Celebrate Smokey Bear's 80th Birthday!

A lot has changed over the past 80 years. Astronauts walked on the moon, the Beatles became the bestselling band in history, and cell phones went from impossible to commonplace. Through it all, Smokey Bear has remained one of the world's most iconic and recognizable characters.

As we celebrate Smokey’s 80th birthday, we’re looking back on the moments that changed the world and the Bear who changed how we protect it!

On July 20, 1969, American astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took their historic first steps on the moon. At the time of the moon landing, Smokey Bear was just 25 years old and appeared on postage stamps. But forty-three years later, Smokey Bear reached space! In May 2012, a Smokey Bear plush traveled to the International Space Station as the mission’s mascot.

When the Beatles first arrived in New York in 1964, they were met by thousands of screaming fans. Americans have been the biggest Beatles fans in the world ever since. 

Meanwhile, Smokey didn’t have crowds waiting for him in New York. But he did receive so much fan mail that he got his own zip code in Washington, D.C.

He may not have starred alongside the Beatles, but Smokey is a fan of great music. Just check out the Smokey Band Tee! Plus, a portion of the proceeds from our officially licensed Smokey Bear merchandise helps fund the nationwide wildfire prevention campaign.

It’s hard to imagine a world without the Internet, but Smokey Bear lived through the discovery of the Internet in the sixties and the development of the World Wide Web in the eighties. Now Smokey has his own spot on the World Wide Web! You can find everything from his backstory to free educational resources and videos on his website, smokeybear.com

You can also follow Smokey’s Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Use the hashtag #OnlyYou when sharing your adventure stories and fire safety tips!

On December 3, 1992, a British software engineer sent the first text message, forever changing the way we communicate. In the 90s, Smokey Bear was reachable exclusively by snail mail, but today, you can text “SMOKEYBEAR” to 30364 for fire safety tips!

In his 80 years, Smokey has watched quite a few Olympic Games. Since Americans first met Smokey in 1944, there have been 24 Olympic Games and US athletes have won over a thousand gold medals.

Smokey has a few gold medals of his own. Since 1957, Smokey has honored organizations and individuals with gold, silver, and bronze medals for outstanding wildfire prevention. If you’ve dreamed of winning gold but aren’t headed to the Olympics, check out the Smokey Bear Awards!

If Smokey did this much in eighty years, what can he do in another eighty? For Smokey’s birthday, we’re getting outside, celebrating our favorite Bear, and sharing his timeless fire prevention message.

After all, if Smokey could pick his birthday gift, he’d choose a day outside with his friends in a world free from wildfires. Stick a candle in a cupcake and celebrate eighty years of Smokey Bear with us! (Just don’t forget to blow out the candle.)