The Care Bears are probably one of the most recognizable set of characters. Even if you cannot name any of the bears themselves, they are still identified as the Care Bears. More than likely the majority of you could at least name one of them. This is because many of us grew up with the Care Bears. They were very popular during the eighties and seem to be continuing their popularity still to this day. While researching the Care Bears I came across a historical tidbit I found particularly interesting. The Care Bears were originally created by American Greetings in 1981. The Care Bears show us that the roots of animation vary.
Personally, I’ve always equated the Care Bears as an animated children’s television and movie series but that was not their original purpose. I always figured the series came first and the cards followed but this was not the case with the Care Bears. The artist Elena Kucharik created these bears to be used on greeting cards for American Greetings.
As the cards grew in popularity a higher demand for these loveable bears was created. Eventually, two years after the cards were developed, Kenner Toy Company made the characters into stuffed animals for children in 1983. Each Care Bear has a symbol on their tummy that represents both its task and individuality. These stuffed toys are still widely available to this day. Advancements in toy technology have allowed them to light up or sing when squeezed.
Despite the success of the cards and toys it was not until 1985 that the Care Bears television series was launched. The television series ran for three years from 1985-1988. Also, during this period of time the Care Bears starred in three animated feature length films.
The Care Bears have gone through many changes as their purpose has developed. The Care Bear craze does not appear to be slowing down anytime soon. According to Wikipedia, Scholastic Press took things one step further in 2006. They launched a book series based off the original movies. Also, the bears were in last years’ Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on a float. The Care Bears were not originally intended to be an animated series but its success snow balled and it became a franchise. Animation truly can be created from all sorts of inspiration.
This week I commented on James & Kristina’s blogs.
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March 13, 2010 at 1:27 pm
jamesbenjamin
I never knew the Care Bears were originally from greeting cards! Although, it makes sense, the way they’re designed, that is. Each one has a symbol on their tummy which makes them easy to identify on what is essentially a two-panel comic strip (outside and inside the greeting card). I must say I always hated them as a kid though, it just seemed to cliche and lovey dovey. But, I was a young boy in the 80s, and had GI Joes and Transformers to play with! haha. Their development (from cards to TV) reminds me of Pokemon though, because they were originally a video game turned cartoon, turned EVERYTHING ELSE they can think to market to kids. Which is what a lot of cartoons are, nowadays, I suppose. Simple marketing tools…
March 14, 2010 at 2:48 pm
cfdemarco
I find it kind of amusing that the Care Bears were originally just created for greeting cards and then they were turned into a television show. I also have to admit, I cannot even name one of the Care Bears because I was never really a fan of them growing up, just like the comment above. I always thought of the Care Bears to be “too girly” for me, so I never watched the show. It is rather intriguing how far these Care Bears have come since there days as characters within greeting cards. It just shows that people are willing to take anything and turn it into either a movie or a television show, like Transformers, as mentioned above. But overall, it was interesting to find out where the Care Bears really came from.
March 14, 2010 at 4:50 pm
wittel
I have to say that I am very thankful for this bit on information. I always loved the Care Bears as a kid, but only really liked them because they were cute. I do think it is interesting that pretty much anything can inspire animation and vise versa. Animation allows you to do that because you can pretty much give a story line and personality to anything through animation.
March 14, 2010 at 9:43 pm
Megan Pettry
Just like in all of your other comments I am very surprised that the Care Bears came from greeting cards. I thought that the television show came first then the stuffed animals and then the greeting cards. I think that this was a very interesting post because not alot of people know that the Care Bears originated from greeting cards. The Care Bears have deffinatly come a long way and still are going strong. I know the kids I babysit have Care Bears, so they have been around for awhile. Obviously they are doing something right.
March 15, 2010 at 3:32 am
z0mb13bl0g
To echo the same as our other classmates, I was not aware these memorable characters were originally greeting card animations. I would be interested to know what other cartoons have origins like this that I have overlooked. For a show that was so popular (along with all the merchandising that came with it), I am surprised this is the first time I have heard about this. Good research!
March 15, 2010 at 3:44 pm
cinnamellon
Wow, I am more amazed that I owned and watched the entire series as well as had all the stuffed animals even though I was born after the show stopped running. That is some staying power. Oddly, I have never seen a care bear card other than the picture you posted. Kind of amusing. Makes me wonder if any other animated series got its start from greeting cards and the like.