Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast # 53 - Popular Toy & Cartoon Bears of the 1980s

There was just something about toys in the 1980s.  How could we forget the hysteria that loomed around the infamous cabbage patch dolls?  How could we forget the release of Nintendo, a gaming system that took the world by storm? And how could we forget all of the bears that could be found on greeting cards, television and shelves in toy stores?  The 1980s were a bear-y good time to be, well, a fan of said bears.  

With that being said, on today’s show we will be taking a look back at some of the most memorable bears of the 1980s including Teddy Ruxpin, The Care Bears, and The Gummi Bears.  So hop in your cloud car, pop in a cassette tape into the back of your audio-animatronic bear and don’t forget your gummi-berry juice, here we go!

Hello and thank you so very much for tuning in to the Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast, a show inspired by, and in memory of, my big sister Rebecca and her love for all things pop-culture, especially the people, places and things of the 80s, 90s and early 00s.  My name is Amy Lewis and I am your captain aboard this pop-culture time machine.  You are tuning in to episode #53, famous toy bears from the 1980s.  Spring is most certainly here, so let’s bring a few famous bears out of hibernation, shall we?  

We will begin with the world's first audio-animatronic toy, Teddy Ruxpin.  Ruxpin was created by a former Disney Imagineer who had previously worked on audio-animatronics for the company.  For example, he lent his talents to the Country Bear Jamboree attraction by helping to carve their heads. Later he would develop the half audio animatronic/half human costumes for the show “Welcome to Pooh Corner '' on the Disney channel. His name was Ken Forsee and his company was called Alchemy II.  In addition to TR which we’ll get to in a second, Forsee also did some consulting work for Chuck E. Cheese.  The design of the toy was quite brilliant to say the least.  Ruxpin had a cassette player built into his back.  When the tape was inserted, TR would come to life, so long as the 4- C batteries were all still good.  His movements were coded into the right track of the cassette tapes and his audio was coded into the left track.  His mouth would move and his eyes would open and close. There were dozens and dozens of TR tapes created over the years and in many different languages.  He would often start the tapes by singing:  “come dream with me tonight.” He would also sing lullabies and tell stories about his adventures in a far-off land called Grundo.  The toy was voiced by Phil Baron, who is a relatively well-known voice actor.  In addition to TR, he also provided the voice for Piglet in Welcome to Pooh Corner and various voices in Dumbo’s Circus, one of the creepiest shows I ever watched as a kid, one that will certainly be discussed on a future episode of this podcast. 

George Wilkins composed about 150 songs for the TR tapes.  And if you’ve never heard of this talented composer, it’s important to note that he is the genius behind the theme song for Horizons, one of the early attractions at what was then called Epcot Center.  It is one of the most beloved and missed attractions.  SOUND CLIP HERE. 

According to the creators of the audio-animatronic bear, Teddy Ruxpin comes from a land called Grundo.  He was born on the island of Rilonia.  He is 16 years old and his best friend is an orange bug named Grubby.  He is friends with an inventor named Newton Gimmick and he and his friends avoid an evil wizard named Tweeg.  

All of the innovation did not come cheap - Teddy Ruxpin cost about $70 per bear when it was released which is over $160 in today’s money. That being said, people were not afraid to shell out the cash because in just the first year of being available for purchase, TR earned 93 million dollars.  TR was the best selling toy in 1985 and 1986, take that Cabbage Kids! The toy was manufactured and marketed by a toy company called Worlds of Wonder. 

Ruxpin was not only just a popular toy, it was also an important one to many children.  Alchemy II once received a letter from a little girl who was dying of leukemia.  She wanted to make sure the song “Will you go to sleep before me” played at her funeral.  CLIP HERE.

