# Who said: Only YOU can prevent wild fires?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [March 27, 2007, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691 "2007-03-27T15:32:41Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/1 "2007-03-27T15:32:41Z")
I’m sure most people know who [Smokey the Bear](http://www.smokeybear.com/vault/default.asp) is. His iconic mug with the ranger cap reminds us all about putting out our fires when we are camping. He also happens to be the longest running public service campaign in US history, running mostly unchanged for 50 years. There are others like [Mr.Yuck](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Yuk), remember that fiesty green sticker our moms used to put on the medicine cabinets?
Anyway, these are icons that tend to stand the test of time by getting into our subconscious minds and immediately trigger a response like: "…_Oh yeah - Smokey said to be safe when having a campfire/ and Mr.Yuck says read the labels on poisons and medications…"_
Here is what I am wondering: Is there an icon for our children [and us adults] that will stick with us when it comes to thinking about the environment? How to protect our earth? That kind of thing? Any ideas? Mother earth stories? Something like that?
I know children’s programing like **Bob the Builder** are going more green by having them build solar powered houses and things like that…but what else is out there that will stick with the collective unconscious of the populace at large?
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### Author:  [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/2 "2007-03-27T15:34:55Z")
It’s Smokey Bear, not Smokey the Bear. And forest fires, not wildfires. [/nitpicks]
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### Author:  [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/3 "2007-03-27T15:36:34Z")
The environmental counterpart to Smokey is [Woodsy Owl](http://www.fs.fed.us/spf/woodsy/), with his slogan, “Give a hoot, don’t pollute.”
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### Author:  [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/4 "2007-03-27T15:43:09Z")
There use to be this Native American guy that used to cry at the sight of litter. I can’t remember who made it but Family Guy spoofed it.
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### Author:  [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/5 "2007-03-27T15:45:13Z")
[QUOTE=twickster]
It’s Smokey Bear, not Smokey the Bear. And forest fires, not wildfires. [/nitpicks]
[/QUOTE]
It’s been changed to wildfires, look at the cite. It changed in 2001. You are right…it’s Smokey Bear.
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### Author:  [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/6 "2007-03-27T15:49:42Z")
[QUOTE=twickster]
It’s Smokey Bear, not Smokey the Bear. And forest fires, not wildfires. [/nitpicks]
[/QUOTE]
Of course, they conveniently forget about the song, “Smokey the Bear” that the Forest Service came out with in the 50’s.
_Smokey the Bear, Smokey the Bear
Howlin’ and a growlin’ and a sniffin’ the air.
He can find a fire before it starts to flame.
That’s why they call him Smokey
That was how he got his name._
Actually, I think they just got tired of the joke popular among us kids of the day.
Q: What’s Smokey the Bear’s middle name?
A: The
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### Author:  [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/7 "2007-03-27T16:06:25Z")
[QUOTE=twickster]
It’s Smokey Bear, not Smokey the Bear. And forest fires, not wildfires. [/nitpicks]
[/QUOTE]
I see that you’re right about the “the” part of the name. Shame. That wrecks one of the better jokes:
What do Winnie The Pooh, Alexander The Great, and Jabba The Hutt have in common (you would substitute Smokey Bear for your pick of these)?
A middle name.
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### Author:  [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/8 "2007-03-27T16:10:26Z")
[QUOTE=FatBaldGuy]
Of course, they conveniently forget about the song, “Smokey the Bear” that the Forest Service came out with in the 50’s.
[/QUOTE]
Ah, no …
> [@](#):
>
> In 1952 Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins wrote the anthem that would cause a debate among Smokey enthusiasts for the next several decades. In order to maintain the correct rhythm, the writers added a “the” between “Smokey” and “Bear.” As testament to the song’s popularity, Smokey Bear became known as “Smokey The Bear” to many adoring fans, but in actuality his name never changed, and he is still known correctly as Smokey Bear.
Source: [http://www.smokeybear.com/vault/name\_main.asp](http://www.smokeybear.com/vault/name_main.asp)
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### Author:  [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/9 "2007-03-27T16:13:06Z")
[QUOTE=Stuffy]
There use to be this Native American guy that used to cry at the sight of litter. I can’t remember who made it but Family Guy spoofed it.
