Family cashing in on 'David After Dentist, If you spend any time on the Internet, you've no doubt seen "David After Dentist," the YouTube video of a woozy 7-year-old boy in the back seat of a car, struggling to understand the effects of anesthesia.
The viral clip has been viewed almost 54 million times and gave rise to the catchphrase, "Is this real life?" It was the second most-watched video of 2009, according to YouTube, trailing only Susan Boyle's appearance on "Britain's Got Talent."
It's also been an unexpected bonanza for the boy's Orlando, Florida-area family, who, despite some criticism that they exploited their child by posting his image online, has turned the one-minute, 59-second home video into a lucrative sideline.
"We embraced it," said the boy's father, David DeVore, who shot the famous clip on a Flip camera from the car's front seat. "We said we will make a family adventure out of this and see what happens. Nothing has happened that we felt uncomfortable doing."
He would not say exactly how much the family has earned from the video but said it's in the "low six figures."
DeVore gave a presentation this week at the South by Southwest Interactive festival in Austin, Texas, where he explained what the family's life has been like in the 13 months since the video went viral.
"Well, I'm David DeVore, also known as David's dad, or the idiot that posted a video of his son on YouTube," he told the audience as he began his talk. DeVore then played a video greeting from David, who is now 9 years old and looks noticeably older than he does in the famous video, which was shot in May 2008.
"I'm sorry I couldn't be there with you in Austin," young David says in the new video. "I have school, you know."
DeVore said he shot the original video for two reasons: His wife couldn't attend the dental surgery, so he wanted to show her that David was OK after having an extra tooth removed. Also, he wanted to show David, who was nervous about the procedure, that the anticipation is often the worst part.
"So much for that idea," DeVore said.
He first posted the video on Facebook, but not all his relatives were members of the social-networking site, so he uploaded it to YouTube during the last weekend in January last year, never thinking anyone beside friends and family would watch it.
By the next Tuesday, it had been viewed 3 million times. The video has since spawned dozens of parodies, including "Chad After Dentist" and "David After The Divorce."
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Family cashing in on 'David After Dentist'
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