Can you bear it? The famous teddy bear is more than 100 years old, and got its name from a United States president.
In 1902, President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt traveled to the American South to help resolve a land dispute between Mississippi and Louisiana. During the trip, he went bear hunting.
Days passed with no success for the president, but good fortune for the bears. Eventually, his guides captured a bear and offered it to Roosevelt to shoot, so he wouldn't return empty-handed.
Roosevelt flatly refused, deeming it unfair and cruel.
News of the president's decision spread, and a cartoonist for The Washington Star drew a picture of Roosevelt holding up his hand to say "No" to the bear. The cartoon was published nationwide, turning the already popular president into a hero.
Meanwhile, a small store owner in New York asked his wife to make a toy bear for sale. He displayed it in his shop window alongside a copy of the cartoon and a sign that read "Teddy's Bear."
The bear, and others like it, sold remarkably well, especially after President Roosevelt gave official permission to use his name. Eventually, the "s" was dropped, and "Teddy's Bear" became simply the "teddy bear."
So, the bear you may have slept with is actually a piece of history.