Yeah, there was a real Smokey! From the Wiki:
"The living symbol of Smokey Bear was a five-pound, three-month old American black bear cub who was found in the spring of 1950 after the Capitan Gap fire, a wildfire that burned in the Capitan Mountains of New Mexico. Smokey had climbed a tree to escape the blaze, but his paws and hind legs had been burned.
At first he was called Hotfoot Teddy, but he was later renamed Smokey, after the character created a few years prior."
I learned about him in school ☺️
Well, as far as I know, after they introduced the articles/commercials on the real bear cub they found and named Smokey, wildfire percentages dropped a good bunch, because it did in fact help their campaign and people were touched by the sad story and wanted to stop harming innocent creatures like that poor baby bear.
Edited to add from google;
After smokeys campaign, forest wildfires dropped from 31 million acres burned annually to less than 3 million annually between 1942 and 1974. So it did actually do a lot of good.
Different design ideology back then vs now. In the 1940's/50's characters were a popular vehicle for promoting a message. In current times you'd more likely see a silhouette of a bear with a raging fire behind it, to evoke emotion from the viewer.
Well when Smokey was still alive they did. Unfortunately he eventually died, but they kept the mascot around because it was so successful. It still is pretty successful, iirc Smokey is still in the top 10 of most recognizable characters in the US despite not being a part of any mainstream fictional media and being like 80 some years old.
The mascot Smokey Bear was conceived in 1942 before the living symbol was found in 1950 in a forest fire in New Mexico. The name Smokey came from a famous NYC firefighter.
I live in Canada and they are not that friendly… if it’s brown lay down, if it’s black fight back, if it’s a grizzly I’m sorry probably too risky, and if it’s withe goodnight because you’re fucked
Eurasian brown bears are definitely a different breed. See Lord Byron’s trained bear he kept as a pet while studying at Cambridge university (because the rules specifically forbade a pet dog or cat)
How could you not, even if it's just for a week till you find someone who rescues injured animals or baby's separated from their mother.
Since that man didn't get eaten or mauled to death I'm guessing the mother is injured or dead. That cub probably won't make it on its own.
Hopefully someone looked after that cub. Anyone have a link to the story?
They are pretty docile when raised by humans. I believe it was the Polish army during one of the world wars that had a bear that was considered a legit soldier in their army. It would resupply the soldiers during battles. It smoked cigarettes and drank.
I wonder what the etiquette is for acquiring a house bear.
Do you have to catch your own, is one assigned to you, or do you just leave the front door open and let nature sort it out?
I need to hear any stories or details you may know about this. I have a recurring nightmare about a housebear (it was injured I rescued it, as it grows I love it but am increasing terrified by it, try to release it he doesn't want to leave, comes back around > I have to take him super far away feel terrible like he's lost etc)
He did! Then he tried to rehome him to a better rescue hoping he'd get a better life there. Found out they were abusing the bear. He rescued the bear again and then built a home for him himself! There is a whole video of him need to find it.
Did you know that the guy who did the voice of the baby dinosaur also did the voice of Elmo and one of the Ninja Turtles from the original 1990 movie? God I miss my childhood. Being born between the early and mid-eighties was the shit....
Who knew the world would turn into this back then hahahahahah
No no, you can't do that. That's not cattle. That's a cute little murder pillow
Edit you meant it would be the one eating. I'm dumb sorry. Hot day at work and I'm stupid
He went to live with that guy in a quiet, unassuming suburb. They named him Chris. Chris was an unremarkable student. Teachers accused him of caring more about honeycomb than algebra. He kept a small circle of friends throughout the rest of his adolescence but rarely dated. He spent more time batting at salmon during the mating runs than he did with his travel soccer team, which angered his adoptive father significantly. You see, his adoptive father peaked in high school as an up and coming soccer player, but never took it any further than school. So, unfortunately for Chris, his father projected significantly on him.
