Hello there! My name is Trym Stene, and it’s wonderful to connect with you. Believe it or not, I’m the person who created the Dancing Banana Animated Gif meme way back in 1999. It’s quite surreal to think about how much time has flown by since then! I vividly remember working on various GIF animations on my trusty AMD K6-2 350MHz computer. At the time, it felt like cutting-edge technology, although looking back, maybe it wasn’t quite state-of-the-art. Regardless, it was my very first computer, and it opened up an entire universe of possibilities for me as a young person.
Creating content that was lighthearted and brought smiles to people’s faces has always been something I’m passionate about. I genuinely enjoyed crafting these quirky GIFs and sharing them with the online world. I even had a small but dedicated group of followers who I connected with on IRC (Internet Relay Chat). Their feedback and encouragement were invaluable to me as I continued to explore this creative outlet.
Growing up in a rural part of Norway, I was somewhat isolated in terms of finding peers who shared my specific interests. However, instead of being discouraged, this motivated me to become even more imaginative and prolific in my content creation. I drew inspiration from other digital artists who were pushing the boundaries of what was achievable on the early internet.
To bring my GIF ideas to life, I used a user-friendly animation tool called Animation Shop. This software was conveniently bundled with Paint Shop Pro. It was through Animation Shop that the Dancing Banana animated GIF was ultimately born.
Why a banana, you might ask? Well, I was an active participant in various internet forums and online communities. I frequently used emoticons and emojis to better express my emotions and reactions in text-based conversations. The Dancing Banana was, in essence, an extension of this practice—a sort of celebratory, festive emoji that I could use whenever I created something new and felt excited about it. It was a visual expression of joy and accomplishment.
I also experimented with creating other animated GIFs around that time. I recall making an angry toaster and a melting ice-cream cone with large, melancholic eyes. However, none of these other creations resonated with people in the same way as the banana. The Dancing Banana animated GIF, for reasons I couldn’t have fully predicted, gradually captured the hearts and imaginations of internet users across the globe.
Before Flash animations became the dominant trend on the web, I discovered an opportunity through my IRC connections to create GIF ad-banners for a business owner. I eagerly took on this freelance work. Eventually, I began selling my GIF creations to others as well, including a chalkboard-style ad that I sold for 250 Norwegian Krone, which was approximately 25 USD at the time. While that amount might seem modest today, back then, as a young creator, it felt like a really significant achievement and validation of my work.
When Flash animations started gaining mainstream popularity and becoming more technologically advanced, the musical group The Buckwheat Boyz created a Flash version of the Dancing Banana. Crucially, they set it to the now-iconic song, “Peanut Butter Jelly Time.” This combination proved to be incredibly potent. From that point onward, the Dancing Banana animated GIF transcended its humble origins and made various appearances in broader popular culture. This included a memorable cameo on an episode of the animated TV show Family Guy. It remains astonishing to me that this small, personal creation has evolved into such a widespread cultural phenomenon, thanks in large part to the wonderfully collaborative and often unpredictable nature of internet culture.
So, there you have it—a brief behind-the-scenes story of the Dancing Banana animated GIF meme, directly from its creator. I sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed reading this account as much as I’ve enjoyed sharing the journey with you!
