1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,920 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:15,160 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hello and Welcome to This Day in History Class, 3 00:00:15,560 --> 00:00:18,120 Speaker 1: a show that flips through the pages of the past 4 00:00:18,560 --> 00:00:22,239 Speaker 1: to deliver old news in a new way. I'm Gabe 5 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:25,599 Speaker 1: Lousier and in this episode, we're looking at the day 6 00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:30,000 Speaker 1: when a kind hearted bear from Deepest Darkest Peru made 7 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:42,040 Speaker 1: his first appearance on bookstore shelves. The day was October night, 8 00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:46,600 Speaker 1: A marmalade loving bear cub appeared for the first time 9 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:51,600 Speaker 1: when A Bear called Paddington was published. The book was 10 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:56,240 Speaker 1: written by Michael Bond and featured warm, detailed illustrations by 11 00:00:56,280 --> 00:01:02,080 Speaker 1: Peggy Fortnum. Paddington Bear, or B for short, quickly became 12 00:01:02,120 --> 00:01:05,280 Speaker 1: one of the most beloved and best known characters in 13 00:01:05,400 --> 00:01:10,600 Speaker 1: all of literature, children's or otherwise as for the man 14 00:01:10,680 --> 00:01:14,920 Speaker 1: behind the bear. Michael Bond was born in Berkshire, England, 15 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:19,120 Speaker 1: in nineteen twenty six. During the Second World War, he 16 00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:23,120 Speaker 1: served in both the Royal Air Force and the British Army, 17 00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:25,600 Speaker 1: and it was during his time in the Army that 18 00:01:25,720 --> 00:01:28,840 Speaker 1: he began to write short stories. He was good at 19 00:01:28,880 --> 00:01:32,760 Speaker 1: it too. In nineteen forty five he sold his very 20 00:01:32,840 --> 00:01:37,000 Speaker 1: first short story to a magazine for seven guineas. That 21 00:01:37,200 --> 00:01:40,560 Speaker 1: was quite a payday, the equivalent of over three hundred 22 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:45,520 Speaker 1: pounds or four hundred dollars today. After the war, Bond 23 00:01:45,560 --> 00:01:49,160 Speaker 1: continued to write short stories and plays, and also began 24 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:53,720 Speaker 1: working as a television cameraman for the BBC years later. 25 00:01:53,880 --> 00:01:56,920 Speaker 1: While searching for last minute gifts on Christmas Eve in 26 00:01:57,040 --> 00:02:01,440 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty six, Bond came across a small toy bear. 27 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:04,760 Speaker 1: It was sitting alone on a shelf in a London 28 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:09,400 Speaker 1: department store near the Paddington railway station. He took pity 29 00:02:09,440 --> 00:02:11,720 Speaker 1: on the bear and decided to bring it home as 30 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:15,040 Speaker 1: a present for his wife, Brenda. A few days later, 31 00:02:15,520 --> 00:02:20,040 Speaker 1: Bond noticed the stuffed bear on the mantelpiece and inspiration struck. 32 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:24,480 Speaker 1: He borrowed the name Paddington from the nearby station and 33 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:27,480 Speaker 1: began to write a story about a little bear who 34 00:02:27,520 --> 00:02:32,480 Speaker 1: turned up there after traveling from darkss Peru. Bond later 35 00:02:32,520 --> 00:02:36,600 Speaker 1: spoke about this pivotal moment, saying quote, when I wrote 36 00:02:36,600 --> 00:02:39,799 Speaker 1: those few words, I had no idea quite what a 37 00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:43,000 Speaker 1: change they would eventually make to my life. It was 38 00:02:43,040 --> 00:02:45,880 Speaker 1: really a case of putting something down on paper to 39 00:02:45,919 --> 00:02:49,840 Speaker 1: get my brain working. That morning, But what began as 40 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:54,800 Speaker 1: an exercise soon became a favorite pastime, with Bond writing 41 00:02:54,919 --> 00:02:59,360 Speaker 1: story after story for his own amusement. After a while, 42 00:02:59,720 --> 00:03:03,400 Speaker 1: he realized children might like his stories too, so, just 43 00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:07,680 