Little Smokey: The True Story of America's Forest Fire Preventin' Bear
Little Smokey: The True Story of America's Forest Fire Preventin' Bear is a short film from 1953 released on 16mm. It is held in the Prelinger Archives collection.
A bear cub found after a forest fire is taken to the zoo and becomes Smokey Bear. Stresses the importance of fire prevention.
01:47:38:07 Deer in the woods.
01:47:41:08 VS little black bears, possibly cubs, climb in tree.
01:47:58:24 VS cute little black bear cub.
01:48:19:02 Wild uncontrolled forest fire raging; sun visible through smoke clouds; VS forest fire raging.
01:48:58:04 Great shot camera pans up from top of burning trees in forest fire to dark smoke clouds with bright round circle, sun penetrating black clouds; VS forest fire.
01:49:40:10 Aftermath of forest fire; charred trees, dead charred deer on ground being eaten by flies.
01:50:17:10 VS cute bear cub taken out of New Mexico Dept. of Game & Fish plane; cub handed to women who takes the cub to Veterinary hospital to be treated; Veterinarian hands over bear cub on leash to policeman.
01:51:05:25 VS police officer in cowboy hat plays with cute little bear cub.
01:51:57:09 VS Cute little bear cub, Smokey the Bear, is presented on leash in Washington D.C.; VS smokey the bear on a leash in the rain.
01:52:48:20 VS Little bear cub smoke the bear on leash being welcomed home in New Mexico by large crowd.
01:53:33:00 Little bear cub smokey in harness stands on hind legs as man tries to put hat on him which the cub bites.
01:53:49:28 VS man dressed in black cowboy outfit visits smokey the bear as a full grown bear in cage.
01:55:06:03 Artist outside of smokey the bear s cage drawing a pastel caricature of smokey as he is known today in jeans and forest ranger s hat holding a shovel.
01:55:30:04 four teenagers look at Smokey the Bear ad on side of truck Only you can prevent forest fires! ; Smokey the Bear ad in bus or trolley car This Shameful Waste Weakens America! Remember only you can prevent forest fires ; boy scouts look at Smokey the Bear ad, CU kids reading Smokey the Bear comic books.
01:55:49:19 Sheet music to Smokey the Bears song; camera pulls back to classroom; VS kids school children sing Smokey the Bear song from desks.
From Wikipedia:
The living symbol of Smokey Bear was an American black bear who in the spring of 1950 was caught in the Capitan Gap fire, a wildfire that burned 17,000 acres (69 km2) in the Capitan Mountains of New Mexico. The cub was in the Lincoln National Forest. Smokey had climbed a tree to escape the blaze, but his paws and hind legs had been burned. He was rescued by a Game Warden after the fire.
At first he was called Hotfoot Teddy, but was later renamed Smokey, after the mascot. A local rancher who had been helping fight the fire took the cub home with him, but he needed veterinary aid. New Mexico Department of Game and Fish Ranger Ray Bell took him to Santa Fe. His wife, Ruth, and their children, Don and Judy, cared for the cub. The story was picked up by the national news services and Smokey became an instant celebrity. He and the Bells were featured in Life, cementing his star status. Soon after, Smokey was flown in a Piper Cub to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., where he lived for 26 years. Upon his death on November 9, 1976, Smokey's remains were returned by the government to Capitan, New Mexico, and buried at what is now the Smokey Bear Historical Park.| Little Smokey: The True Story of America's Forest Fire Preventin' Bear | |
|---|---|
| Produced by | U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Forest Service |
Production companies | U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Forest Service |
| Distributed by | U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Forest Service |
Release date | 1953 |
Running time | 12:25 |
| Language | English |
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