Charles Ramsey: Ohio "hero" and Internet sensation
"I'm eating my McDonald's, I come outside, and I see this girl going nuts, trying to get out of her house." That's how it all began for Internet's newest celebrity -- Charles Ramsey.
Ramsey is being heralded as a hero after helping rescue Amanda Berry and two other women who had been missing for about a decade. The three women, who disappeared separately when they were in their teens, were being held against their will until Berry's frantic cries for help alerted Ramsey, who helped her escape and alert police.
And, while the Cleveland resident's heroic actions sparked a story that has captured the attention of the entire nation, his colorful personality has made him an Internet sensation.
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"Bro, I knew something was wrong when a little, pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms. Something is wrong here. Dead giveaway," Ramsey said about the rescue in an interview with WEWS-TV.
When asked about the condition of the girls, following their escape from captivity, Ramsey said they were in bad shape.
"Oh no, malnutrition," said Ramsey. " No, no, they didn't just leave FitWorks. No, none of that. No Gatorade or nothing. They look like they haven't been fed in a long time, bro - a long time. They were skinny when they came out of that house, bro."
A dishwasher at Hodge's, a restaurant in downtown Cleveland, Ramsey says he has been living in his Seymour Avenue home for about a year, but never suspected anything was wrong with his neighbor Ariel Castro.
"I barbecue with this dude. We eat ribs and whatnot, listen to salsa music, you see where I'm coming from? Not a clue that that girl was in that house, or anybody else was in there against their will."
Ramsey went on to say of Castro "You got some big testicles to pull this off bro, cause we see this dude everyday. I means everyday."
"He's somebody you look, then look away. He's not doing anything, but the average stuff. You see what I'm saying? There's nothing exciting about him. Well, until today."
On the web, anything "Ramsey" has caught fire. His name has become an international trending topic on Twitter, the videos of his post-rescue interviews have all gone viral and a Facebook fan page titled "Charles Ramsey - Ohio Hero" has sprouted up.
Even the audio of his expletive-filled 911 call has the online world buzzing.
In an interview with WKYC, Ramsey downplayed his new hero status, saying he's just a man. "I'm American, I'm a human being."
