Brian Williams’ tall tale of Iraq war becomes art meme

"NBC Nightly News" anchor Brian Williams has come under heavy criticism after admitting on Wednesday that his story of being aboard a helicopter that came under fire during the Iraq war isn't true.

On social media, the controversy has taken on several comic dimensions, one of which is Williams' image being added "Forrest Gump"-style to famous paintings depicting key moments in history.

One meme that is making the rounds on Twitter shows Williams in Leonardo Da Vinci's fresco "The Last Supper." Cultural journalist Ed Fuentes tweeted the image, adding: "After he said more about remembrance, he passed the bread as I recall."

Other memes show Williams' face superimposed on George Washington's head in the painting "Washington Crossing the Delaware" and on the body of a warrior in the Steuben painting "Battle of Poitiers," which depicts the medieval battle between Frankish and Moorish forces.

The last two images were tweeted by writer Andrew Klavan, who wrote: "I thought something looked fishy about Steuben's 'Battle of Poitiers'."

The art-related memes are being tweeted with the hashtags #BrianWilliamsMemories and #BrianWilliamsWarStories.

Williams read a statement of apology on Wednesday's broadcast of "NBC Nightly News" in which he said he wasn't in a helicopter that came under fire during the Iraq war, as he previously claimed.

"I was instead in a following aircraft," Williams said. "This was a bungled attempt by me to thank one special veteran."

In addition to art-related memes, Williams' face has been superimposed on images of famous events in American history, such as the landing on the moon and Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington.

Twitter: @DavidNgLAT