*Smokey the Bear, a real bear cub orphaned in a forest fire, had been used in a series of ads by the National Forest Service and had proven popular. The Forest Service approached [Malcolm] Ater about producing a comic and the result was 1950’s Forest Fire. This is a lovely book. The character was created by Rudy Wendelein, and that the art is by Wendelein and Sparling. Mr Wendelien is indeed a skilled cartoonist, with a style that enables him to render the cartoony Smokey and two small bear cubs (in trousers and a dress) next to their realistic animal chums and humans in a seamless manner. This is the first Smokey and predates the Dell series by five years. Smokey the Bear is the longest running advertising campaign in the United States.
*Source: tomchristopher.com