Six Things to Know about Smokey Bear on His Seventy-Ninth Birthday

It’s one of my most enduringly favorite moments from The Simpsons: Visiting a National Park, Bart approaches a talking statue of Smokey Bear, and . . . well:

While I absolutely do not condone kicking anything at all in a public park—city, state, national, or otherwise—it’s still a pretty funny gag. And that was essentially where my relationship with Smokey Bear began and ended until a couple of weeks ago.

But then I heard that our colleagues at Oklahoma State Parks—in conjunction with the fine folks at the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry—were planning a birthday party for Smokey Bear, and I found my curiosity aroused. Who knew Smokey had a birthday? What else don’t I know about this long-standing anti-wildfire mascot, so gentle and true?

First, to dispense with the church announcements: This Saturday, August 12, Sequoyah State Park will host Smokey Bear’s Birthday Celebration in honor of the seventy-ninth birthday of everyone’s favorite ursine park ranger. I’m planning on attending, as are a lot of my colleagues, for a morning of great fun. There’ll be games with prizes, food trucks, face painting, guided hikes, and activities in the nature center, all in celebration of our lifelong friend who’s dedicated to helping us prevent wildfires. And full disclosure: Smokey’s birthday actually is August 9, but we’re celebrating on Saturday so more people can come to Sequoyah for the party.

So now, because I love pursuing my curiosity and sharing what I find, here are six things I didn’t know—and maybe you didn’t either—about Smokey Bear.

Smokey Bear. No "the" required.

Smokey’s official name is Smokey Bear—though you wouldn’t be remiss if you continued placing an errant the in his name. You see, after his initial introduction to the American public in the 1940s, Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins wrote a song about Smokey, and to maintain the rhythm, they rechristened him Smokey the Bear. Here’s Eddy Arnold singing it in 1952:

Bugs Bunny. Tony the Tiger. SpongeBob SquarePants. Muffin Buffalo. Much-loved cartoon mascots all (except that last one; Google it), but to our knowledge, none of them was based on an actual animal. Not so with Smokey, whose story intersects with that of a very real cub. Smokey the mascot was created in 1944. But his fame grew when in 1950, a wildfire raged through the Capitan Mountains in New Mexico, and while firefighters were trying to get it under control, they spotted a bear cub without its mother. They had to take cover to avoid the flames for awhile, and when they emerged, they found the little bear—who they named Smokey after the mascot—badly burned, having tried to take cover by climbing a tree. The cub was removed from the tree and taken to Santa Fe, where its wounds were treated. News of the miraculous rescue spread. Soon, Smokey was safely ensconced at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., where he lived until his death in 1976.

During his many years at the National Zoo, Smokey became the living embodiment of the Smokey Bear ideal. He received so much mail from admiring Americans that the United States Postal Service had to create a ZIP code just for him. When he died, he was returned to the Capitan Mountains in New Mexico and buried there—at the newly christened Smokey Bear Historical Park.

This is perhaps one of my favorite facts, because Smokey is such an American icon: Smokey Bear is a black bear, species name Ursus americanus (USA! USA! USA!). He’s got some cousins here on this continent, however: North America also is home to grizzly, brown, and polar bears. That family reunion must have a gigantic honey and salmon bill. Which leads us to . . .

Okay, so not in the sense that you might see him pulling up a chair next to you the next time you’re eating at nonesuch, but American black bears are dedicated omnivores, eating insects, fish, roots, berries, plants, and—of course—honey. And while Smokey’s grizzly cousins may clock in at nearly a ton, Smokey’s scale reads right around three hundred pounds. Not bad, considering that when he was born, he weighed about the same as a loaf of bread.

The most important thing about Smokey is his mission: Preventing wildfires. So I’ll just reiterate: Please take care when traveling in our public lands. Whether in a state or national park, national forest, wildlife preserve, or other public land, please do everything you can to prevent wildfires. The United States Department of the Interior has an incredibly helpful list of things to do and remember while camping or otherwise adventuring outdoors. Following these guidelines will help make sure our public lands are safe and pristine for future visitors.

Now, I’m even more excited to celebrate Smokey’s birthday this Saturday. If you can make it to Sequoyah State Park, I’ll see you there. I might even try to make you laugh by saying, “You chose you, referring to me. The correct answer is you.”

Written By

Nathan Gunter

A sixth-generation Oklahoman, Weatherford native, and Westmoore High School graduate, Nathan Gunter is the magazine's editor-in-chief. When he's not editor-in-chiefing, Nate enjoys live music, running, working out, gaming, cooking, and random road trips with no particular destination in mind. He holds degrees from Wake Forest University and the University of Oklahoma. He learned how to perform poetry from Maya Angelou; how to appreciate Italian art from Terisio Pignatti; comedy writing from Doug Marlette; how to make coconut cream pie from his great-grandma; and how not to approach farm dogs from trial and error. A seminary dropout, he lives just off Route 66 in Oklahoma City.