Smudge the cat usually sits at the dinner table with his owners.
But one occasion turned a typical dinner into an origin story.
鈥淗e will freak out if he doesn鈥檛 have his own chair,鈥� Miranda Stillabower said Monday on 麻豆传媒 Channel.
One night in 2018, without a seat, Smudge stole one from a salad-eating guest. Claiming his place at the table, he wasn鈥檛 impressed with what was on the plate.
In the now-famous image, Smudge -- ears tense and mouth ajar -- appears at once confused, revolted and dejected about the greens in front of him.
鈥淗e only eats meat so I would have to say that he鈥檚 always hated vegetables,鈥� said Stillabower.
The image was originally posted to Tumblr , but became an internet sensation when a combined it with a screenshot from a 2011 episode of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills to become the 鈥溾�� meme. Both the images of Taylor Armstrong and Smudge were already widely used as reaction memes online, but together they became one of the jokes on the internet.
The Instagram account for Smudge () has gained more than 1.2 million followers in less than six months and his owners launched a . They鈥檙e selling coffee mugs, T-shirts, sweaters, touques, and baseball caps -- all emblazoned with Smudge鈥檚 salad face.
The cat even has some famous friends, including , former NFL linebacker Bruce Davis, who was filmed wearing one of the , and wrestler-actor John Cena, who has on his on .
鈥淎t first it was just kind of something funny and now everybody across the world knows who he is. It鈥檚 just insane really,鈥� said Stillabower.
While the feline will forever be unaware of his fame, Real Housewives cast member Armstrong she鈥檚 received in a series of tweets last month. One user asked how she felt about the image鈥檚 circulation considering she was emotional in the about issues related to . 鈥淚t鈥檚 (OK) to laugh at the images that have been created,鈥� she . 鈥�(That) is my past and I have moved on and am in a really healthy, happy marriage.鈥�
Though it all started with salad, Smudge鈥檚 owners have tested his reaction to other food. His distaste is apparently not limited to vegetables. Earlier this month, he at a plate of nachos.
