Podcast Summary: Daniel Horowitz on "Bear With Me: A Cultural History of Famous Bears in America"
Podcast: New Books Network
Host: Dr. Miranda Melcher
Guest: Professor Daniel Horowitz
Episode Release Date: September 5, 2025
Book Discussed: Bear With Me: A Cultural History of Famous Bears in America (Duke UP, 2025)
Episode Overview
In this engaging episode, Dr. Miranda Melcher interviews Professor Daniel Horowitz about his new book, Bear With Me: A Cultural History of Famous Bears in America. The conversation explores why bears—both real and fictional—have held such a compelling grip on the American imagination, appearing everywhere from childhood toys to public safety campaigns, commercial media, circus acts, and even gay subcultures. Horowitz draws on historical anecdotes, cultural analysis, and both popular and lesser-known bear lore to illuminate the emotional and symbolic power of bears across American history.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Origins and Personal Inspiration for the Book
- Background: Horowitz, a retired professor from Smith College, began work on this book during the COVID-19 lockdown, when his imagination and the abundance of online bear content inspired him ([02:26]).
- Personal Anecdote: Bedtime stories with his wife about an imaginary bear named "Polar" (a Harvard Medical School-trained psychiatrist practicing in a supermarket freezer, paid in fish) sparked creative thinking ([03:54]).
"Once you go on the web and look for bears, you're in an unending stream of interesting bear stories... Covid forced me to use my imagination more than I usually would."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [02:26]
2. Why Bears? The Enduring Appeal in U.S. Culture
- Dual Nature: Bears are attractive because they are emotionally labile—projected as both terrifying killers and gentle, cuddly companions ([05:55]).
- Projection: People imbue bears with human traits, making them versatile symbols in storytelling.
"They can evoke such a wide range of feelings from terror and fear to love and affection."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [07:35]
3. Real vs. Imagined Danger – The Violent Bear Mythos
- Myth vs. Reality: Stories like Hugh Glass (as depicted in "The Revenant"), Grizzly Adams, and Timothy Treadwell span centuries of bear encounters, often focusing on violence and survival ([08:19]).
- Statistical Reality: Despite the prevalence of violent bear stories, actual fatal bear encounters are rare compared to other dangers in national parks.
4. Captive Bears: Zoos, Circuses, and Changing Attitudes
- Historical Evolution: Public encounters with real bears shifted from ubiquitous in earlier rural life to captive settings like zoos and circuses from the late 19th century onwards ([11:11]).
- Modern Shifts: Protests led to a decline and eventual elimination of bears (and other live animals) in circuses—mirrored by more naturalistic or virtual representations in zoos and media ([15:24]).
- Cultural Representation: Nature documentaries and films often staged bear encounters, shaping perceptions even further ([15:54]).
5. Teddy Bear—Myth, Marketing, and Roosevelt’s Role
- Fact & Folklore: The iconic "Teddy bear" was inspired by a 1902 incident where President Theodore Roosevelt refused to shoot a captured bear. The link between Roosevelt and stuffed bears was amplified by stories and subsequent merchandising ([19:09]).
- Origins Questioned: The standard tale of a Brooklyn shopkeeper first creating the teddy bear is likely apocryphal, with the phenomenon taking several years to solidify.
"The story is more complicated and we don't know for sure... probably through the writings of a Canadian American author named Seymour Eaton, who wrote a series of... stories about Teddy bears that are fully anthropomorphized."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [23:20]
6. Smokey Bear and World War II Propaganda
- Origin Story: The U.S. government and advertising agencies created Smokey Bear during WWII, partially in response to forest sabotage fears from Japanese incendiary balloons. Post-war, Smokey became a national icon ([26:37]).
- Mascot Legacy: The original Smokey became a real bear rescued from a forest fire, living at the National Zoo, and accumulating massive fan mail—becoming even a controversial symbol during the Vietnam War ([29:13]).