Speaker 1: two years after meeting Paddington himself, Bond introduced the Bear 44 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:10,960 Speaker 1: to the world in a collection of eight short stories, 45 00:03:11,560 --> 00:03:15,680 Speaker 1: the first of many more to come. In the book's 46 00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:20,400 Speaker 1: opening story, the Brown family discovers a small Peruvian bear 47 00:03:20,639 --> 00:03:25,359 Speaker 1: sitting on his suitcase at Paddington's station. Upon closer inspection, 48 00:03:25,760 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 1: they find a label around his neck that reads, please 49 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:34,600 Speaker 1: look after this bear. The bear, who quite helpfully speaks English, 50 00:03:34,840 --> 00:03:38,080 Speaker 1: tells the Brown family that he traveled to Britain from 51 00:03:38,080 --> 00:03:42,120 Speaker 1: his home in Darkess, Peru by stowing away in a lifeboat. 52 00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:45,880 Speaker 1: He had come all that way because his Aunt Lucy 53 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:49,600 Speaker 1: recently went to live in a home for retired bears, 54 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:52,200 Speaker 1: and she had hoped that a kind hearted family in 55 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:55,840 Speaker 1: London might look after the cub in her place. The 56 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:59,840 Speaker 1: Brown family, much like the Bond family, takes pity on 57 00:03:59,840 --> 00:04:02,520 Speaker 1: the little bear, who had made the long journey with 58 00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:06,400 Speaker 1: just a jar of homemade marmalade to sustain him, So 59 00:04:06,480 --> 00:04:10,240 Speaker 1: the family grants Aunt Lucy's wish and brings the hapless 60 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:13,480 Speaker 1: bear home to live with them. He tells the Browns 61 00:04:13,600 --> 00:04:17,080 Speaker 1: that although he has a Peruvian name, which readers later 62 00:04:17,160 --> 00:04:20,680 Speaker 1: learn is Pastuso, no one in London would be able 63 00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:24,320 Speaker 1: to understand it, so the family decides to call him Paddington, 64 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:28,360 Speaker 1: after the station where they found him. During the war, 65 00:04:28,880 --> 00:04:32,400 Speaker 1: Michael Bond's early writing had helped him cope with and 66 00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:36,640 Speaker 1: process the stark realities he witnessed as a soldier. Some 67 00:04:36,800 --> 00:04:42,120 Speaker 1: of those haunting experiences were later expressed through Paddington. For example, 68 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:45,640 Speaker 1: Bond had been moved by the site of thousands of 69 00:04:45,760 --> 00:04:51,280 Speaker 1: child evacuees who traveled with cardboard tags around their necks. 70 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:54,560 Speaker 1: Some of these children were Jewish refugees who had been 71 00:04:54,560 --> 00:04:58,560 Speaker 1: sent across Europe to safety, and others were British children 72 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:01,960 Speaker 1: who were being sent away to the rural countryside after 73 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:07,080 Speaker 1: the Nazis began bombing British cities. These extreme measures were 74 00:05:07,120 --> 00:05:10,320 Speaker 1: for the children's own good, but Bond couldn't help but 75 00:05:10,440 --> 00:05:14,919 Speaker 1: notice how dehumanizing the process felt. He later wrote this 76 00:05:15,040 --> 00:05:18,920 Speaker 1: discomfort into the opening chapter of A Bear called Paddington. 77 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:23,839 Speaker 1: Mrs Brown tells her husband quote and for goodness sake, 78 00:05:24,080 --> 00:05:26,839 Speaker 1: when you get a moment take that label off his 79 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:30,719 Speaker 1: neck and makes him look like a parcel. It's worth 80 00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:35,520 Speaker 1: noting that Paddington is himself a refugee, an aspect of 81 00:05:35,600 --> 00:05:38,640 Speaker 1: his character that's only become more relevant in the years 82 00:05:38,640 --> 00:05:42,599 Speaker 1: since his debut. Michael Bond spoke to this directly in 83 00:05:42,680 --> 00:05:47,359 Speaker 1: two thousand and eight and recognition of Paddington's fiftieth anniversary, 84 00:05:47,560 --> 00:05:51,560 Speaker 1: he said, quote, there is this side of Paddington's the 85 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:55,120 Speaker 1: Browns don't really understand at all what it's like to 86 00:05:55,160 --> 00:05:59,080 Speaker 1: be a refugee, not to be in your own country. 