What is the Killdozer rampage and how’d it become a meme?

September 17, 2024

The Killdozer meme refers to a June 2004 incident in which American welder and auto repair shop owner Marvin John Heemeyer modified an armored bulldozer and went on a rampage through Granby, Colorado. The title of the meme is a portmanteau of “kill” and “bulldozer.”

armored bulldozer — What is the Killdozer rampage and how’d it become a meme?

On June 4th, 2004, Marvin Heemeyer drove his armor-plated bulldozer to various locales in Granby, Colorado. In the process, Heemeyer damaged the office of a local newspaper, the Town Hall, and other buildings. The rampage lasted two hours and seven minutes. Fortunately, no one was harmed during the incident, but after lodging the bulldozer in the basement of a store, Heemeyer took his own life.

The term “killdozer” arose from a February 2nd, 1974, science-fiction horror film by the same name in which a bulldozer becomes possessed by alien life and kills people.

Why did Marvin Heemeyer go on a ‘Killdozer’ rampage?

The Killdozer incident, it is thought, was brought on by a zoning dispute between the Granby town council and Heemeyer. This dispute, which had been going on for years, was evidently regarding a construction permit for a concrete batch plant near his muffler shop.

Heemeyer believed town officials refused to take his side and thus threw out his lawsuits. In addition, the officials fined Heemeyer for not having a septic tank, as well as other city code violations. On a check to the city to cover the fines, Heemeyer at one point wrote “Cowards.”

In retaliation for the saga, Heemeyer descended upon Granby with intent to maim and kill, doing over $5 million worth of damages.

How did the Killdozer rampage become a meme?

Killdozer first started its rise to memedom when the footage first appeared widely on the internet on August 9th, 2006. That day, YouTuber eexlebots uploaded old news footage of the incident, titling it “Killdozer Helicopter News Footage.” The clip featured “some of the crazy things this man has done over the past hour.”

On June 4th, 2015, Redditor rodion_kjd submitted a video of the incident to /r/videos for the 11th anniversary of the incident, titled “It’s Killdozer Day. Never forget.”

Two years later, Facebook user Tyler Macfarlane published a post in honor of the rampage’s 13th anniversary, commemorating Heemeyer as “the last great American folk hero.” The post received over 113k shares, 94k reactions, and 9.4k comments over the next year.

In the first non-anniversary tribute, YouTuber Qxir uploaded a video titled “KILLDOZER: How a Man Made His Own Tank” on March 18, 2018.

Then later that year, the anniversary was celebrated again, with Redditor Casualbat007 reposting a video of the incident to /r/videos. It received over 29k points and 3.3k comments over two days.

At this point, memes of the incident were commonplace. Unfortunately, these memes were used to often express anti-government sentiments from extremists. Either way, Killdozer had officially achieved internet immortality.

Killdozer gets a Netflix documentary

In March 2019, Tread, a documentary film about the Killdozer event directed by Paul Solet premiered at South by Southwest. On February 28, 2020, the film hit limited theaters and Netflix.

The 89-minute film has a 90% score on Rotten Tomatoes. At the moment, the film can be viewed for free on YouTube.

What happened to the Killdozer?

Sadly, Killdozer was completely dismantled in 2005. Granby town leaders voted unanimously to take the vehicle apart and sell it for scrap metal, mainly so no one would attempt to snag pieces of it as a souvenir.

However, the recent 20th anniversary of the Killdozer reveals that its legacy remains strong on the internet.