Foresee would go on to produce a cartoon called “The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin” which aired from 1987-1988.  Oh geez, a cartoon series following the creation of a popular toy?  Who would’ve thought?  Oh, that’s right, there were many similar stories just like this in the 1980s - The Popples, the Pound Puppies and Pillow People.  The Pillow People, which is one of the stupidest concepts for a toy, had an Xmas TV special if you can believe that.  How a hideous collection of tacky pillows, with faces on them no less, could have a story developed about them to air on tv, seems impossible.  TV tie-ins to toys were perfect because it was essentially a ½ hour advertisement for the product.  I can remember shouting - “Mom can I please have a pillow person?”  To which she replied “What the hell is a pillow person?  That sounds really stupid, Amy.” Okay, that conversation never happened, but envisioning fake conversations in my head often makes me laugh and this is my show, so I’ll do whatever I want. And remembering conversations from decades ago that did happen, can sometimes make me cringe to this day.  Does anyone else experience that? Anyways.   

In addition to the cartoon off shoot, there was also TR merchandise created for fans of the bear.  There was wallpaper, sheets, beachballs and one of my favorites - a lunchbox with a matching thermos.  These were all produced by Alchemy II.  

Alchemy created not only the original TR, but also a “Little Bopper” Teddy Ruxpin which could dance along (sort of) to music playing out loud.  He would move his arms around a bit and I think his eyes opened and closed.  I was fortunate to have one of these toys, I must have gotten it for my birthday or xmas.  I remember my dad filming me set him up on the carpet and then our humongous, glass encased onkyo stereo turns on and Ruxpin performed a very anticlimactic dance.  It was still pretty impressive for the time though if you think about it. 

Worlds of Wonder didn’t just manufacture Teddy Ruxpin, they also created a toy lazer tag game which became incredibly popular and sold well.  Sadly, a 19 y/o man named Leonard Falcon was shot and killed by a police officer in LA.  The officer had mistaken the laser gun for a real gun.  Partnerships with different companies started to fizzle out and pretty soon, Worlds of Wonder filed for bankruptcy SOUND CLIP HERE.  and soon the assembly line for TR shut down.  Alchemy had to let go of over 100 employees.  

Besides the whole bankruptcy (SOUND CLIP HERE) issue, competition made TR less popular. Just as quick as he came onto the scene, he left it after just a few years.  TR was only produced between 1985-1988, however in that short period of time, 7 million TRs were sold.  

There was a VHS talking teddy bear called TV Teddy.  He came with his own remote.  There was also smarty bear who could answer questions proposed by kids, but his response was with several stock phrases, sort of like a magic 8 ball.  His movements were not as advanced, but his eyebrows could move if he was connected to the VCR.  There was also “Wrinkles the Talking Dog” who was more of a puppet than audio-animatronic.  

As you can imagine, by the late 1980s, Teddy Ruxpin was basically a thing of the past.  He brought smiles to millions of children all over the world in the 1980s, but by the 1990s, he was on the way out, if not out completely.  There have been a few attempts to resurrect the Teddy Ruxpin brand, but none of the them have ever been very successful. The most recent incarnation of TR came in 2017, where he got a brand new look complete with blue jeans, a vest and a more modern haircut.  Sort of a hipster TR, if you will.  The toy company that produced this version, Wicked Cool Toys, was acquired in 2019 and as far as I can tell, they are not making any more TR toys.  And trust me when I say, the demise of TR is not wicked-cool, it’s wicked-sad. 

On that note, let’s move on to the Care Bears, arguably the most famous bears of the 1980s.  These lovable furry cartoon creatures came to life as a result of a collaboration between American Greetings and Kenner (the toy company).  They wanted to develop a teddy bear line.  It was the perfect marriage for Kenner who wanted to get into the plush toy genre and American Greetings who wanted cute, colorful characters they could put on greeting cards. 

