If you even THINK about starting a wildfire , this lil cutie will be on your moral sense .

So, it’s Smokey Bear’s 80th birthday on Aug. 9, which is a really long time to be preventing wildfires.

But I actually learned recently that Smokey isn’t a fictional character, and started out as a real bear with a backstory that should get the Hollywood treatment ASAP.

In 1950, a wildfire in New Mexico was spreading rapidly when firefighters got a report of a lone bear cub near the fire line. The firefighters couldn’t reach the cub and got caught in the firestorm’s path, laying face-down in a rockslide for over an hour until the fire burned past them.

Nearby, the lone bear cub took refuge in a charred tree, escaping with his life but badly burned and injured. A rancher among the firefighters agreed to take the cub back to his property.

From there, a New Mexico Department of Game and Fish ranger heard about the cub and came to the rancher’s home to escort the cub on a plane to Santa Fe to get it treated for its burns. Look at the little cartoon bear with a sling! 💔

When the press got a hold of the bear’s story, support for the cub poured in, as well as letters asking how the bear was doing.

The state game warden offered the bear to the Forest Service as long as it would be dedicated to a conservation and wildfire prevention publicity program.

The cub was given the name Smokey and lived at Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, DC. At his height of popularity, Smokey received over 13,000 letters a week from kids all over the country. (Ifyou everwant to send him a letter, all you need to address it to is: Smokey Bear Washington, DC 20252.)

Smokey died at the National Zoo ofold agein 1976, but his message lives on.

HBD, Smokey! If you need ideas for presents, here’s one: Don’t start a wildfire.

Smokey Bear stands with two bear cubs near a forest river holding a shovel. Text: "Remember - Only you can prevent forest fires!"

Smokey Bear holds a shovel with safety tips: Always hold matches 'til cold, be sure to drown all fires, crush all smokes dead out. "Only you can prevent forest fires."

Two individuals stand among rocks and fallen trees in a forested area, with smoke and haze in the background indicating a recent fire

Smokey Bear on a USA 20-cent stamp, wearing a ranger hat with "Smokey" written on it, featuring a smaller bear cub clinging to a tree branch

A man in uniform crouches beside a small bear cub in front of an airplane with the name "Smokey" and an image of Smokey Bear painted on it

A man, whose name is not provided, gently tends to a small bear cub in what appears to be a veterinary setting

A firefighter presents a hat to a bear standing on hind legs in a cage. Two Smokey Bear posters regarding forest fire prevention are displayed

A black bear cub sits in front of a poster that reads "Remember—Only you can prevent forest fires!"

A bear stands on its hind legs next to the bars of its enclosure at a zoo. A poster on the right shows a bear and reads "PREPARE FOR FIRE."

Smokey Bear points to a sign that reads, "Remember! Only you can prevent forest fires" in a forested area