Bill Gates Is Totally Unrecognizable In His Mugshot From The '70s

If you're a longtime internet user, there's one particular photo of tech billionaire Bill Gates that's likely crossed your screen at one point or another. We're, of course, referring to his infamous mugshot, which was taken following a run-in with the law in December 1977 — a mere two and a half years after Gates founded Microsoft with BFF Paul Allen (not to be confused with the "American Psycho" character of the same name played by notoriously awful gift-giver Jared Leo). And, given just how long ago the incident in question occurred, it should come as no surprise that the Gates we know today looks like almost an entirely different person from the young man who was hauled into an Albuquerque jail cell less than a year into the Jimmy Carter presidency.

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First of all, judging by the smile on his face, the then-22-year-old Gates wasn't really sweating what ended up being an overnight stay in a holding cell. It's also clear that the booking photos were taken when the future tech billionaire was barely old enough to call himself an adult, long before Father Time caught up with him and the color began fading from his hair. Still, several decades later, Gates himself seems to have a good sense of humor about the whole thing. 

As many have already noticed, the default profile picture from the 2010 edition of Microsoft Outlook actually bears a striking resemblance to the co-founder's mugshot, though neither Gates himself, nor anyone else at the company, has confirmed whether or not that was intentional (but we can hope). But what exactly did the young man do to land himself behind bars in the first place?

Look, we're not lawyers, but we feel pretty confident saying that even if there was absolutely no malintent, driving a car that isn't yours without a license isn't something that's generally going to go over super well with the cops. And that is precisely the lesson Bill Gates learned the hard way when he was booked on that fateful December night in 1977. As the former Microsoft CEO recalled, his wallet was empty (in more ways than one) as he sat behind the wheel of a car that belonged to his co-founder, Paul Allen. 

That's when the police lights started flashing behind him. "I was out driving Paul's car," Gates told TIME in 2007, adding, "They pulled me over, and I didn't have my license, and they put me in with all the drunks all night long." That being said, the tech billionaire's ultimate takeaway from the incident may surprise you, even if it is very on brand for him. As Gates reasoned, "And that's why the rest of my life, I've always tried to have a fair amount of cash with me. I like the idea of being able to bail myself out." 

Of course, if he were to ever find himself in a similar situation again, it's safe to say he would be totally covered. Obviously, Microsoft became a massive success, with its legendary co-founder being ranked as the richest person in the world for the majority of the time between 1995 and 2017. And, while he's no longer even in the top 10 as of this writing, Bill Gates' net worth is still hardly anything to sneeze at.