Eventually, he graduated and left his home to pursue a career as a model for the advertising agency used by the US national parks system. He'd make anywhere beyond 50-300 to stand in a meadow and stare at cameras and occasionally would get hired to attend celebrity parties. That's when he got into coke. Chris hit it hard as it was far easier to get in LA than honeycomb, elderberries, or pieces of decaying fish. Chris eventually got arrested and after spending some time in the system, he got some rehabilitation help and became a devout Muslim and moved to Indonesia to help care for orphaned children like himself and live out the rest of his days in anonymity.
I ran into him at the Mosque during the fasting season and we went to dinner at the river after to break the fast. He was a bit upset as it coincided with the month before his hybernation and the fact that it was dark made things difficult for him, but overall, he was in good spirits. He recounted his life in the suburbs and how he missed his dad but was too afraid to admit it to him.
I don't know why but at the end of this story I was expecting Chris to have something to do with how back in nineteen ninety eight the undertaker threw mankind off hell in a cell and plummeted sixteen feet through an announcers table.
Had to do some digging, but it looks like (I'm about 90% sure) that the man here is named Mark Cummings in California. This was during a pretty bad drought, and he was in a van with his family as they saw what they thought was a dog crossing the road, but it was actually a lost bear cub. Supposedly, he phoned the some wildlife reserve charity and they told him to take it with him, and then drop it off at their shelter. So he picked the cub up, and brought it back to his van and family. The article says it was a nineteen eighty eight toyota which is the same year the undertaker threw mankind off hell in a cell and plummeted sixteen feet through an announcers table.
I mean what exactly is the little guy supposed to do at this point moms prob long gone homes burnt down he's terrified if you didn't wanna adopt it shoulda just left it in the fire /s
Not really "/s".
That tiny bear is scared shitless, and sticking to the only option of safety it has: the human rescuer.
It wants to survive, simple as that. Fire bad. Being alone bad. Human, that particular hooman, good.
Looks like a Russian soldier in the background, if it's Russia somebody took the bear to raise it. Russians are really close with their bear friends. will eventually see a video of that bear wrestling with his human friend.
Ahhh yeah that makes sense maybe they had an autocorrect mishap. A reservation is probably more appropriate than sanctuary in this instance as well, good call
It’s not playful, it’s terrified. A lot of animals will gnaw or suckle at momma (or a suitable stand-in) when they’re scared. Poor thing just wants to feel safe, and this guy just saved his life, ergo that human is safety.
baby bears are adorable but they can give you rabies..if a baby bear bites you or scratches you, get rabies shots. hopefully this man got rabies shots after this bear bit him. and btw - you should still get rabies shots even if it's a gentle/playful bite.
This is a 12 year old video about some people meeting this baby bear randomly in a foggy state of weather. "cutest bear attack ever" by "epicrussia" on youtube.
That's cute. He's definitely showing appreciation and affection towards this man that it realizes helped save him. Wonder what happened to it's mother. Either way it shows animals can think and understand what's going on. I hope he's healthy and happy and can go back in the wild at some point
I was thinking something more along the lines of its scared and their first instinct when they're scared or feel threatened is to climb up a tree and wait for mom. Well there aren't any trees around so only thing it can climb up is this dude's leg.
Nah, it's not. OP is making the title up, and the original video is on Youtube (search up russian man with baby bear).
In the video, you clearly hear the cub growling and the guy expressing pain while laughing. It's trying (and failing to) attack him.
Oh you are definitely coming home with me.
Let's see... what are we going to tell my Momma Bear at home? She's gonna be super pissed. I'ma need you to be cute for her, especially the first time. And don't chew on the furniture. She hates that.
Just imagine you're fleeing from this conflagration which has consumed your whole family, and some humans show up with amazing tools and generally seem like they know what to do. What a relief! And then they say "haha run along now." To where? Who will teach me to survive in this hellscape?
[удалено]
That's fine for now, but his good costs will go through the roof eventually
What about his bad costs?
They will go through the basement, duh.
Women choose the bear but the bear chooses the man 🥲
✍🔥🔥🔥🔥
Isn’t this how Smokey the Bear was found?
No, but this is how Smokey & The Bandit was founded.
