Here?s a character watch we never saw coming. To celebrate the 79th birthday of Smokey Bear (famous for his ?Only you can prevent wildfires? tagline), Vero is releasing a pair of officially licensed Smokey Bear watches. It?s actually a natural partnership for Vero. As a fire prevention mascot, Smokey is well known in the Pacific Northwest, where Vero is based. And Vero?s brand identity very much leans into the culture of love for the outdoors – it?s a huge part of every watch they make, both in terms of the aesthetics (with designs and colors inspired by Vero?s Oregon home) and their robust nature (the Workhorse comes immediately to mind). These new watches have a charm factor that?s just about off the charts if you grew up seeing Smokey on TV warning you about the dangers of forest fires, but they?re also Vero through and through. 
First up is the Smokey ?44 watch, which takes its inspiration from the types of early field style watches that would have been in use the year Smokey made his debut. The dominant feature here is the large cathedral hour hand, paired with Arabic numerals in a distinctive gothic typeface. Vero says this typeface was chosen to match iconic mid century signage found in the US National Parks System. The Smokey ?44 watch includes the familiar illustration of Smokey (wearing his hat, of course) at the 12:00 position, with ?Only You? text right underneath, a reference to his iconic catchphrase. 

The Smokey ?64 is perhaps a sligh...