87 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:03,359 Speaker 1: Despite at this distance, the Browns quickly learned along with 88 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:08,359 Speaker 1: readers that Paddington is an exceptionally well mannered and prudent bear. 89 00:06:09,120 --> 00:06:12,480 Speaker 1: He even keeps an emergency marmalade sandwich under his hat 90 00:06:12,839 --> 00:06:17,840 Speaker 1: just in case. Now. Peru isn't exactly known for its marmalade, 91 00:06:18,200 --> 00:06:22,800 Speaker 1: but Paddington almost didn't come from Peru anyway. Originally, Bond 92 00:06:22,839 --> 00:06:27,039 Speaker 1: wrote that Paddington hailed from Darkest Africa, but then his 93 00:06:27,120 --> 00:06:30,280 Speaker 1: agent pointed out that bear Stone actually live in Africa, 94 00:06:30,680 --> 00:06:33,560 Speaker 1: so he switched it to Peru. And if you're wondering 95 00:06:33,600 --> 00:06:37,600 Speaker 1: what kind of bear that makes Paddington. Geographically, there's only 96 00:06:37,640 --> 00:06:42,400 Speaker 1: one answer. The Andean spectacled bear, the only one that's 97 00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:47,000 Speaker 1: native to Peru. Real ones look a bit different from Paddington, 98 00:06:47,400 --> 00:06:51,400 Speaker 1: but they are docile and omnivorous, which means they probably 99 00:06:51,400 --> 00:06:54,960 Speaker 1: wouldn't turn down a marmalade sandwich because, after all, as 100 00:06:55,040 --> 00:07:00,440 Speaker 1: the author informs us, bears love marmalade. Equally true is 101 00:07:00,480 --> 00:07:04,880 Speaker 1: that readers love Paddington. His adventures have been translated into 102 00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:08,120 Speaker 1: forty different languages and have sold more than thirty five 103 00:07:08,200 --> 00:07:13,480 Speaker 1: million copies worldwide. There's also a Paddington film series that 104 00:07:13,560 --> 00:07:17,000 Speaker 1: perfectly captures the earnest, good nature and humor of the 105 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:22,160 Speaker 1: original books. Highly recommended. Paddington may be known for his 106 00:07:22,240 --> 00:07:25,880 Speaker 1: old hat, duffle coat, and yes, his love of marmalade, 107 00:07:26,360 --> 00:07:29,760 Speaker 1: but his real defining features are his sense of fairness 108 00:07:29,800 --> 00:07:34,440 Speaker 1: and boundless optimism. These traits are reflections of the author's 109 00:07:34,440 --> 00:07:37,920 Speaker 1: own values and of the belief that the world could 110 00:07:37,920 --> 00:07:40,880 Speaker 1: be a friendlier place if we all approached it with 111 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:46,520 Speaker 1: a little more patience and wonder. I'm gay, Bluesier and 112 00:07:46,640 --> 00:07:50,480 Speaker 1: hopefully you now know a little more about history today 113 00:07:50,560 --> 00:07:53,640 Speaker 1: than you did yesterday. If you'd like to keep up 114 00:07:53,640 --> 00:07:56,680 Speaker 1: with the show, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, 115 00:07:56,680 --> 00:08:01,600 Speaker 1: and Instagram at t D I HC Show Special Thanks 116 00:08:01,600 --> 00:08:05,480 Speaker 1: to listener Aaron Douglas for suggesting the topic of today's show. 117 00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:10,400 Speaker 1: She actually shares a birthday with Paddington, so happy birthday, Aaron. 118 00:08:10,920 --> 00:08:14,200 Speaker 1: I hope it's filled with marmalade, sandwiches or at least 119 00:08:14,200 --> 00:08:16,960 Speaker 1: a cake or two. And if anyone else has a 120 00:08:17,040 --> 00:08:20,080 Speaker 1: historical topic they'd like to hear on the show, you 121 00:08:20,120 --> 00:08:23,480 Speaker 1: can send your suggestions to This Day at i heart 122 00:08:23,520 --> 00:08:27,560 Speaker 1: media dot com. Thanks as always to Chandler Mays for 123 00:08:27,600 --> 00:08:30,840 Speaker 1: producing the show, and thank you for listening. I'll see 124 00:08:30,880 --> 00:08:34,559 Speaker 1: you back here again tomorrow for another day in History Class. 125 00:08:41,760 --> 00:08:43,800 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the I 126 00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:46,480 Speaker 1: heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 127 00:08:46,520 --> 00:08:47,320 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.