In Memoriam: Lil Bub
On the passing of a great cat
I first met Lil Bub in November of 2012. Although at the time she was one of the two or three most famous cats in the world, she had a quiet grace and humility to her, keeping mostly to herself but projecting a big-heartedness that seemed almost impossible to contain in such a tiny frame. She was professional, amenable, and even affectionate in the context of our work (a photo shoot for an article my colleague and I were writing called Lil Bub’s Day at the Office), and the joyful day we spent celebrating her was thanks in no small part to the mutual love and tenderness that existed between her and her person, Mike.
Bub would go on to greater things — collaborating with Run the Jewels on “Meow the Jewels,” hosting a web series with guests like Steve Albini and Whoopi Goldberg, and working with Andrew W.K. on the semi-autobiographical “Star Party Animal.”
But she was notable, in a dangerous era of excess for Internet-famous cats, for staying true to the values that made us all fall in love with her in the first place, a quiet sweetness, perseverance in the face of genuine adversity (she was born with severe genetic abnormalities that made it difficult for her to walk), and a commitment to the humble but essential task of brightening the days of those who encountered her.
