The 33 Most Important Facts About Teddy Bears You Probably Never Knew!

The cute and cuddly teddy bear is over a hundred years old. In fact, it even predates World War I and its origins date back to one of the greatest US presidents. While, in its more than 100-year history, the humble stuffed animal has conquered the world from Europe to America, Japan and vice versa. And, even though our once simpler lives are now choked with so much technology, the plain old stuffed animal seems more popular than ever – just google it! Here are some more amazing facts about this childhood classic and icon of the 20th century.

1. Bears first appeared on the literary scene in the fairy tale ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ written by Robert Southey in 1834.

2. The first teddy bear showed signs of coming on the scene when Margarete Steiff filed patents for 23 of her stuffed animal designs, including a dancing bear and a bear trainer with a brown bear in 1899.

3. History is made: Brooklyn merchant Morris Michtom sells the world’s first ‘Teddy Bear’ in his store in November 1902.

4. In March 1903, the Steiff Company in Germany shipped up to 3,000 teddy bears to the United States.

5. Bear toys were called ‘Bruins’ in those days. The first advertisement for Bruins appeared in the American toy trade magazine Playthings in May 1906.

6. That same year, in November, the words ‘Teddy Bear’ appeared for the first time in another ad in Playthings by American manufacturer EJ Horsman.

7. “Teddy Bear” was one of the first picture books based on these popular stuffed toys, written by Alice Scott.

8. In 1907, music history was made when American composer JK Bratton wrote the music for the famous song, The Teddy Bear’s Picnic. The song was originally called The Teddy Bear Two Step and the lyrics we know and love today weren’t added until 1932 by prolific British songwriter Jimmy Kennedy.

9. In 1908, the JK Farnell company began making the first British soft toys. The firm was originally founded in Notting Hill, London, as a silk merchant and first produced tea cosies and pincushions. But, his 1925 Alpha Bear is believed to have been the inspiration for the creation of Winnie the Pooh.

10. In 1909, the first animated stuffed animal cartoon “Little Johnny and the Teddy Bears” appeared in the US.

11. In 1912, when the world greeted the news of the sinking of the Titanic on its maiden voyage with shocked and disbelief, the German stuffed toy company headed by Steiff created a black bear to give as a mourning gift to all those who lost their loved ones. their loved ones on the Titanic.

12. In 1919, the adorable teddy bear was airborne on his first nonstop transatlantic flight! Aviation pioneers Alcock and Brown brought stuffed pets with them on this unprecedented flight from St. John’s, Newfoundland to Clifden, Ireland in a modified World War I Vickers Vimy bomber.

13. The teddy bear entered thousands of British homes every morning when the first British comic strip stuffed character, Bobby Bear, was published in the London-based Daily Herald newspaper.

14. The following year, in 1920, Rupert Bear’s first illustrated story, Little Lost Bear, written and illustrated by Mary Tourtel, appeared in the British newspaper The Daily Express.

15. In 1924, animated film giant Walt Disney produced the first teddy bear-themed color animated film, Alice and the Three Bears.

16. One of the most famous and beloved bears of all time, Winnie-the-Pooh, appeared when the first edition of Winnie-the-Pooh AA Milne was published in 1926.

17. In 1944, even as wildfires raged across the US, Smokey Bear was adopted as the mascot for the United States Wildfire Prevention Campaign.

18. Sooty the teddy bear glove puppet and magician made his British television debut in 1952. Sooty became very popular in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. So much so that Sooty is now the longest-running children’s television show in the UK, turning 60 in 2008. Masterminded by Harry Corbett, the father handed over the job of puppeteer to his son Matthew in 1976. Matthew retired at the end of of the 1990s with Sooty’s popularity intact. .

19. 1953 was the Golden Jubilee of Steiff’s first teddy bear. It was celebrated with a new style bear, ‘a comical young bear cub’, named Jackie Baby.

20. A common dilemma was solved when Wendy Boston, a Welsh toy manufacturer, produced the first truly washable teddy bear in 1954.

21. In 1958 another immensely beloved and popular bear appeared on the scene for the first time, Paddington Bear. This year saw the first Paddington story, A Bear Called Paddington, by Michael Bond.

22. In a significant development, Walt Disney acquired the rights to Winnie-the-Pooh in 1959.

23. Colonel Bob Henderson launches The Teddy Bear Club in 1962.

24. Walt Disney produced the first animated film about Winnie-the-Pooh in 1975. It instantly became a classic.

25. In 1979, the Marquess of Bath organized the Great Teddy Bear Rally at Longleat.

26. Unlike its usual items, Christie’s auction house in London held the first exclusive auction of teddy bears in 1985.

27. In 1988, Gyles and Michele Brandreth established The Teddy Bear Museum in William Shakespeare’s hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon.

28. The following year, in 1989, the first British Teddy Bear Festival was held in London.

29. That same year, in 1989, Happy Anniversary, a 1926 vintage mohair Steiff teddy bear, sold at auction in London for a whopping £55,000 to American Paul Volpp as a gift for his 42nd wedding anniversary. wife, Rosemary.

30. In 1990, Steiff crossed over to the UK with the first Steiff UK Limited Edition soft toys.

31. The teddy bear had crossed continents and had earned everyone’s love. In 1994, Teddy Girl, a 1904 cinnamon Steiff bear previously in the possession of Colonel Bob Henderson, sold at auction in London for a staggering £110,000 to Yoshihiro Sekiguchi. Sekiguchi went on to establish the Teddy Bear Museum in Izu, Japan.

32. In 1996, Yoshihiro Sekiguchi of the Izu Teddy Bear Museum purchased Teddy Edward, the world’s most traveled bear, at auction for… £34,500.

33. Thought there were only average size teddy bears? Well, Guinness (8.5mm tall), made by Lynn Lumb of Halifax, England, entered the hallowed portals of the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s smallest teddy bear.

I never thought the humble little bear packed such a long story, huh?