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Post by Deleted on May 1, 2014 11:09:25 GMT -5
There's a good chance a few of you received a copy of "The True Story of Smokey Bear" when visiting National Parks or the local Firehouse as a child. Published by Western Publishing Co. in 1960, the comic has been reprinted for several decades (and has never been altered, except for the ads) and distributed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.  The comic features the "origin" of Smokey the Bear, and is based on the 1950 Lincoln National Forest fire as recounted by an American Eagle. The quality of the book retained the Gold Key standard, sporting a nice glossy painted cover and artwork that matched the publisher's top comics of the time. And for what was supposed to be a public service announcement, the story was great.  So to my surprise, my six-year old daughter came home after a field trip to a National Park the other day, and lo and behold she was given the same exact Smokey Bear comic I had been given when I was six. I was floored, and could not believe they were still giving out the same exact comic! After some research, I pulled out the old one I had been given and my daughter and I had a blast comparing the two and reading the story. She loved it. If you no longer have this comic or never read it, you can read the full story here. Who else had this comic as a kid? Thoughts? |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on May 1, 2014 11:14:22 GMT -5
I had it. And probably have a couple copies around the house that the kids have picked up over the years.
My brother works for the Department of the Interior. He answers letters to Smokey and Woodsy Owl.
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on May 1, 2014 15:37:12 GMT -5
It never occurred to me that Smokey would have an origin. That's all sorts of awesome.
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Post by Deleted on May 1, 2014 15:59:36 GMT -5
It never occurred to me that Smokey would have an origin. That's all sorts of awesome. Haha yeah and the funny thing is that as a six-year old kid I thought Smokey was real, and that he was actually wearing jeans and walking around on two feet stomping out forest fires. |
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Post by Cei-U! on May 1, 2014 16:18:25 GMT -5
As some of you may recall, I listed Four Color #932, the source of the USFS giveaway, as one of my all-time favorite comic books during our very first Classic Comics Christmases. I also had a copy of the giveaway at a very young age, though in my case it came as part of the membership packet for the Smokey Bear Fan Club. My copy was read to shreds before I was out of elementary school. It was decades later when I found the Four-Color on sale at a con and, overwhelmed by nostalgia, snapped it up. What you may not know is that #932 features two additional stories or that this was the fifth of eight issues of Four Color featuring Smokey (the others being #653, 708, 754, 818, 1016, 1119 and 1214), all of which reside near the top of my want list.
Smokey the Bear, Smokey the Bear
A-prowlin' and a-growlin' and a-sniffin' the air
He gets to a fire before it starts to flame
And that's how Smokey, Smokey got his name
Cei-U!
I summon the real Ursa Major!
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Post by MWGallaher on Jan 4, 2022 9:34:28 GMT -5
Mandela Effect? Was it Smokey the Bear, per Dell 1960:  ...or Smokey Bear, as of Dell's 1969 printing?  |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jan 4, 2022 10:45:26 GMT -5
Mandela Effect? Was it Smokey the Bear, per Dell 1960: ...or Smokey Bear, as of Dell's 1969 printing? His actual name is Smokey Bear. No "the." This is per my brother who used to answer kids letters to Smokey for the Forest Service. |
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Post by MWGallaher on Jan 4, 2022 10:48:51 GMT -5
His actual name is Smokey Bear. No "the." This is per my brother who used to answer kids letters to Smokey for the Forest Service. Well, sure, your brother in this reality would say that... |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jan 4, 2022 11:11:00 GMT -5
I don't know, man. 'Smokey Bear' is what you call cops.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jan 4, 2022 11:15:10 GMT -5
I don't know, man. 'Smokey Bear' is what you call cops. That came from state troopers tendency to wear Smokey Bear hats. |
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Post by Prince Hal on Jan 4, 2022 11:48:05 GMT -5
I don't know, man. 'Smokey Bear' is what you call cops. That came from state troopers tendency to wear Smokey Bear hats. You ain't lived till you've seen the Rhode Island State Police in all its sartorial resplendency...  They have more uniforms than your kid's GI Joe doll...  |
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Post by tonebone on Jan 4, 2022 12:19:32 GMT -5
That came from state troopers tendency to wear Smokey Bear hats. You ain't lived till you've seen the Rhode Island State Police in all its sartorial resplendency... They have more uniforms than your kid's GI Joe doll... Second guy from the left.... If he sauntered up to my car window I would admit to anything, even stuff I never did. He looks pretty imposing in that uniform. And, as I told my mom a million times, it's not a doll, it's an ACTION FIGURE. |
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Post by tonebone on Jan 4, 2022 12:23:59 GMT -5
There's a good chance a few of you received a copy of "The True Story of Smokey Bear" when visiting National Parks or the local Firehouse as a child. Published by Western Publishing Co. in 1960, the comic has been reprinted for several decades (and has never been altered, except for the ads) and distributed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The comic features the "origin" of Smokey the Bear, and is based on the 1950 Lincoln National Forest fire as recounted by an American Eagle. The quality of the book retained the Gold Key standard, sporting a nice glossy painted cover and artwork that matched the publisher's top comics of the time. And for what was supposed to be a public service announcement, the story was great. So to my surprise, my six-year old daughter came home after a field trip to a National Park the other day, and lo and behold she was given the same exact Smokey Bear comic I had been given when I was six. I was floored, and could not believe they were still giving out the same exact comic! After some research, I pulled out the old one I had been given and my daughter and I had a blast comparing the two and reading the story. She loved it. If you no longer have this comic or never read it, you can read the full story here. Who else had this comic as a kid? Thoughts? I had this as a kid. They also had multiple copies in school, over various years. The copy I had was from probably around 1980 or so, and it had the red box around the title. |
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Post by Prince Hal on Jan 4, 2022 12:27:27 GMT -5
You ain't lived till you've seen the Rhode Island State Police in all its sartorial resplendency... They have more uniforms than your kid's GI Joe doll... That's what he's counting on... |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jan 4, 2022 13:37:16 GMT -5
(...) ... um. So these guys aren't just extras from Verhoeven's Starship Troopers? |
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