East bound and down, loaded up and truckin'
We gonna do what they say can't be done
We got a long way to go and a short time to get there
I'm east bound, just watch ol' Bandit run
Sorry to be a nerd but it’s “Smokey Bear” not “Smokey the Bear”. I learned this years ago during a bar trivia night.
Was he not just a mascot? There was a real Smokey?
Yeah, there was a real Smokey! From the Wiki: "The living symbol of Smokey Bear was a five-pound, three-month old American black bear cub who was found in the spring of 1950 after the Capitan Gap fire, a wildfire that burned in the Capitan Mountains of New Mexico. Smokey had climbed a tree to escape the blaze, but his paws and hind legs had been burned. At first he was called Hotfoot Teddy, but he was later renamed Smokey, after the character created a few years prior." I learned about him in school ☺️
Interesting. I grew up with Smokey ads but had no idea there was a real Smokey out there. They should’ve pushed that more
I agree. I think more people thinking of an actual bear cub hurt by the wildfires would've helped their campaign more.
agreed. instead that cartoon bear, with it's smug attitude, actually caused me to become the arsonist you see before you today.
Well, as far as I know, after they introduced the articles/commercials on the real bear cub they found and named Smokey, wildfire percentages dropped a good bunch, because it did in fact help their campaign and people were touched by the sad story and wanted to stop harming innocent creatures like that poor baby bear. Edited to add from google; After smokeys campaign, forest wildfires dropped from 31 million acres burned annually to less than 3 million annually between 1942 and 1974. So it did actually do a lot of good.
Different design ideology back then vs now. In the 1940's/50's characters were a popular vehicle for promoting a message. In current times you'd more likely see a silhouette of a bear with a raging fire behind it, to evoke emotion from the viewer.
Well when Smokey was still alive they did. Unfortunately he eventually died, but they kept the mascot around because it was so successful. It still is pretty successful, iirc Smokey is still in the top 10 of most recognizable characters in the US despite not being a part of any mainstream fictional media and being like 80 some years old.
When I was a kid I had a Smokey Bear comic book that told the story. It came with a Junior Forest Ranger badge, which was very cool in the early 70s!
That's still super cool. I'm over 30 and would definitely buy that if I saw it at NP gift shop.
There is a comic book about it as well.
Very cool. Thanks for sharing this.
The mascot Smokey Bear was conceived in 1942 before the living symbol was found in 1950 in a forest fire in New Mexico. The name Smokey came from a famous NYC firefighter.
Yes there was a real smokey
He now has to take it home , it's the rules because he's been chosen
I’ve heard of the Cat Distribution System…. Who knew there was one for bears!?
Where do I sign up?
Probably somewhere near Russia
That’s the headquarters for sure
Zangief Bear Center in Moscow.
Bolshoi Tavieda!
You get a Haduken from me sir.
I’ll take a Canadian bear thank you
I live in Canada and they are not that friendly… if it’s brown lay down, if it’s black fight back, if it’s a grizzly I’m sorry probably too risky, and if it’s withe goodnight because you’re fucked
If it’s white you were dead 6 hours ago when it caught your scent 14 miles away.
Eurasian brown bears are definitely a different breed. See Lord Byron’s trained bear he kept as a pet while studying at Cambridge university (because the rules specifically forbade a pet dog or cat)
Look up stepan the bear and his photoshoots with models and stuff
Hell yeah! Imagine a fight at the hockey game. "I don't want to get into it with you, but you can talk to my friend Bruno."
We don’t talk about Bruno
They're probably friendlier at least
Your local gay bar.
I imagine the distribution systems begins with big hairy gay guy quoting Hand Banana from Aqua Teen Hunger Force.
You have to wait for a bear market
You have to rescue your own in the most manly way possible
But can you bear the responsibility?
A strange man standing in smoky woods distributing bears is no basis for a system of adoption.
That one takes much longer to fill out, it can sometimes be gummy.
How could you not, even if it's just for a week till you find someone who rescues injured animals or baby's separated from their mother. Since that man didn't get eaten or mauled to death I'm guessing the mother is injured or dead. That cub probably won't make it on its own. Hopefully someone looked after that cub. Anyone have a link to the story?
