In 1902, U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt went on a bear hunting trip in Mississippi with Governor Andrew H. Longino. During the trip, everybody but Roosevelt had killed an animal. A group of men on the tour, cornered, clubbed and tied an American black bear to a willow tree. The man called for Roosevelt to shoot and kill the bear, Roosevelt refused, saying it would be unsportsmanlike, but that they should kill the bear to put it out of its misery. The incident turned into a political cartoon. Initially, the cartoon had an adult black bear, but later issues made the bear smaller and cuter.
Morris Michtom saw the political cartoon and was inspired to create the “Teddy Bear.” Teddy was Roosevelt’s nickname. Michtom created the bear, and sent one to Roosevelt to gain permission for using his name, which Roosevelt granted. The bear became an immediate success. The bears even inspired a song called “The Teddy Bears Picnic.”
Roosevelt’s term as President was ending and toy makers feared the Teddy Bear wouldn’t sell as well, with Roosevelt no longer being President. The toy makers sought a new stuffed animal based on the new incoming President, William Taft.
In 1909, at a banquet in his honor, President-elect Taft ate an 18 pound roasted Possum. The meal made the rounds and gave toy makers the idea for the next big thing, “Billy Possum.” Billy was a small plush possum and was supposed to make Teddy Bears obsolete. In early 1909, thousands of Billy Possum stuffed animals were made as well as countless memorabilia. The toy makers made a big marketing push that stated Billy Possum as the future and Teddy Bears as a relic from the past.
Billy Possum flopped. The toy didn’t even last on store shelves until Christmas time, which is the time of the most sales in the toy industry. Today retail sales of Teddy Bears are over $1 billion dollars. Teddy bears have inspired or been the principal character in movies and shows like Ted, Super Ted and Care Bears. There are famous stores like Build-A-Bear that are conceptualized around building your own Teddy Bear. How did one stuffed animal inspired by a former President, remain iconic today and another flop so badly it didn’t last a year? Read on to find out.
1. Roosevelt vs Taft
Theodore Roosevelt remains one of America’s most iconic Presidents. His face is on Mount Rushmore with most of our iconic Presidents. He established many national parks, forests and monuments. They awarded Roosevelt the Noble Peace prize while in office; he started construction on the Panama Canal and is one of the five best Presidents ever. The American public loved Teddy, so it only makes sense a toy inspired by him would be a runaway success.
Taft is best known as the only President to become a Supreme Court Justice after serving as President. His first year in office did not go well, as he just wasn’t the same man as his predecessor. Taft only served one term as Woodrow Wilson defeated him in his reelection bid. The reason for the loss was Roosevelt split the Republican vote when he ran as a third-party candidate against Taft. Roosevelt was so disgusted with Taft, his hand-picked successor, he ran against him. Taft had nowhere near the goodwill with the U.S. public that Roosevelt had. It’s the modern equivalent of a toy inspired by Gerald Ford or Jimmy Carter. It will not sell well because both are footnotes in American History and not etched in stone on one of America’s famous monuments.
2. Story origins
Roosevelt’s story is based on the portrayal of him being morally upright, with the guts to do the right thing. They always portrayed him as a manly man, that other men should strive to be like. Roosevelt was the equivalent to a modern day superhero, so a toy inspired by him would sell like hot cakes.
Taft’s story is based on him essentially gorging on a 18 lb marsupial. Taft weighed over 350 lbs, and they installed a special enormous bathtub in the White House before he was inaugurated. Though we have hot dog eating contests today, a toy based on the eating habits of a president, won’t exactly rile up kids to run to the toy store to purchase it.
3. Bear vs Possum
A bear is not the cute, cuddly animal that it’s depicted to be in cartoons and Teddy Bears, but the myth lives on. Most people don’t have many encounters with bears, so the cute and cuddly image is believable. People don’t consider bears a disgusting animal.
A possum is a nocturnal animal, best known for being a nuisance in some regions and also playing dead or “possum” when it’s scared. There is nothing cute or cuddly about a possum. Possums never inspired any tv show or movie. It’s a reason you won’t find stuffed possums on toy shelves in stores, it would sell poorly. A toy based on a bear instead of a possum is just more marketable, likeable and makes better business sense.
The toy manufacturers couldn’t see that the three listed itemized things made the Teddy Bear successful, and not the occupant of the White House.
You see this tale told over and over in retail. An item becomes successful and other imitators try to tweak it or change the idea slightly, and expect it to sell as well as the first item. The thing is the reason the first item sold so well is the creativity and ingenuity that went into the first one. The people can sense an imitation or poor substitute. Essentially, Billy Possum was a poor take on the Teddy Bear in every shape and form.
