Which artist is most closely associated with this famous bear? He's a big, burly guy with a beard and a true love for trees. Now he says, Only you can prevent wildfiresthe idea being that forest fires can be lit and controlled, but wildfires cant. Whether in print, on television, or as a sound bite, the bear pointed at and/or spoke sternly to the public, stating the now famous slogan while emphasizing the responsibility of each individual, Only YOU can prevent forest fires.. In 1950, when a black bear cub was rescued from a burning forest in New Mexico, he was named Smokey and sent to Washington, D.C., where he lived at the National Zoo. In both forests and parades, Smokey wears his signature blue jeans, western buckle, and Stetson-style hat. Word spread rapidly, and more crews reported to help. (Called Smokey the Bear to improve the rhythm, it led to decades of confusion over the characters name.) Letter from Wm. "Basically, the mountains in the Southwest you can almost think of them as caskets of fuel," Allen says. He had severely singed paws, yet he survived the inferno that devoured the forests of the Capitan Mountains. SIA2019-000471. SIA2019-000019. Tree-ring samples are collected from every corner of the world and meticulously studied and stored in Swetnam's lab. A mate, Goldie, was introduced with the hope a young Smokey would continue the tradition of the famous living symbol. Follow his history here through memorabilia and print, radio and TV messages. Terms of Use Of course, neither of these activities required the face of a bear mascot. An official website of the United States government. Albert Staehle, noted illustrator of animals, worked with this description to paint the forest fire prevention bear. I guess I only find it weird on smokey because hes made to look like a bear/man hybrid and he just looks like a hairy beefy guy with no shirt. It was a mobilized civilian effort in support of the war effort to protect valuable trees. Please read Smithsonian Libraries and Archives', The Smithsonian in Games and Other Formats, National Museum of African American History and Culture, National Air and Space Museum and Udvar-Hazy Center, Smithsonian American Art Museum and Renwick Gallery, Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution Building, the Castle, Sign up for email updates on our amazing collection. When Smokey Bear talks, I want to hear someone like Pedro Pascal or Donald Glover. We anthropomorphize at our peril.". The USFS needed a no-nonsense figure capable of being both likable and imposing. That was a mistake. Because this bear survived a terrible forest fire and won the love and imagination of the American public, many people mistakenly believe the cub was the original Smokey Bear, but in reality he did not come along until the advertising symbol was almost six years old. Children in particular were excited to see and meet Smokey, although many imagined him as the talking, humanlike cartoon they saw in print and on their television screen. What can visitors expect on a visit? Federal law prohibits individuals from using the Smokey Bear likeness, which is administered by the National Association of State Foresters, the USDA Forest Service, and the Ad Council. "It burned more than 40,000 acres in the first eight hours," says Swetnam, the tree ring expert. 73-3882. Another good essay was written by Jim Carrier for High Country News. Explore Smokey Bear's History. Smokey Bear came to us by necessity. In 1947, Smokey Bear's slogan was changed to the . Smokey the Bear, as his name suggests, is a human-like bear and his purpose was simple, teach the American people the dangers of fire and how to prevent such destruction. Charles Little, in an editorial called "Smokey's Revenge," states that "in many circles the bear is a pariah. Yes, you read that right. Smokey, lets get you a new wardrobe, update your message, and give you a new voice to say it. The ursine ranger replaced Bambi, the original face of the Forest Service. In other words, he's Liam Neeson with brown fur and a "certain skill set" that leaves arsonists quaking in their boots. It encouraged citizens nationwide to make a personal effort to prevent forest fires. The CFFP would need to find an animal symbol that would belong to them, and nothing seemed more fitting than the majestic, powerful (and also cute) bear. "The choice is not whether or not these forests burn," Armstrong says. How a beloved character may have helped fuel catastrophic fires", A collection of Smokey Bear-related media, Inventory of the Rudolph Wendelin Papers, 19302005, National Agricultural Library's Smokey Bear Collection, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Smokey_Bear&oldid=1164853731, Public service announcements of the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2020, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2019, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0, This page was last edited on 11 July 2023, at 13:45. To celebrate Smokeys recentanniversary, famous (but still older) men were hired to voice the bears new emoji: Stephen Colbert, Al Roker, and Jeff Foxworthy. Disney loaned Bambi to the Ad Council for one year for their fire prevention