Wife Guys

2017catchphraseclassic

Wife Guys are men online who build a public persona around their wives, posting about them so devotedly or dramatically that observers turn each new example into a joke. The archetype crystallized on Twitter in the late 2010s after Robbie Tripp's Curvy Wife post, the ProJared scandal, and Shonduras' Cliff Wife video.

character archetype memesrelationship memestwitter memesinfluencer mockery memesscandal memes

Overview

Wife Guys are men who make themselves internet-famous through things involving their wives, whether about their wives' bodies, dramatic incidents involving them, or scandals that expose their carefully curated devotion2. The character type sits at an awkward intersection of sincerity and self-promotion, with each new Wife Guy usually getting mocked once observers spot the pattern.

By May 2019 the archetype was defined enough that a Twitter user could post 'Today is another Wife Day on Twitter' and readers knew what that meant2. The Outline's Tom Whyman argued that being a Wife Guy was less about who you married than about what he called a 'Wife Event,' something a man did online that pivoted on a wife, whether his own or someone else's3. The label was applied backwards to earlier viral moments, turning each new incident into another entry in an ongoing character catalog4.

How It Spread

On July 30, 2017, author Robbie Tripp posted an Instagram tribute to his wife Sarah Tripp, a fashion blogger who ran Sassy Red Lipstick, praising her 'curvy' body and his own attraction to women outside conventional beauty standards4. BuzzFeed wrote up the post approvingly, but Twitter turned on Tripp, with users mocking the low bar of a man being applauded for finding his own wife attractive4. Tripp went on to monetize the viral fame with sponsorships and even a music video where he rapped about 'curvy' women, which confirmed his role as 'Curvy Wife Guy'4. In August 2017, Twitter user @i_zzzzzz observed that 'the best days on the internet are the ones where you can refer to the wife guy and everyone knows who you're talking about'3.

The character multiplied in 2019. On February 23, 2019, the person behind the popular Twitter account @ElleOhHell revealed he was a man who had been posing as a female comedian, using photos of his wife as his avatar, and that the couple was divorcing4. In wife guy shorthand this became 'Fake Wife'4. Around the same period, YouTuber ProJared (Jared Knabenbauer) was accused by his wife Heidi O'Ferrall of cheating with fellow YouTuber Holly Conrad and of soliciting nudes from fans, an episode the lexicon labeled 'Elf Wife' for O'Ferrall's cosplay work2.

The archetype hit its peak on May 23, 2019, when Snapchat-turned-YouTube personality Shaun McBride (Shonduras) uploaded 'JENNY FELL OFF THE TRAIL,' a video showing his wife Jenny tumbling roughly 14 feet down a Hawaii hiking path2. The dramatic cut and tearful reflection prompted mass mockery, and Twitter user @boring_as_heck posted, 'Today is another Wife Day on Twitter. In this case it's the classic Cliff Wife'2. New York Magazine covered the incident and formally added Cliff Wife Guy to the growing roster2.

How to Use This Meme

Wife Guy is less a template you post yourself than a label observers stick on you afterward. Someone typically becomes a Wife Guy after a Wife Event, Tom Whyman's term for something a man does online that pivots on his wife or another man's wife3. Common conventions include earnest posts praising a spouse's appearance, dramatic clips featuring a spouse in some kind of peril, or scandals that expose the gap between a curated marriage brand and reality2. The joke often lands when observers add a defining prefix, as in Curvy Wife Guy, Cliff Wife Guy, Elf Wife Guy, or Fake Wife Guy4.

Frequently Asked Questions

Wife Guys

2017catchphraseclassic

Wife Guys are men online who build a public persona around their wives, posting about them so devotedly or dramatically that observers turn each new example into a joke. The archetype crystallized on Twitter in the late 2010s after Robbie Tripp's Curvy Wife post, the ProJared scandal, and Shonduras' Cliff Wife video.

character archetype memes relationship memes twitter memes influencer mockery memes scandal memes

Overview

Wife Guys are men who make themselves internet-famous through things involving their wives, whether about their wives' bodies, dramatic incidents involving them, or scandals that expose their carefully curated devotion2. The character type sits at an awkward intersection of sincerity and self-promotion, with each new Wife Guy usually getting mocked once observers spot the pattern.

By May 2019 the archetype was defined enough that a Twitter user could post 'Today is another Wife Day on Twitter' and readers knew what that meant2. The Outline's Tom Whyman argued that being a Wife Guy was less about who you married than about what he called a 'Wife Event,' something a man did online that pivoted on a wife, whether his own or someone else's3. The label was applied backwards to earlier viral moments, turning each new incident into another entry in an ongoing character catalog4.

How It Spread

On July 30, 2017, author Robbie Tripp posted an Instagram tribute to his wife Sarah Tripp, a fashion blogger who ran Sassy Red Lipstick, praising her 'curvy' body and his own attraction to women outside conventional beauty standards4. BuzzFeed wrote up the post approvingly, but Twitter turned on Tripp, with users mocking the low bar of a man being applauded for finding his own wife attractive4. Tripp went on to monetize the viral fame with sponsorships and even a music video where he rapped about 'curvy' women, which confirmed his role as 'Curvy Wife Guy'4. In August 2017, Twitter user @i_zzzzzz observed that 'the best days on the internet are the ones where you can refer to the wife guy and everyone knows who you're talking about'3.

The character multiplied in 2019. On February 23, 2019, the person behind the popular Twitter account @ElleOhHell revealed he was a man who had been posing as a female comedian, using photos of his wife as his avatar, and that the couple was divorcing4. In wife guy shorthand this became 'Fake Wife'4. Around the same period, YouTuber ProJared (Jared Knabenbauer) was accused by his wife Heidi O'Ferrall of cheating with fellow YouTuber Holly Conrad and of soliciting nudes from fans, an episode the lexicon labeled 'Elf Wife' for O'Ferrall's cosplay work2.

The archetype hit its peak on May 23, 2019, when Snapchat-turned-YouTube personality Shaun McBride (Shonduras) uploaded 'JENNY FELL OFF THE TRAIL,' a video showing his wife Jenny tumbling roughly 14 feet down a Hawaii hiking path2. The dramatic cut and tearful reflection prompted mass mockery, and Twitter user @boring_as_heck posted, 'Today is another Wife Day on Twitter. In this case it's the classic Cliff Wife'2. New York Magazine covered the incident and formally added Cliff Wife Guy to the growing roster2.

How to Use This Meme

Wife Guy is less a template you post yourself than a label observers stick on you afterward. Someone typically becomes a Wife Guy after a Wife Event, Tom Whyman's term for something a man does online that pivots on his wife or another man's wife3. Common conventions include earnest posts praising a spouse's appearance, dramatic clips featuring a spouse in some kind of peril, or scandals that expose the gap between a curated marriage brand and reality2. The joke often lands when observers add a defining prefix, as in Curvy Wife Guy, Cliff Wife Guy, Elf Wife Guy, or Fake Wife Guy4.

Frequently Asked Questions