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About
Schrute Facts is an image macro series inspired by Dwight Schrute, a character from American version of the comedy television series The Office. The overlaid text typically begins with an idiom on the top line, and is followed by the word “false” accompanied by a refutation of the idiom based on a literal interpretation, as a type of Buzzkilling.
Origin
Played by actor Rainn Wilson[7], the character of Dwight Schrute[12] is known for being a know-it-all with poor social skills. He often corrects statements by saying the word “false” and invalidating what was said. This trope began in the first season and by the third season, was critiqued by another character in a cold open of an episode.
The first image macro referencing this trope was posted to Quickmeme[1] on April 15th, 2011.
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Spread
This macro was posted to Reddit[2] the same day it was created and subsequently received 1,334 up votes. A single topic Tumblr[5] was created on April 19th, but switched addresses in October.[8] The blog Runt of the Web[4] posted a collection of the image macro series in a post titled “Dwight Schrute Knows Best” on July 19th. That month, a series was also shared on eBaum’s World.[11] In August, a series was shared on Uproxx[9] and the next month Schrute Facts were posted on Buzzfeed.[14]
As of February 2012, the Quickmeme[3] page has almost 4000 submissions. The Memegenerator[10] page has nearly 500 submissions. There is also an active Tumblr tag[13] with instances of the image macro.
Dwight Spinoff
In January 2012, plans for a Dwight Schrute spinoff series leaked online after The Office executive producer Paul Lieberstein was reportedly looking into the idea.[15] Planning to premiere for the midseason of 2013[16], the show would focus on Dwight’s life on Schrute Farms and would possibly include more of his family members.[17]
Notable Derivatives
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Search
Search queries for “schrute facts” began prior to the creation of the image macro series in February 2010, which may have been sparked by a trivia game about Dwight Schrute on the website Sporcle.[6] Both “schrute facts” and “schrute meme” began rising in April 2011, the same month that the first image macro was published.
External Links
[1] Quickmeme – first Schrute macro
[2] Reddit – Some Schrute Love
[4] Runt of the Web – Dwight Schrute Knows Best
[5] Tumblr – Not Schrute Facts
[6] Sporcle – Can you name the facts about Dwight Schrute?
[7] Wikipedia – Rainn Wilson
[9] Uproxx – Meme Watch: Schrute Facts Debunk Pointless Expressions
[10] Memegenerator – Dwight Schrute
[11] eBaum’s World – The Dwight Schrute Meme Gallery
[12] Wikipedia – Dwight Schrute
[13] Tumblr – Posts tagged “Schrute Facts”
[14] Buzzfeed – The Best Of The ‘Schrute Facts’ Meme
[15] Paste – NBC Preps Dwight Schrute Spinoff
[16] TVSomniac – The Office Spin Off: Rainn Wilson As Dwight Schrute Will Get His Very Own Show
[17]MTV – Dwight Schrute Spin-Off From ‘The Office’ In Works