Chrysti the Wordsmith > Radio Scripts

Theodore Roosevelt stands as a colossus amongst U.S. presidents. During his administration from 1901-1909, Roosevelt fought for decent hours and fair wages for workers and championed the abolition of child labor. He negotiated the treaty for the Panama Canal construction in 1903, and was instrumental in passing the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1906. Americans admired Roosevelt for his enthusiasm for adventure, for hunting, horseback riding, climbing and hiking. Affectionately known as "Teddy", he popularized the expressions "bully!" and "speak softly and carry a big stick".

This president is responsible for another, perhaps lesser known linguistic and cultural legacy. The story begins in 1902 when Roosevelt took a bear-hunting trip to Mississippi. Not wanting the president to return to the White House without a trophy, Roosevelt's hosts captured a brown bear cub for him to shoot, but the president couldn't bring himself to fire on the helpless creature.

That gesture impressed the reporters who were traveling with the hunting party. They filed the story, and the following day, newspapers across the country were splashed with the account of Roosevelt's compassion toward the bear cub.

Inspired by this tale, a New York candy store owner named Morris Michtom fashioned a small, plush toy he called "Teddy's Bear" and displayed it in his window. This was the prototype of the enduringly popular teddy bear, the favorite toy for generations of children around the world.

Radio Script > Teddy Bear