effort prior to Smokey Bear. And Smokeys official motto changed subtly in 2001 to reflect this. Fortunately, Bill Piper, owner of the Piper Aircraft Company became aware of this dilemma, and offered a Piper Cruiser to serve as Smokeys private airplane. Smokeys popularity made him an effective spokesbear for the Forest Services fire prevention message, which helped dramatically reduce fire on Americas public lands. All kidding aside, there's a lot you may not know about the United States Forest Service's top dog that is, top bear, Smokey. He is a member of the Society of American Foresters. There is good fire and bad fire, thats what his message is, says Babete Anderson, a representative with the Forest Service. "And another, and another, and another, and another, and another.". Here are some little-known facts about one of the most influential (and hairy) critters of the 20tand 21stcenturies, Smokey Bear. According to New Mexico'sEnergy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department, "the park is a true celebration of Smokey's legacy" designed to preserve the memory of this beautiful bear and the lessons he taught about forest conservation and fire safety. They got it wrong. So the next few rings show normal growth. Then when the U.S. Forest Service was formed, its marching orders were "no fires.". Inspired by the power of a charismatic cartoon, the War Advertising Council dreamed up Smokey in his rangers hat and dungarees. Two years later, Forest Service artist Rudy Wendelin. As one of the world's most recognizable characters, Smokey's image is protected by U.S. federal law and is administered by the USDA Forest Service, the National Association of State Foresters and the Ad Council. Letter from Mrs. Jerry D. Rider requesting to see Smokey Bear receive his peanut butter sandwich, August 11, 1974, Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 365, Image no. As a living icon of the Forest Service, Smokey Bear inspired a massive fan following. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/smokey-bear-1341823. So, zookeepers at the National Zoo took matters into their own hands. Still, Pyne dreams of a replacement. Forty percent of campers are millennials, and now theyre sharing their outdoor interests with their own children. It wasnt until 2001, after 57 years of repeating almost the same mantra, that the Ad Council and the U.S. Forest Service updated his dogma from Only YOU can prevent forest fires to Only YOU can prevent wildfires. This one-word edit was made to recognizethat fires can burn in other natural areas besides forestsa fact that anyone living in the grasslands of eastern Montana, the Alaskan tundra, or the sage-steppe Southwest already knew from experience. But it was not until the 1965 campaign and the work of Smokey artist Chuck Kuderna that Smokey's image evolved into the one we know today. The "Bambi" poster was a success and proved the success of using an animal as a fire prevention symbol. But when Swetnam holds up one, he points to something else: fire scars. Caring for the cub was by no means a first for the family. Smokeys original catchphrase was "Smokey Says Care Will Prevent 9 out of 10 Forest Fires." *Editor's Note, July 19, 2019: The original version of this piece called 2018 the deadliest wildfire season in history. In fact, it was the deadliest wildfire season in California history. He can address how living in the wildland-urban interface complicates fire suppression. After many years of popularity, the original Smokey died in 1976. "Smokey has had a little work done. Timber was a primary commodity for battleships, gunstocks, and packing crates for military transport. Artist Albert Staehle was asked to paint the first poster of Smokey Bear. Its also totally impractical. Ray Bell, a New Mexico game warden, and his family nursed the 5-pound cub back to health. Whimsical final words about the beloved bear aside, Smokey Bear made his final resting place in the Smokey Bear State Historical Park, per the USFS. They don't want Smokey's message out anymore. He sounds like hes been in too many fires himself, says Thompson. Smokey Bear, the U.S. Forest Service's symbol of fire prevention, turns 75 on Friday. "Instead, over time they became the major habitat for free-burning fire.". When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Now, a catastrophic blaze, once an unusual occurrence, could be set off by the heat from a lightning strike. Fire-dependent Ecosystem With Periodic Fire, Fire-dependent Ecosystem Without Periodic Fire, How to Maintain and Extinguish Your Campfire, Official Smokey Bear Licensees and Products, National Association of State Foresters Store, Smokey Bear Costume - Job Hazard Analysis. Forest Service officials searched for ways to make citizens who visited our National Forests more conscious of the serious damage that could be caused by haphazardly tossing away a match or not ensuring a campfire was completely extinguished. They're black marks, about the size of a fingernail clipping, left by fires. Doesn't quite roll off the tongue, does it? From the bottom of his blue jeans to the top of his ranger hat, the oddly anthropomorphic physique to the gruff voice. And five of