SMOKEY BEAR | RETELLING OF AN AMERICAN ICON
I am excited to announce that I have obtained image rights for Smokey Bear. For the next five years will be working on an illustrated book retelling his life story. My goal is to produce a 200+ page illustrated story of how Smokey became the fire prevention hero that we all know and love; from his adventures as a cub, to losing his family and friends to forest fires, to learning how pick up life’s pieces and begin again, to all the friends who have helped him along the way and to becoming the selfless individual with a big heart and a big message. My ambition is to spin to a fable that will give more substantial weight to the personality of this American icon.
The message of forest fire prevention and forest sustainability is just as relevant today as it was in August of 1944 when the U.S. Forest Service, Association of State Foresters, and the Wartime Advertising Council agreed to introduce a new symbol that would create awareness of careless human acts that affect the health and well being of our wild-lands and forests. I am deeply honored to pay tribute to this historical campaign and the Smokey identity that has been an inspiration to me since childhood. I only hope that my work can stand the test of time and add to the prestige of the many artists who came before me; and most notably Albert Staehle and Rudy Wendelin.