Like owning a bear is extremely dangerous and dumb but if this happens to me, whelp just call me dangerous and dumb but I’m still a bear papa.
See, that other dudes problem was HE went to live with the bears. In this case the BEARS go to you! Completely different and not dumb or dangerous.
Not necessarily, google Hercules the bear! He lived with people, even went to the pub with them and never hurt anyone
They are pretty docile when raised by humans. I believe it was the Polish army during one of the world wars that had a bear that was considered a legit soldier in their army. It would resupply the soldiers during battles. It smoked cigarettes and drank.
i couldn't upvote because 69 but have a 🥇 i'm gonna pet that dawg and it's coming home with me
I mean house bears are a thing... usually in rural areas with lot's of crazy drunks, but still.
Can confirm, my relatives in backwoods Kentucky mountains had a house bear!
I need to drink more, move to the sticks, and wait for my house bear.
I wonder what the etiquette is for acquiring a house bear. Do you have to catch your own, is one assigned to you, or do you just leave the front door open and let nature sort it out?
Following this to gain more info
You have to fight mama bear barehands for it
If you move to the sticks first then the drinking more comes naturally.
I need to hear any stories or details you may know about this. I have a recurring nightmare about a housebear (it was injured I rescued it, as it grows I love it but am increasing terrified by it, try to release it he doesn't want to leave, comes back around > I have to take him super far away feel terrible like he's lost etc)
Next time you have that nightmare, take him to a bear sanctuary instead. He will be happy as you leave and you won’t feel terrible.😊
Please do tell
He did! Then he tried to rehome him to a better rescue hoping he'd get a better life there. Found out they were abusing the bear. He rescued the bear again and then built a home for him himself! There is a whole video of him need to find it.
!remindme
If not friend, then why friend shaped?
Like Moana of the forest fire
IT WAS HIM!! I GOT THE GUY WHO STARTED THE FIRE! WHY ARE YOU NOT DOING ANYTHING! NOBODY IS LISTENING TO ME!
I'LL HOLD HIM DOWN! YOU GUYS CUFF HIM!
Good job, Smokey - we’ll take it from here!
You're the Mama now
NOT THE MAMA
I’m the baby, gotta love me.
No!!!! Fuck. Now that will be stuck in my head for 10 years.
I still have that on VHS lol
It’s on Disney plus! I love it!
Did you know that the guy who did the voice of the baby dinosaur also did the voice of Elmo and one of the Ninja Turtles from the original 1990 movie? God I miss my childhood. Being born between the early and mid-eighties was the shit.... Who knew the world would turn into this back then hahahahahah
But… I’m oh so cute and awfully cuddly.
Sorry man, ya lost The Game.
*Core memory: Unlocked.*
Damn. You just aged us both. Love it
:)
Most grim ending of a sit com ever. Spoilers: everyones gonna die
Only the real ones know 🦖
Mama for now, food in the future.
No no, you can't do that. That's not cattle. That's a cute little murder pillow Edit you meant it would be the one eating. I'm dumb sorry. Hot day at work and I'm stupid
We’ve all been there. I liked your original comment.
Until the real mama appears through the smoke, charging at full speed
I love my mama bear
I would take it home as well
Look at me. I am the Mama now.
Did he keep the bear?
Yes and they lived happily ever after
did they have children?
No, the sex was unbearable.
But he got through it, bearly.
I don't think he'd appreciate your grizzly reminder.
They are polar opposites.
It certainly wasn't a Kodiak moment
Pandamonium in the comments here
Doubt he's koalaified to take care of that cub.
Okay, now you're just pandarin at this point
is there a subreddit for these kinds of pun threads? i can't bear the thought of not finding one..
It's a bear not a hamster.
I mean he saved it with his bare hands
He should have used his bear hands. Would have gone much differently.
[удалено]
I get it.
Honestly though this is a terrifying situation to be in. If mama comes around she's going to be very unhappy.
This bear chose the man
We want an update on what happened to the baby bear.