the largest wildfires in Colorados history were recorded in 2018. Smokey Bear. In the spring of 1942, a Japanese submarine fired shells onto an oil field in Southern California near Los Padres National Forest. It's the only time Smokey Bear ever has a middle name. Nevertheless, "all this created confusion, but the name of the fire prevention icon is and always has been Smokey Bear.". His remains were returned to Capitan and rest beneath a stone marker in Smokey Bear Historical State Park. It was estimated that Smokey Bear saved more than $16 million in timber that did not burn, public recreation areas that were unharmed by fire, and watersheds that were not scorched. Over the past several years, even as fewer fires have struck the Southwest, they've burned more land. He was created on Aug. 9, 1944, in a collaborative effort between the U.S. Forest. Smokey Bear just turned 70 years old, and his image is getting a reboot, reports CBS News' Ben Tracy. MIAMI, April 5 (AP)Albert Staehle, creator of Smokey the Bear, died of a stroke today at the age of 74. SIA2019-000473. Smokey Bear, the character, was created by the Forest Service in August 1944 as the lead symbol in its Wildfire Prevention Campaign. Enter the world's first "spokes-ursus.". He attracted famous visitors like Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy but was never domesticated, as reported by FSNatureLive. Get inspired with adventure films, event replays, series, and more. A New Mexico Department of Game and Fish ranger heard about the cub when he returned to the fire camp. However, Disney had only loaned the characters to the campaign for one year. When the campaign was created, Walt Disney loaned "Bambi" for use on a poster for one year. Nationwide, tenmillion acres burned during the 2015 fire season. Growth rings tell how old the sectioned tree was. During Smokeys golden age, we needed his plea to be simple and forceful. A few months after American soldiers landed on the beaches of Normandy, France, Smokey Bear was created to protect forests for the war effort. Furthermore, and perhaps even more importantly, fires started by careless citizens within the U.S. had become a growing problem. Now we are faced with getting his wildfire prevention message to an increasing number of people who live in and around these areas. The poster also featured the rather clunky message, "Care will prevent 9 out of 10 fires." In 1971, the zoo acquired Little Smokey, who also was born in the Lincoln National Forest but was not the victim of fire, though he was orphaned and rescued from starvation by the Forest Service. Experts use this technique, called skeleton plotting, to help them cross-date tree-ring samples. By cross-dating different tree-ring samples from a given area, researchers can get a clearer picture of how a forest burns. "The first time here, back in the 1600s, it looks like, and it created a wound there. Have Scientists Found the Source of Out-of-Body Experiences? The warden thought dedicating the cub to fire prevention and wildlife conservation made sense. The clear and present danger of deadly forest fires reached the national spotlight. U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region/Wikimedia Commons, National Agricultural Library/Wikimedia Commons, Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department. Mr. Staehle developed the Smokey character in 1945 for a . Two years later Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins, the songwriting team behind Frosty the Snowman, wrote an ode to Smokey. David Gilkey/NPR Your Privacy Rights The crew removed the cub from the tree, and a rancher among the crew agreed to take him home. Long after retiring, he created the art for the Smokey Bear's 40th anniversary commemorative U.S. Postage stamp. They're the size of dinner plates. Smokey is the longest-running public service ad campaign, first appearing on a poster on Aug. 9, 1944. Fortunately, this worked in the USFS's favor. Smokey Bear Trivia . Smokey Bear's story has a real-life component. While . Compounding the error was a 1955 Little Golden Book, which also referred to the famed icon as "Smokey the Bear." Our Carelessness: Their Secret Weapon, said a poster with Hitler peering down on a blaze. Although Smokey's time with the Bell family proved fleeting, Bell spent his life speaking about his experiences with the bear. In need of serious veterinarian intervention, the cub flew to Santa Fe, where a local veterinarian carefully treated and bandaged his wounds. Smokey Bear was created in 1944, when the US Forest Service and Ad Council came up with the idea of a bear as the symbol for promoting forest fire prevention (US Forest Service 2014). He weighed eleven pounds when he arrived in Washington, D.C. and grew to just over 300 pounds in adulthood. Rudy Wendelin, an artist for the Forest Service, began producing a tremendous quantity of Smokey Bear art in various media for special events, publications, and licensed products to promote the fire prevention symbol. For starters, wood production saw a massive uptick through the Timber Production War Project. If people could be urged to be more careful, perhaps some of the fires could be prevented. The Smokey