The following is a list of individual bears (other than individual giant pandas) which garnered national or worldwide attention. For a list of fictional bears, see List of fictional bears.
Actors Bart the Bear, a male Alaskan Kodiak bear, played the leading role in the 1988 wilderness drama, The Bear. Between 1980 and his death in 2000, he also appeared in many other films, including White Fang, Legends of the Fall, and The Edge, and was called "the John Wayne of Bears". Bart the Bear 2 (named after the original Bart the Bear, also called "Little Bart"), a male interior Alaskan brown bear, has appeared in several films including An Unfinished Life, Into the Wild, and We Bought a Zoo, and TV shows including CSI, Scrubs, and Game of Thrones. He and his sister Honey Bump were also featured in the TV documentaries Growing Up Grizzly and Growing Up Grizzly 2 on the Animal Planet network. Bonkers, a 650-pound male American black bear, has been in films like The Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story and as the title character, "Gentle Ben" in the remake, Gentle Ben (2002), and Gentle Ben 2. Bonkers starred in a 2004 movie called A Bear Named Winnie as the adult Winnie, starring Michael Fassbender as Colebourn. He was in a commercial for the Black Bear Casino Resort. Bozo, a female Kodiak bear, had a co-starring role in the NBC TV series The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams from 1977 to 1978. She played "Benjamin Franklin" aka "Ben", the constant companion of "Grizzly Adams" (played by Dan Haggerty). She also appeared in the films The Night of the Grizzly (1966) and King of the Grizzlies (1970). Brody, a male Kodiak bear, has appeared in numerous films, television shows, commercials, and print ads. He has worked with wildlife photographers and appeared on the cover of National Geographic Magazine. Brody and his owner, Jeff Watson, have appeared throughout the United States for educational programs focusing on bears and safety. Bruno, a male American black bear, appeared as the primary bear actor in the lead role of "Ben" in the 1967 feature film Gentle Giant and the subsequent U.S. television series Gentle Ben from 1967 to 1969. In 1968 he won two PATSY Awards for his work on the film and series. He later received positive reviews for his performance as "Watch Bear" opposite Paul Newman in the 1972 film The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean. Hercules, a male grizzly bear born in captivity in Scotland and originally trained as a wrestling bear, became a regular star of British children's television and appeared in the James Bond film Octopussy. He made news in 1980 when he escaped from his trainer and owner, Andy Robin, while filming a Kleenex commercial in Scotland. Brutus, a male grizzly bear who is the companion of naturalist and television presenter Casey Anderson, appeared with Anderson in the syndicated Nat Geo documentary television series Expedition Wild. Brutus has had small roles in two feature films, Iron Ridge (2008) and Pretty Ugly People (2008), as well as appearing in numerous educational bear videos. Rocky, a male grizzly bear trained by Randy Miller, appeared in the 2008 film Semi-Pro as "Dewey the Killer Bear", in which he wrestled Will Ferrell's body double. On April 22, 2008, Rocky killed trainer Stephan Miller while the two were filming a bear wrestling stunt for a promotional video. The death was later ruled accidental and Rocky was allowed to continue to live under restrictions. Teddy, a male Kodiak bear, starred in the 1976 film Grizzly where he portrayed a killer grizzly bear. Whopper, a male Kodiak bear, has appeared in films including Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Grizzly Falls, Air Bud: Golden Receiver, Escape to Grizzly Mountain and The Last Trapper. He is known for his scary bear act where he stands on his hind legs and does a simulated roar.
Wrestlers and performers Hercules, a male grizzly bear owned and trained by Scottish wrestler Andy Robin, appeared on the UK wrestling circuit before becoming known as an actor. Sackerson, the most famous bear used in the beargardens of Elizabethan England. It is rumoured, though unlikely, that Sackerson or a bear of his ilk played the part of the bear in A Winter's Tale. Terrible Ted, a male American black bear from Canada trained by Canadian wrestler Dave McKigney, wrestled regularly for various North American promotions from the 1950s until the 1970s. Victor the Wrestling Bear, a male American black bear (reported by some sources as an Alaskan brown bear) from Canada trained by American wrestler Tuffy Truesdell, wrestled for various North American promotions and also as an attraction at ABA games, sports shows and fairs, starting in the late 1950s. Victor also made several TV appearances including The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and was in the 1969 film Paint Your Wagon with Clint Eastwood and Lee Marvin. The original Victor died in the mid-1970s from a heart attack and Truesdell, who owned and trained a number of bears, transferred the name to another bear and continued the act until the mid-1980s. Truesdell may also have had several bears working under the "Victor" name.
Mascots
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