{"id":7170,"date":"2024-08-09T11:17:55","date_gmt":"2024-08-09T15:17:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/2024\/08\/09\/happy-80th-birthday-smokey-bear\/"},"modified":"2024-08-09T11:17:55","modified_gmt":"2024-08-09T15:17:55","slug":"happy-80th-birthday-smokey-bear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/happy-80th-birthday-smokey-bear\/7170\/","title":{"rendered":"Happy 80th Birthday, Smokey Bear!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Heather Taylor, Editor-in-Chief, PopIcon<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Doesn\u2019t it feel as though it was just yesterday when we were wishing Smokey Bear<\/a> a happy 75th birthday? Smokey Bear\u2019s 80th birthday officially falls on August 9, 2024, marking eight decades of the mascot having the longest running public service initiative in United States history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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At 80 years young, Smokey Bear is celebrating with a new PSA and keeping his familiar, important message for audiences. \u201cOnly You Can Prevent Wildfires.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

Smokey Bear Through The “Decades”<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Smokey Bear made his debut in a PSA ad campaign in partnership with creative agency FCB, the USDA Forest Service, Ad Council and National Association of State Foresters (NASF) in 1944.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Clad in a ranger\u2019s hat and belted blue jeans, Smokey carried a shovel in one paw for the PSA. However, it would not be until 1947 that Smokey would introduce audiences everywhere to his powerful slogan \u2014 \u201cOnly YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Smokey\u2019s slogan might have been revised in later decades, but little has changed about the icon\u2019s legacy as a wildfire prevention symbol. Now more than ever, his message matters in a world where humans cause nearly nine out of 10 unwanted wildfires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

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