Smokey “The” Bear

A guest entry by Daniel Dern

Via the tech journo's mailing somebody noting, per the AP Style book, is no "The" in Smokey's name)

My follow-up (re)search turned up: Smokey’s History

In 1952, Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins wrote the popular anthem that would launch a continuous debate about Smokey’s name. To maintain the rhythm of the song, they added “the” between “Smokey” and “Bear.” Due to the song’s popularity, Smokey Bear has been called “Smokey the Bear” by many adoring fans, but, in actuality, his name never changed. He’s still Smokey Bear.

And, to-me-more-interestingly, the previous paragraph noted:

Smokey [the rescued cub] received numerous gifts of honey and so many letters he had to have his own zip code. He remained at the zoo until his death in 1976, when he was returned to his home to be buried at the Smokey Bear Historical Park in Capitan, New Mexico, where he continues to be a wildfire prevention legend.