Bear concept has matured into a cottage industry of collectibles and educational material on fire prevention. Transporting Smokey to the National Zoological Park proved to be a challenge. He took refuge in a tree, and while managing to stay alive was left badly burned. He's had a balloon at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and even graced a Walt Disney short film. The was added when songwriters penned Smokeys tune. The Historyist. He knows how to bring the pain when it comes to those with a penchant for smoking in forests or improperly extinguishing campfires. On August 9, 1944, the Forest Service authorized the creation of the Smokey bear character and on October 10 the first poster by artist Albert Staehle was released showing a bear pouring a bucket of water on a campfire and saying "Care will prevent 9 out of 10 fires.". Illustrator Albert Staehle drew the first Smokey Bear. But since Smokey's always been one to tell it. Letter from Billie Hamlet of the NZP to Brian Sheridan, October 15, 1976, Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 365, Image no. The USFS recently worked with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to create a new jingle correcting the bear's name. Some were disappointed upon viewing a real bear, and questioned why he was not in his usual uniform! Smokey Bear has had a few different official catchphrases over the years, including "Smokey Says-Care Will Prevent 9 out of . According to Smokey Bear, they only survived by "lying face down on a rockslide for over an hour as the fire burned past them." Smokey was created to speak to a generation shaped by fear of war. Our national approach to fire has swung from an unequivocal put it out to understanding the value of let it burn.. Government officials were relieved that the shelling did not start a forest fire but were determined to provide protection. Smokey Bear's task is becoming increasingly difficult. But could he really put the fear of God in campers with sloppy fire practices? Smokey ties fire suppression to good citizenship, explains Catriona Sandilands, an environmental studies professor at York University in Toronto. But over the years, confusion came to accompany this name as some people started referring to him as "Smokey the Bear." He took refuge in a tree that became completely charred, escaping with his life but also badly burned paws and hind legs. He says to save forests from total annihilation and the wildlife and water supplies they protect you have to set some fires and let some natural fires burn. The USDA Forest Service organized the Cooperative Forest Fire Prevention (CFFP) Program in 1942. One of the most popular Smokey products is a set of posters known as his educational poster collection. The original Piper Pacer that transported Smokey to Washington DC was destroyed in an unfortunate aviation accident. But since Smokeys always been one to tell it to us straight, he can handle the truth: Smokey, you need a makeover. In years past, it was a challenge for his message to reach traditional visitors to the forest. hide caption. Todayits critical to manage forests for healthy ecosystems. "I mean, they are extraordinary. (The Zoo is celebrating Smokeys 75th with a special exhibit.) Press Release on Smokey Bear Arrival at National Zoo, July 1950, Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 326, Image no. He created the first poster of a cartoonish bear pouring water on a campfire. More than 8,000 fires burned nearly two million acres and cost hundreds of millions of dollars to suppress. Soon, letters poured in inquiring about the bear's well-being. Fear grew that more attacks would bring a disastrous loss of life and destruction of property. Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 365, Box 21, Folder 5, Image no. banners, and other event materials created by the Ad Council. Yet, the mascot pre-dates the orphaned bear cub, according to the Forest Service. Today, you can still use this zip code to write to him. The Forest Service distributed more than 30,000,000 pieces of fire prevention materials annually during the period 19441976. But some fire-prevention experts think its impossible to separate Smokey from the old notion that its up to us to tame fire. As the longest running public service advertisement in U.S. history, it's safe to say the USFS has done an excellent job so far (via the NFPA). By 2011, the average number of acres burned by wildfire each year had dropped from 22 million in 1944 to just 6.6 million. Not only must the costume be protected from vandalism and theft, but in a strangely poetic twist when it's time to retire it, cremation is the only authorized method. In years past, it was a challenge for his message to reach traditional visitors to the forest. Sure, Bambi had the "cute" factor going. He needs a voice that a younger, more diverse audience can relate to. Created in 1944, the Smokey Bear Wildfire Prevention campaign is the longest-running public service advertising campaign in U.S. history, educating generations of Americans about their role in preventing wildfires. Fortunately, three years later the USFS settled on the much catchier, "Only YOU can prevent forest fires!"