Fast-talking Fred is the toast of YouTube

SMOOTH TALKER: 14-year-old Lucas Cruikshank has managed to make some real cash off of his YouTube fame.

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To say that Lucas Cruikshank is a minor celebrity merely reflects the fact that, at the age of 14, he's still a couple of years away from being legally able to drive, vote or get married.

But in the free-for-all world of YouTube, age - like gender, race, social rank and even talent - plays no part in the alchemy that determines success or failure in this corner of the worldwide web.

Adults might not get it, but children have clearly taken to Lucas's character Fred - a six-year-old "with anger management issues" who lives with his alcoholic mother and whose absentee father is doing time in jail.

With almost 250,000 "subscribers", Lucas's YouTube channel is now the site's fourth most subscribed of all time.

The weekly episodes, which have been running since May, include Fred gets Detention, Fred goes to the Dentist and Fred stalks Judy. All have been viewed over a million times times each, with two collecting over five million views each.

The clips, each of which runs for about three minutes, are solid PG-rated material and the sharpest word that Fred is heard to utter is "frickin".

Fred's voice is "chipmunked", meaning it plays back in the higher pitched, squeaky tones made famous by Alvin the Chipmunk and the Lollipop Guild Munchkins in the Wizard of Oz.

And all of this, with the exception of a few shots and off-camera voices, has been written, filmed and edited by Lucas at his family home - which he shares with his parents and seven siblings.

If it all sounds low brow, that's because it is. But somehow that has translated into many, many million of hits and a growing fan base.

Lucas has also scored a five-figure sponsorship deal with the makers of a wireless messaging device called Zipit - so he's augmenting his virtual fame with some real cash.

And, with a manager on board, he's using he new-found fame to audition for movie roles and pitch ideas for TV series with the knowledge that he's a flag-bearer for the demographic they crave to reach.

While many boys emerging from their tween years drift into the monosyllabic age of deep introspection and rebellion, the videos made by this teenager from Nebraska reflect a garrulous sense of childish fun.

Like all YouTube stars, however, Lucas faces the challenge of negotiating the path from viral video wunderkind to mainstream must-see.

- with Tom Burton

- © Fairfax NZ News