"Smokey the Bear became immensely popular. A zip code dedicated exclusively to him. In years Smokey the Bear received almost as much email as the President of the United States."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [30:27]
7. Bear Booms in Post-WWII Culture
- Three Key "Bear Booms":
- 1860s: Grizzly Adams and P.T. Barnum commercializing bears
- 1902: The Teddy bear and its mass cultural ascent
- Post-WWII: Disney and cable TV accelerate the proliferation of bear stories ([32:24])
- Commercial Media: Postwar demand for content (e.g., TV, Disney) led to a surge in bear-based storytelling and merchandising ([33:05]).
- Bambi Predecessor: Disney’s Bambi was first used for forest fire campaigns before too expensive licensing led to the creation of Smokey ([34:10]).
8. Bears in Gay Culture
- Origins: "Bear" as a subculture among gay men emerged in San Francisco in the 1980s as a counter to stereotypical images of youthful, thin, or surfer-like gay men ([37:47]).
- Role Reversal: Unlike most cultural bear symbols, gay culture projects bear-like qualities onto humans rather than human qualities onto bears.
- Cultural Significance: The phenomenon is now widespread, with major festivals and a notable presence across the U.S. and globally.
"What happens in gay male culture is very different, which is they...impute bear characteristics to human beings—virile, hairy, masculine..."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [39:04]
9. Goldilocks and the Three Bears: The Many Versions
- Folkloric Roots: The original story featured an old crone, not a young girl. Over time, Goldilocks as a character shifted, and American popular versions changed accordingly ([41:21]).
- Variation Proliferation: Variations abound—African American retellings (e.g., "Viola and the Honey Bears"), didactic versions, cartoons (e.g., 1934 Terrytoons short), and parodies (e.g., Kermit the Frog’s “three shares”) all demonstrate the story's adaptability.
- Why It Varied: Bears' emotional and symbolic flexibility allows for endless re-imagining by media creators ([46:18]).
"Bears are so compelling, they're lovable, they're threatening, they're embracing, they're human. All of those things makes them both attractive and amenable to multiple emotional and genre-expanding expressions..."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [47:10]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On bear lore and COVID inspiration:
"As we drifted off to sleep, we talked extensively about a bear named Polar...who had migrated to the United States from Baffin Island...and practices psychiatry in the freezer section of a supermarket..."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [04:29] -
On public perception vs. statistics:
"There's something that makes us compelled, attracted, terrified by stories of dangerous bears...even though the actual danger, statistical, is small, but in our imagination, that danger is very large."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [09:53] -
On gay bear culture:
"What happens in gay male culture is...they impute bear characteristics to human beings. That is, to make gay men like bears, virile, hairy, masculine..."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [39:04] -
On variation in bear tales:
"Entrepreneurs, writers, producers develop a whole range of expressions...because, again, bears are so compelling...amenable to multiple emotional and genre expanding expressions in many ways."
— Professor Dan Horowitz [46:18]
Timestamps for Major Segments
- [02:26] – Horowitz introduces himself and COVID-era inspiration for the book
- [05:55] – Why bears are everywhere: appeal and symbolic power
- [08:19] – Violent bear myths: Hugh Glass, Grizzly Adams, Timothy Treadwell
- [11:11] – Encounters with real and captive bears; evolution of zoos and circuses
- [19:09] – The true story behind Teddy Roosevelt and the Teddy bear
- [26:37] – Smokey Bear, WWII, and national symbolism
- [32:24] – Postwar bear booms: Disney, cable TV, and modern merchandising
- [37:47] – The "Bear" in gay culture: origins and meaning
- [41:21] – Goldilocks and the Three Bears: many versions and meanings
- [46:18] – Why bears stories—and their meanings—are so varied
- [48:06] – Horowitz's next project: the history of retirement
Conclusion
This episode offers a sweeping yet personable journey through the cultural history of bears in America, showing how a single animal can embody both our deepest fears and our greatest comfort. Professor Horowitz combines storytelling, myth-busting, and scholarly insight to explain why bears continue to resonate across generations and identities, making Bear With Me an essential read for anyone curious about the intersection of animals, culture, and imagination.