Who Is Norman Taylor?
Norman Taylor is the elderly man in the viral pond video who tells two fishermen to leave and says the police should “lock ’em up.” The footage was posted by TikTok user @bird28thegr8 in late August 2025 and became the State Property — also called Lock ’Em Up — meme. In October 2026 it trended again, largely because AI videos started replacing Taylor with other people, characters and pets.
Key facts
| Full name | Norman Taylor |
| Role in the video | The man who orders two fishermen off a pond |
| Platform of origin | TikTok, uploaded by @bird28thegr8 |
| First posted | Late August 2025 |
| Meme names | State Property · Lock ’Em Up · “State?” |
| Catchphrases | “State?” · “Lock ’em up” · “Hit the road, dude” |
| Second wave | October 2026, driven by AI replacement videos |
What happens in the video
Two men are fishing at a pond. An older man walks up and tells them the spot is not public. The fishermen push back on the idea that it is state property. Taylor rejects the claim, says the land is private, and adds that someone telephoned him and told him the police should lock them up. He then tells them to hit the road.
Nothing dramatic happens — no argument escalates, nobody is arrested. That is a large part of why the clip works as a template: it is a single, complete, self-contained confrontation with two clean punchlines.
Why the words “state property” belong to the fishermen
The meme is named after the phrase the fishermen use, not after anything Taylor says. They argue the spot is state property; he argues it is private. Most explainers keep the phrase in quotation marks for that reason, and most caption jokes invert it — putting “state property” on the thing that is obviously, absurdly private.
How the meme evolved
- Late August 2025 — original clip posted on TikTok.
- August 2025 — lip-dub versions appear; the dialogue is re-recorded over the footage.
- Early September 2025 — the clip is cut into a green-screen template, so anyone can drop themselves into the scene.
- 11 September 2025 — Know Your Meme catalogues the entry as confirmed.
- October 2026 — second wave, dominated by AI videos that swap Taylor for other people, characters or pets.
- 14 October 2026 — Know Your Meme updates the entry to record the resurgence.
The October 2026 wave is an AI wave
The revival is not a re-run of the 2025 lip-dubs. The most-shared versions are generated clips: the same pond, the same two lines of dialogue, but a different face in the driver’s seat — a friend, a celebrity, a cartoon character, a dog. That format is what pushed the meme back into search and into AI answers in October 2026.
If you want the practical version of that format, the step-by-step guide covers the photo requirements, the scene choices and the download.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Norman Taylor?
Norman Taylor is the elderly man in a viral video who tells two men fishing at a pond to leave, saying the spot is private property. He repeats that someone called him and said the police should “lock ’em up.” The footage was posted by TikTok user @bird28thegr8 in late August 2025 and became the State Property meme.
What does he actually say?
He says the men are on private property, questions whether they think it is state property, and reports that someone told him the police should lock them up. “State?” and “lock ’em up” are the two lines the meme is built on.
Is Norman Taylor the same person as Trey Parker?
No. Trey Parker is a name that circulates in tags and search suggestions near this clip, but the man in the video is identified as Norman Taylor. The two names get confused because they appear beside the same footage.
Why did it come back in October 2026?
Because AI video tools made it trivial to replace the man in the clip with anyone — or anything. The dialogue and location stay fixed, the subject changes, and the joke lands again.
Can I make one with my own photo?
Yes. Upload one clear photo, pick the scene, pay $9.90 once, and download the vertical MP4. There is no subscription.
Sources
- Know Your Meme — Lock ’Em Up / State Property (entry added 11 September 2025, updated 14 October 2026).
- Know Your Meme explainer — What Is The ‘State Property’ Meme And Who Is ‘Norman Taylor’? (14 October 2026).
This page describes publicly reported facts about a viral video. It is not affiliated with Norman Taylor or with the original uploader, and it makes no claims about the events beyond what those sources report.
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