A.A. Milne (born in London 133 years ago on January 18, 1882) seemed determined not to become famous for children’s writing, at least judging by his output. He contributed humor pieces to “Punch” magazine before joining the staff in 1906 and becoming an assistant editor. He wrote for the screen when such a job description barely existed, and had four of his stories filmed in 1920. He churned out 18 plays, and tried his hand as a detective writer in a murder mystery released in 1922.

But a ravenous beast was stalking his career…a stuffed bear, which would devour his reputation as thoroughly as a pot of honey. Milne observed his son, Christopher Robin, playing with his stuffed toys and saw inspiration. There was Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Tigger, and the favorite of the bunch, a bear called….Edward. Somehow the names of a Canadian black bear called “Winnie” (for Winnipeg) and a swan called “Pooh” got mixed up after visits to the London Zoo, and the stuffed bear was aptly renamed. Winnie-the-Pooh first showed up in print on Christmas Eve 1925 in a story published in the London Evening News. Two books followed in 1926 and 1928, and Milne’s fate was set.

Milne’s goal had always been the freedom to write whatever he wanted. But the Pooh stories took off beyond his imaginings, and as he believed, locked him into the role of children’s writer. As he put it, “I said goodbye to all that” with his kids’ books. He continued branching out, adapting “The Wind in the Willows” for the stage and writing about international relations during the interwar period and World War II. (He had served in World War I, and was initially opposed to another war, but changed his position after Hitler strode onto the world stage.)

But it was Pooh that would define him, and he knew it. He died aged 74 in 1956 and split the lucrative Pooh rights between his family and multiple organizations he wanted to support. The rights now sit with Disney, which has turned the bear into a multi-billion dollar merchandising powerhouse. But while Disney has made Pooh bigger than life, his origins will always be small and cozy. Christopher Robin’s original toys are displayed under glass at the New York Public Library. And in London’s Ashdown Forest (the inspiration for Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood) sits a plaque containing words Milne penned himself: "In that enchanted place on the top of the forest a little boy and his bear will always be playing."

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