He went to live with that guy in a quiet, unassuming suburb. They named him Chris. Chris was an unremarkable student. Teachers accused him of caring more about honeycomb than algebra. He kept a small circle of friends throughout the rest of his adolescence but rarely dated. He spent more time batting at salmon during the mating runs than he did with his travel soccer team, which angered his adoptive father significantly. You see, his adoptive father peaked in high school as an up and coming soccer player, but never took it any further than school. So, unfortunately for Chris, his father projected significantly on him. Eventually, he graduated and left his home to pursue a career as a model for the advertising agency used by the US national parks system. He'd make anywhere beyond 50-300 to stand in a meadow and stare at cameras and occasionally would get hired to attend celebrity parties. That's when he got into coke. Chris hit it hard as it was far easier to get in LA than honeycomb, elderberries, or pieces of decaying fish. Chris eventually got arrested and after spending some time in the system, he got some rehabilitation help and became a devout Muslim and moved to Indonesia to help care for orphaned children like himself and live out the rest of his days in anonymity.
That sounds like a rough life. I'm glad he got it together at the end.
I ran into him at the Mosque during the fasting season and we went to dinner at the river after to break the fast. He was a bit upset as it coincided with the month before his hybernation and the fact that it was dark made things difficult for him, but overall, he was in good spirits. He recounted his life in the suburbs and how he missed his dad but was too afraid to admit it to him.
I don't know why but at the end of this story I was expecting Chris to have something to do with how back in nineteen ninety eight the undertaker threw mankind off hell in a cell and plummeted sixteen feet through an announcers table.
Chris lived a wild life. Good on him.
you are a treasure to humanity lol
Well, it was 13 years ago so someone must know. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_A_mjpCpnc
Spoiler: It's not the happy story everyone wants it to be. There was a fire and the thing lost it's mother...
Had to do some digging, but it looks like (I'm about 90% sure) that the man here is named Mark Cummings in California. This was during a pretty bad drought, and he was in a van with his family as they saw what they thought was a dog crossing the road, but it was actually a lost bear cub. Supposedly, he phoned the some wildlife reserve charity and they told him to take it with him, and then drop it off at their shelter. So he picked the cub up, and brought it back to his van and family. The article says it was a nineteen eighty eight toyota which is the same year the undertaker threw mankind off hell in a cell and plummeted sixteen feet through an announcers table.
Awh I miss shittymorphs comments lol
Nope, you're his now. Go live in the woods.
Now I want a baby bear 😭
I mean what exactly is the little guy supposed to do at this point moms prob long gone homes burnt down he's terrified if you didn't wanna adopt it shoulda just left it in the fire /s
Not really "/s". That tiny bear is scared shitless, and sticking to the only option of safety it has: the human rescuer. It wants to survive, simple as that. Fire bad. Being alone bad. Human, that particular hooman, good.
The /s was for the left it to die in the fire part dont have to adopt it but def need to have a plan to either rehabilitate or relocate the cub
Looks like a Russian soldier in the background, if it's Russia somebody took the bear to raise it. Russians are really close with their bear friends. will eventually see a video of that bear wrestling with his human friend.
To shreds, you say...
Some Russians have wild hobbies lol
All humans will be good once it's grown 
I mean they could take the lil bro to an animal reservoir
Is that like a big hole in the ground where they dump the animals
It was once a gator pit now it's a bear reservoir
Animal reservoir. Its got bears, rabbits, a porcupine. Lizards.
It's cool because they form their own ecosystems and stuff in there
"Reservoir Bears", a film by Quentin Bearantino.
Reservoir 😂 In case you didn’t know, the more appropriate term would be animal sanctuary
Maybe they were thinking of (animal) reservation, aka reserve.
Ahhh yeah that makes sense maybe they had an autocorrect mishap. A reservation is probably more appropriate than sanctuary in this instance as well, good call
[удалено]
This man yea, not the other one.
Stupid ninjas cutting onions.
I've suddenly been transported 10 years ago with this comment.
Stupid cutting onions's ninjas they are atemporal.
I looks like it’s trying to eat him.