[/QUOTE]
Actually, [Iron Eyes Cody was Italian-American](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mindiantear.html).
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### Author:  [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/10 "2007-03-27T16:16:42Z")
[QUOTE=Stuffy]
There use to be this Native American guy that used to cry at the sight of litter. I can’t remember who made it but Family Guy spoofed it.
[/QUOTE]
Did they?
“The Simpsons” definitely did. The time they trashed the town, and they were moving all of Springfield somewhere else, it ended with that Indian shedding a tear.
> [@FatBaldGuy](#):
>
> Q: What’s Smokey the Bear’s middle name?
> A: The
We used to say
Q: What do Kermit the Frog and Smokey the Bear have in common?
A: Same middle name.
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### Author:  [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/11 "2007-03-27T16:20:44Z")
[Here’s the ‘Crying Indian’ video](http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8165024777546661764&q=Crying+Indian).
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### Author:  [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/12 "2007-03-27T16:26:26Z")
Who remembers these words painted on the highway?
```
DON'T
BE
A
GUBERIF
```
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### Author:  [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/13 "2007-03-27T16:35:27Z")
[QUOTE=A.R. Cane]
Who remembers these words painted on the highway?
```
DON'T
BE
A
GUBERIF
```
[/QUOTE]
Not I. I know I’ll regret asking, but – what’s a guberif?
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### Author:  [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/14 "2007-03-27T16:35:57Z")
[QUOTE=Phlosphr]
Is there an icon for our children [and us adults] that will stick with us when it comes to thinking about the environment?
[/QUOTE]
Al Gore.
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### Author:  [@Twisty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twisty)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/15 "2007-03-27T16:41:42Z")
To answer the OP, it’s pronounced “throat warbler mangrove”.
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### Author:  [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/16 "2007-03-27T16:42:19Z")
[QUOTE=twickster]
Not I. I know I’ll regret asking, but – what’s a guberif?
[/QUOTE]
It was popular about 15-20 years ago, especially on non freeways in forested areas.
GUBERIF is spelled backwards, presumably to make you think.
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### Author:  [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/17 "2007-03-27T17:00:13Z")
[QUOTE=Duckster]
Ah, no …
> [@](#):
>
> In 1952 Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins wrote the anthem that would cause a debate among Smokey enthusiasts for the next several decades. In order to maintain the correct rhythm, the writers added a “the” between “Smokey” and “Bear.” As testament to the song’s popularity, Smokey Bear became known as “Smokey The Bear” to many adoring fans, but in actuality his name never changed, and he is still known correctly as Smokey Bear.
Source: [http://www.smokeybear.com/vault/name\_main.asp](http://www.smokeybear.com/vault/name_main.asp)
[/QUOTE]
That’s easy to say in 2007, but in the 50s and 60s the name “Smokey the Bear” was ubiquitous and the Forest Service did nothing to stem the tide.
Although I can’t put my finger on any cites, I am sure that I remember radio/tv ads, billboards and parade appearances from that era that featured “Smokey the Bear.” It’s only in very recent years that the PR types have gotten snooty about the “the”.
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### Author:  [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/18 "2007-03-27T17:05:53Z")
[QUOTE=Stuffy]
There use to be this Native American guy that used to cry at the sight of litter. I can’t remember who made it but Family Guy spoofed it.
[/QUOTE]
Futurama did too, in the episode ‘Where the Buggalo Roam’
_“Cynthia used to drink slurm”_
---
### Author:  [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/19 "2007-03-27T17:29:39Z")
Don’t forget about Wayne’s World 2! After the music festive (Waynesfest? I can’t remember…), there is the Native American looking guy with a single tear, and then Wayne says, “Don’t be so sad! We’ll pick it all up!”
Excellent.
---
### Author:  [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)
#### Post date: [March 27, 2007, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-said-only-you-can-prevent-wild-fires/397691/20 "2007-03-27T17:35:35Z")
[QUOTE=twickster]
Not I. I know I’ll regret asking, but – what’s a guberif?
[/QUOTE]
you. . .of all people. . .
_::shakes head with disillusionment::_
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