Same Story, Different Artist - Caged Animals

This one story has the unique experience of having been reprinted three times within a period of fourteen years. It first appeared in 1973, then again in 1978, and once again in 1987. Now, those who have read these, know that there were two artists during this time--Lorin Thompson and Alton Langford. What's the big deal if there are only two artists...then there are two different interpretations of the story, right? Wrong! There are actually three different artistic interpretations of the story because the story originally written in 1973 was changed in 1978, so Lorin Thompson had to make new drawings for the updated story. What changed? The characters in the story did...a couple of the characters in the 1973 story were not part of the gang by the late 1970s, so other regulars were put into their place. Langford's take on the story in 1987 is based on the 1978 version of the story.

Let's take a look at all the differences here.

Images © 1973, 1978, 1987, the National Wildlife Federation, used with permission.

Drawings by Lorin Thompson and Alton Langford, where applicable.

From top to bottom: 1973, then 1978, then 1987.

The first image here gives an idea of how the story begins, and its different in all three stories. In 1973, Jack Rabbit, Ollie Otter, and Ranger Rick are discussing how they're no longer as thin as they once were because they were not running from Wally Wolf as often. It was then that they all wondered where Wally had actually gone because they hadn't seen him in some time. In 1978, the discussion between Sammy Squirrel, Becky Hare, and Ranger Rick revolves around not seeing Cubby Bear in some time, and Sammy had found him locked in a cage. The 1987 reprinting had a similar cast of characters (Scarlett Fox replaces Ollie Otter) and it starts out with the characters discussing the fact they're on vacation. The discussion eventually turns to Cubby Bear who they had not seen in a spell. The drawings are all very different simply because the story was written differently three times, so even Thompson had to redraw what was going on.

From top to bottom, 1973, then 1978, then 1987.

Again, all three images are very different from one another because the story is different in all three situations. In 1973, Wally Wolf was the unfortunate member of the cast who was trapped in a cage behind a gas station. Cubby Bear was actually there to help rescue him. If you go ahead to 1978, Cubby Bear was the one in the cage, and this situation is repeated in 1987. It had to happen because Wally Wolf as a regular character (who actually chased Ranger Rick, Jack Rabbit and others with the intention of killing and eating him!) was phased out as a recurring character by about 1975. Without the wolf, a new character had to be trapped in a cage...why anyone would attempt to trap a bear is beyond me, but Cubby Bear became the unfortunate trapped animal.

The whole point of the story is not to keep exotic and wild animals as pets or support roadside zoos that trap them for profit. With the decrease of travel on backroads in favor of more efficient highways, this tourist event has largely disappeared, though you often hear of those stories of people keeping tigers or alligators as pets, and the only way we find out about it is when the animal escapes and life is threatened. All three drawings quickly portray the fact that humans are not the best caretakers when it comes to wild animals and the animals should be left in the wild. I do not find a preference with any one of the three illustrations because all three get the point across accurately. Hopefully the roadside zoo has gone the way of the dodo by now!

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