Whether we like it or not, most of us will become our parents one way or another - from something as small as the way they laugh or maybe something as profound as the same career path. Some of us crumble at the notion that we could share similarities with our less hip parents - but for the kids of the parents in these vintage photos, the levels of cool exuding from their older generation are something they can only hope to aspire to.

Bored Panda presents a new photo list of times kids came across old photos of their parents only to realize their parents were cooler than them. So scroll down below to check out some old-school photo treasures and upvote your favs. Maybe it will inspire you to ask your own cool parents to show you what they were like when they were young!

#1

My Favorite Picture Of My Mom. She Was The Only Girl In Her Welding Class In 1984. Byrd High School, Shreveport, Louisiana

My Favorite Picture Of My Mom. She Was The Only Girl In Her Welding Class In 1984. Byrd High School, Shreveport, Louisiana

lizzyhaze Report

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#2

My Mom Flew Helicopters For The Army In The 80s

My Mom Flew Helicopters For The Army In The 80s

completedesaster Report

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#3

My Mother Doing A Handstand On Two Skateboards (Circa 1980's)

My Mother Doing A Handstand On Two Skateboards (Circa 1980's)

Nirokie Report

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#4

My Dad (Front) In Vietnam In 1971. He Didn’t Know This Photo Existed Until I Came Across It Randomly On The Internet. He Cried When He Saw It

My Dad (Front) In Vietnam In 1971. He Didn’t Know This Photo Existed Until I Came Across It Randomly On The Internet. He Cried When He Saw It

strawberrygnome Report

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#5

My Dad At His First Job At Nasa!

My Dad At His First Job At Nasa!

sonokoroxs Report

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#6

Chuck Norris Pinned By My Dad

Chuck Norris Pinned By My Dad

LanaDelRayquaza Report

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#7

My Dad And His Veterinarian Mother, With Their Pet Lion Which They Raised For Two Years, 1959

My Dad And His Veterinarian Mother, With Their Pet Lion Which They Raised For Two Years, 1959

ryanb99 Report

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#8

My Dad Diving Off The Starboard Fin Of A Submarine And Into The Pacific Ocean In The Summer Of 1983

My Dad Diving Off The Starboard Fin Of A Submarine And Into The Pacific Ocean In The Summer Of 1983

MightyCornDog Report

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#9

My Mom Holding Myself Whilst Writing Her Master Thesis On The Macintosh Classic II (1991)

My Mom Holding Myself Whilst Writing Her Master Thesis On The Macintosh Classic II (1991)

FrenchFriesGate Report

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#10

My Friends Parents Are Celebrating Their 47th Anniversary This Week. Here's Them Being Badasses In The 70's

My Friends Parents Are Celebrating Their 47th Anniversary This Week. Here's Them Being Badasses In The 70's

DoubleM515 Report

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#11

My Mom Was A Homicide Detective In The 80s

My Mom Was A Homicide Detective In The 80s

gymbez Report

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#12

My Mom, Age 15, Smoking At An Allman Brothers Concert With A Broken Arm. Watkins Glen '73

My Mom, Age 15, Smoking At An Allman Brothers Concert With A Broken Arm. Watkins Glen '73

TheCKBandit Report

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#13

My Parents In 1972 In Front Of Their Store In Paris

My Parents In 1972 In Front Of Their Store In Paris

RobinThomass Report

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#14

1969 Vietnam: My Father’s Version Of A Selfie Before Selfies Were A Thing

1969 Vietnam: My Father’s Version Of A Selfie Before Selfies Were A Thing

mastiffmum Report

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#15

My Dad A Zoo Keeper In 1992

My Dad A Zoo Keeper In 1992

He was the only one at the time who could call the rhinos by name and they would come running like dogs. They enjoy a scratch behind the ear like dogs too.

8_Bit_Zombies Report

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#16

My Father Who Shipped His Bike Over To England And Rode All Over Europe On It - 1973

My Father Who Shipped His Bike Over To England And Rode All Over Europe On It - 1973

lionhearted828 Report

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#17

My Mom In The Police Academy, 1984

My Mom In The Police Academy, 1984

hellooooo3 Report

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#18

My Mom As A Red Cross Volunteer In WWII. She Had Her Own Radio Show In The Pacific Theater To Counteract Tokyo Rose. 1944

My Mom As A Red Cross Volunteer In WWII. She Had Her Own Radio Show In The Pacific Theater To Counteract Tokyo Rose. 1944

Saved_by_punctuation Report

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#19

My Dad's Graduation Photo. Circa 1970's

My Dad's Graduation Photo. Circa 1970's

Mr_Goldfish0 Report

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#20

My Pregnant Mom At Gunpoint Trying To Get Home - May 1969 Berkeley

My Pregnant Mom At Gunpoint Trying To Get Home - May 1969 Berkeley

Leo_nardo Report

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#21

Mom Spinning Records At Kwkh, Shreveport - 1977

Mom Spinning Records At Kwkh, Shreveport - 1977

JonSmith12345 Report

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#22

Pretty Rad Picture Of My Dad When He Was 22, In Texas, Taken In 1987. That Ghettoblaster Is Epic

Pretty Rad Picture Of My Dad When He Was 22, In Texas, Taken In 1987. That Ghettoblaster Is Epic

peter_nincompoop33 Report

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#23

My Mom Fled Saigon In 1975. By The 90s, She Had Joined The US Air Force

My Mom Fled Saigon In 1975. By The 90s, She Had Joined The US Air Force

cryptolingo Report

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#24

One Of My Favorite Photos Of My Parents In The Late 70s

One Of My Favorite Photos Of My Parents In The Late 70s

manderly808 Report

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#25

My Hilarious Father (With The Magazine) And My Grandfather, Grandmother, And Uncle At His Bar Mitzvah In 1972

My Hilarious Father (With The Magazine) And My Grandfather, Grandmother, And Uncle At His Bar Mitzvah In 1972

JasonPlatz Report

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#26

My Father Halfway Through Motorcycling Across Africa - 1980s

My Father Halfway Through Motorcycling Across Africa - 1980s

civil55 Report

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See Also on Bored Panda
#27

My Dad Taking A Smoking Break While Fighting Saddam Husseins Army In The 80s

My Dad Taking A Smoking Break While Fighting Saddam Husseins Army In The 80s

iAmReginaPhalange Report

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#28

My Dad Fishing... On A Nuclear Submarine 1966

My Dad Fishing... On A Nuclear Submarine 1966

vbisbest Report

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#29

My Mom In The Hospital After Giving Birth To My Sister. Canada 1978. Smokes And Roasted Chicken

My Mom In The Hospital After Giving Birth To My Sister. Canada 1978. Smokes And Roasted Chicken

rookdanger Report

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