"Keyboard Cat" has died nearly a decade after becoming an internet sensation and YouTube star.
The feline, whose name is Bento, shot to fame after its owner, Charlie Schmidt, uploaded a video showing his pet in a T-shirt pawing an electronic piano in 2007, Newsweek noted.
While the cat featured in the original clip was not Bento, a newer version of the video with Bento went viral and celebrity status ensued, resulting in official Facebook and Twitter accounts created for Bento, which garnered thousands of followers.
Now those fans are in mourning after Schmidt revealed news of the cat's death in a video tribute on social media.
In a statement to Newsweek, Schmidt confirmed Bento's death, noting that the cat was "such a loyal and talented companion."
He shared a close relationship with his cat.
"If I was on the computer, [Bento] was on the computer," he told The Washington Post. "If I was in the shower, he'd be on the bath mat. It's just like a legend, 'Bento will not be without Charlie.'"
There has been some confusion regarding the timeline of the video clip being released, in 2007, and the death of eight-year-old Bento, but this was clarified by The Guardian, which noted that another cat appeared in the original video clip.
The first video that began circulating was shot in 1984 and featured a cat called Fatso, who died in 1987.
Bento featured in a second 'Keyboard Cat' video as well as several other projects including a parody of Miley Cyrus' Wrecking Ball.
Speaking about the videos, Schmidt said he decided to film them to relieve boredom, adding that he was not "aiming for anything."
He was surprised when the "low-resolution, poorly produced, badly framed [and] improvised" video took the internet by storm.
Despite downplaying the video's intrigue, Schmidt said Bento possessed a unique set of skills.
"Trust me, not every cat in the world can do this or everybody would be and there would be a million Keyboard Cats," he said.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.