A cartoonist by the name of Dave Polter designed the hearts and rainbows found on the bear’s bellies, and artist Elena Kuckharik developed the sketches of the adorable bears.  It was a match made in heaven.  After throwing around a bunch of ideas, 10 bears with a specific color like yellow, green, blue, etc. and an emotional theme were settled on. There was bedtime bear, cheer bear, friend bear, grumpy bear, good luck bear, love-a-lot bear, tenderheart bear, wish bear, birthday bear and funshine bear. In addition to having a symbol on their bellies, each bear, at least the plush ones, had hearts on their butts, sort of like Cabbage Patch dolls and the Xavier signature. Some people wear their hearts on their sleeves, and others, like Care Bears, wear them on their butts.  The Care Bears greeting card line debuted in 1981.  American Greetings would go on to print over 70 million Care Bears greeting cards.  

In 1983 at a toy fair in New York City, the Care Bears made their debut via a broadway style stage show with the help of Strawberry Shortcake.  Merchandise went on sale in March of that year and immediately sold out.   Later, the Care Bears - the Land Without Feelings, a TV special aired.

And like clockwork, shortly after the debut of the Care Bears on greeting cards, they got their own plush line, television series and even a movie.  Within the first 5 years of their debut, the Care Bears generated 5 billion dollars in revenue.  The premise of the movies and tv specials were that the Care Bears lived in a giant castle in the sky and they often went out on missions of caring. They would watch humans down below via a large telescope and when they discovered someone in need of help, they would fly down in their cloud car and try to help.  The Care Bears had one of the best theme songs I can remember from my childhood- CLIP HERE. 

The Care Bears were often able to defeat evil and villains via their infamous Care Bear Stare.  The colorful crew would all line up next to each other and would focus hard on caring and all of a sudden the designs on their bellies would illuminate and then light and love would shoot out of their bellies, reaching the people or situations that needed love and caring.    CLIP HERE.

The Care Bears movie premiered in 1985 and a sequel Care Bears II :  A New Generation was released in 1986.  By 1988, 40 million Care Bears had been sold.  And merchandise wasn’t just limited to the plush line.  There were Care Bears tin canisters, lamps, small figurines with a carrying case, breakfast trays (which were really big in the 70s and 80s for whatever reason), bath toys and even wrapping paper.  Perhaps your family was like ours in that you ate at Pizza Hut occasionally and collected their glass Care Bears cups?  We had those for years. Thanks Book It! 

I know me and my sister definitely had Care Bears stuffed animals.  I am pretty sure I had Cheer Bear which was a pink bear with a rainbow on it’s belly. I am pretty sure my sister had either bedtime bear or wish bear.  

There have been many incarnations of the Care Bears in 2002, 2007, 2013 and most recently in 2019.  Apparently, caring, never gets old.  

Our last group of Bears from the 80s in our discussion will be the Gummi Bears. The television series was inspired by former Disney CEO Michael Eisner whose son requested some gummy bear candy one day. Apparently, there was just something about those primary colored gummy bear candies that made Eisner think to himself - if only there was a television cartoon where gummy bears would come to life in a medieval setting.  Said gummy bears could concoct a magical potion that would allow them to bounce around like crazy.  I think I may have my next million dollar idea.  

And with that, the idea for the Gummi Bears was born.  And on September 15, 1985, Gummi Bears premiered on NBC.  The memorable theme song was written by Michael and Patty Silversher.  PLAY THEME SONG HERE.  The show followed the antics of a group of anthropomorphic bears who were the last remaining bears of a once-great civilization of gummies.  They lived in an area called Gummy Glen in a medieval land called Dunwyn.  The Gummi characters each had their own distinct personalities and roles on the show.  There was:

Tummi Gummi- he is a teenaged, chubby bear who is focused on food and eating.  He’s also an artist and gardener.  He is easily convinced to get into trouble, typically with Cubbi Gummi.  

Cubbi Gummi - he is the youngest gummi of the group.  He wants to become a knight.  He is a bit of a trouble maker at times.  He is close friends with a human named Cavin who we will touch on in a moment.

