Bears as Mascots
Teddy bears have had their own statues, mourned the loss of the Titanic, and have traveled into space and as well as around the world. They become attached to their human parents. They may speak in an unspoken language, but speak they do, to children of all ages.
Teddy bears are held in high regard by many, and not just by fans and collectors. Just think of how many teddy bears and their grown-up bear cousins are found all around us – in governmental agency’s names, sports teams, and even causes. Let’s look at a few sports team bears in this article.
Sports
The University of California, Berkeley (Cal State) was initially founded as a private college in 1858. It later merged with a public college in Oakland, opening its first campus in Berkeley in 1873. The university’s mascot is the golden bear Oski, who made his first appearance at a sporting event during the 1941 football season opener. The university chose a bear to represent them because a bear is also the symbol for California. Live bears represented the teams until 1941, at which time costumed students took over the role.
The University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) was initially founded in 1919 as a southern branch of UC Berkeley. They therefore thought it was only fitting that a young bear (Bruin) would be their mascot. Thus Joe Bruin was born in 1924 as a fierce grizzley. But UCLA’s mascot’s name was changed to the “Bruins” in 1926, and UC Berkeley called their team the “Bears.” For a while they even had live bears at their games until the mid-1960s when a costumed Joe Bruin, worn by a student, and now often seen with Josephine Bruin, took over.
The Chicago Bears and Chicago Cubs come to mind when thinking of professional sports mascots. The Chicago Bears were first called Decatur Staleys because they were originally formed by the A. E. Staley food starch company located in Decatur, Illinois. They hired George Halas to run the team in 1920. After Halas and other voted to form what would become the NFL in 1921, Halas is named as the founded of the NFL team. The Staleys moved to Chicago in 1921. Halas, however, had to keep the Staley name for one year after they moved to Chicago; he then named his football club the Chicago Bears in 1922 after the Chicago Cubs, with whom they shared a stadium in the beginning.
The Chicago Cubs were originally called the Chicago White Stockings when they were first formed in 1870, and changed to Anson’s Colts beginning in 1890 after their manager Cap Anson. After several nicknames, the Cubs got their current name beginning in 1902 by some sports writers of the time in reference to the overall youth of the team. The name eventually stuck and the Cubs they still are.
Misha (Miska) is an unusual bear. He was the mascot of the 1980 Summer Olympics, held in Russia, and wears a belt with the five Olympic rings representing the Olympic Games. The bear, with his short stubby feet and happy smile and large ears, was popular with athletes and attendees of the events; he is now a collectors item. He was even part of the opening and closing ceremonies. At the end of the closing ceremonies, a huge Misha was lifted up and away from the crowd by balloons and disappeared into the night sky.