a given that he could sell to the coveted teen and tween demographics...I'm a big fan and can't get enough of his videos...
Posted by: Jonnie Chase | November 13, 2008 at 05:07 PM
My goodness, have any of you actually WATCHED this guy's videos? I fear for the future of our society :-(.
I mean, there's a lot of immature schlock being produced by Hollywood nowadays. Do we need more of it? Seriously?
Posted by: Incred U. Lous | November 13, 2008 at 08:40 PM
I'm a 40-50 year old female, and I LOVE his videos. It's not just for kids. He has such a good sense of humor, you can't help but laugh at him, and he makes fun of the stupid things other people do - Thursdays are fun to me as I look forward to his new video of the week. I only wish he were MY son!
Posted by: Fan of Fred | November 13, 2008 at 11:02 PM
yes I have watched the videos and I happen to be a huge fan of Lucas' work! I agree with Jonnie's comment where he sees FRED as someone who will make the transition from Internet to being a movie star! He is also a shrewd businessman obviously from what I saw in the NTV interview so he ain't going anywhere soon!!
Posted by: Kristen | November 13, 2008 at 11:35 PM
I think this kid is hilarious. His technical skills are remarkable and his stream-of-conscious, teen blabber, including the self and societal ridicule, are right on. Go Fred. He's exactly what my 13 yr. old daughter is looking for.
Posted by: Father of Four | November 14, 2008 at 10:49 AM
Ok so I've watched some of these "Fred" videos and I think that they are a complete and total wast of any persons time. If he wants to keep posting them on youtube.com then thats fine, but putting them up on the big screen is a complete wast of money, and when our economy is so low we should be putting it to better use. I do not want to go to the mall or any other store for that matter and see his picture all over the place. I mean think about it, if we kids worshiping this kid then what will our society look like in the next 10 years.
Posted by: Hunter Long | November 28, 2008 at 01:52 PM