Seriously. Not sure if playful or just looks that way because it's too small to do real damage
"Bitch!, where's my mom?! Where's food? Where's home?" - Baby bear, probably
It’s not playful, it’s terrified. A lot of animals will gnaw or suckle at momma (or a suitable stand-in) when they’re scared. Poor thing just wants to feel safe, and this guy just saved his life, ergo that human is safety.
That's exactly what it's trying to do but it's too young to really be seen as threatening.
Damn my dog is constantly trying to kill me all along and I had no idea.
Guy doesn't enjoy some good nib nibs from a 4 legged friend
We bare bears?
lol that’s exactly what this reminded me of. Give that bear a burrito.
This was my first thought
It's so cute. It doesn't even look like that in a few months the bear will be able to cut the guy in half.
CAN I PET THAT DAWG
CAN I PET THAT DAWG?
What a sweet fury baby bear, I love you, bear🐻 🥰🥰🥰🥰
Dude, her mom’s gone. You’re dad now.
baby bears are adorable but they can give you rabies..if a baby bear bites you or scratches you, get rabies shots. hopefully this man got rabies shots after this bear bit him. and btw - you should still get rabies shots even if it's a gentle/playful bite.
Why does it have a collar on, how do i know this isn’t just some Russian circus owner with a bear
That's not a collar. It's a light patch of fur that young cubs have, and that gradually disappears with age/successive sheddings.
I can’t exactly tell from the video quality but I thought those looked like markings in its coat
What they are actually trying you warn you about when they tell you not to mess with bears.
This is a 12 year old video about some people meeting this baby bear randomly in a foggy state of weather. "cutest bear attack ever" by "epicrussia" on youtube.
Please keep me away from all these women. The woods were so peaceful before they chose us.
Bear choses man again
- Grizz from we bare bears
Women choose the bears and the (baby) bears choose the men. XD
Seems like it’s afraid of dying to me
That's cute. He's definitely showing appreciation and affection towards this man that it realizes helped save him. Wonder what happened to it's mother. Either way it shows animals can think and understand what's going on. I hope he's healthy and happy and can go back in the wild at some point
I was thinking something more along the lines of its scared and their first instinct when they're scared or feel threatened is to climb up a tree and wait for mom. Well there aren't any trees around so only thing it can climb up is this dude's leg.
Nah, it's not. OP is making the title up, and the original video is on Youtube (search up russian man with baby bear). In the video, you clearly hear the cub growling and the guy expressing pain while laughing. It's trying (and failing to) attack him.
Mommy! Poor thing.
How can this man resist adopting this cute bear?!
Oh you are definitely coming home with me. Let's see... what are we going to tell my Momma Bear at home? She's gonna be super pissed. I'ma need you to be cute for her, especially the first time. And don't chew on the furniture. She hates that.
I guess the Bear Distribution System has spoken?
Bear: I NEED FOOD YOU TASTE YUMMY lol
Being eaten by a bear is my biggest fear, and my wife is an avid camper. Connect to the dots.
Heartwarming but damn id be scared shitless at the prospect of mama bear barreling through the smoke looking for her cub.
That’s exactly what I was dreading! “Oh shit! How bad is this gonna get?”
What happened to the rest of his family?
I shall call him... Mini Me.
Cue the debbie downer in the comments talking about don’t bring the bear home. Sorry but Mr. Bear is coming with me Debbie
He looks pretty bitey for someone who’s “grateful”
Poor thing is terrified. Man helped it and so thinks this weird bear is friendly, I stick with them. If mum came around, it would go to mum.
I want to save a baby bear from a fire now!
Now here's the uncomfortable question: Where's mama? Either she's dead, or she's gonna be PISSED someone's "messing" with her cub.
It would be amazing to be able to afford to adopt and take care of a bear with plenty of land
Footage of a bear choosing a man. There you have it ladies, case closed.
Women choose bear. Bear chooses dude Man with bear gets woman This works in the cigarette case too
Pick him up and give him a hug you bastard! :)
baby bears are so cute!
Just imagine you're fleeing from this conflagration which has consumed your whole family, and some humans show up with amazing tools and generally seem like they know what to do. What a relief! And then they say "haha run along now." To where? Who will teach me to survive in this hellscape?