Augustus “Gusto” Gummi - he was stuck on a deserted island for over 10 years.  He was brought to Gummi Glen by Tummi and Gruffi, but he opts to live behind a waterfall but occasionally visits Gummi Glen when the weather is bad.

Sunni Gummi - is one of only two female bears in the group.  She is best friends with Princess Calla (who we will touch on in a second).  She is very curious about humans and their interests, like fashion. 

Gruffi Gummi- is the leader of the gummi glen.  He likes to do things the old fashioned way.  He likes to keep the old civilizations technology alive by maintaining trap doors and the like which help keep the ogres and humans at bay.

Zummi Gummi- he is the keeper of the gummi wisdom, but he is very forgetful and clumsy, and has a hard time casting spells correctly. 

Cavin- is a human that the bears befriend.  He agrees to keep their identities in confidence and helps them unlock their great book of gummi.  The book has a lot of valuable information about the old civilization in it like magic spells and such.

Princess Calla - is, well, a princess.  She doesn’t want to be a Princess like her dad wants to be.  She also befriends the gummies like Cavin and is close friends with Sunni Gummi.  

Grammi Gummi- she is also an elder bear who wants to also keep tradition alive.  She takes care of the group via cleaning and cooking and she’s the only one who knows the recipe for gummi berry juice.  Guess what?  I too know most of the ingredients for gummi beary juice, so listen up as this message will self destruct in 30 seconds.  

You need 6 handfuls of red berries, 4 blue berries, 4 orange berries, 3 purple berries, 1 yellow berry, 3 green berries and a few other secret ingredients.  After combining the ingredients together, you first have to stir slow to the right, then slow to the left and then bang on the pot to get out the bubbles.  And in case you didn’t know, gummy beary juice is special because if the gummi bears drink it, they temporarily can bounce really high which helps with getting away from people and villains who are trying to capture them.

And speaking of villains, most episodes of the show revolve around the Gummi Bears trying to not get discovered by humans or be bothered by Duke Sigmund Igthorn and his angry army of ogres.  His right hand man, or ogre, is named Toadwart or “Toadie” for short.  He is the smallest of the ogres, however he is the smartest.  The Duke and his band of ogres are often trying to steal gummy beary juice because it provides temporary super human strength to humans when they drink it.

After shifting TV stations to run episodes on, the Gummi Bears came to an end on September 6, 1991.  The show seemed to be pretty popular as it was shown in many countries abroad like Japan, Germany, Poland and France, but all good things must come to an end.   That being said, you can now watch all of the episodes of the show on Disney+.  You know where you can find me for the next several Friday nights.  

All of this talk about bears reminds me of my all-time favorite onion articles entitled:  My Teddy Bear Collection is Fucking Great.”  

If you are an avid-listener of the show, then you’ll know how much I love the Onion and referring to applicable articles based on the topic of the show.  And if you aren’t an avid listener of the show or if you are not familiar with the Onion, it is a satirical newspaper that pokes fun at pretty much anything from celebrities to health tips to politics. This article was also one of my sister’s favorite articles, we used to read it to each other all of the time and laughed until we cried.  Please note though that there is some adult humor and language in this article, if it wasn’t obvious from the title.  And just like with other shows, I am really not able to read this in my regular voice.  I’m trying to channel the picture of the woman who wrote the article who is not a real person, but looks like a woman stuck in the 1980s.  Here we go:  READ ARTICLE.

Brenda, I couldn't agree with you more.

I hope you have enjoyed this look back on some of the famous bears from the 1980s.  I think you’d be hard pressed to find someone who grew up during this time that isn’t familiar with at least one of the bears (or groups of bears) that we discussed.  I found so much material that I had to stick with just 3 bears or bear groups to focus on.

If you are enjoying the podcast, please rate it on your favorite podcast platform.  Please tell your family and friends about the show.  Tweet about it.  Post on instagram or Facebook about it.  

I hope you will join me for my next show where we will be discussing……..UTBKBSAHOTYM.