Timothy Treadwell

Timothy Treadwell (born Timothy William Dexter; April 29, 1957 – October 5, 2003) was an American bear enthusiast, environmentalist, documentary filmmaker, and founder of the bear-protection organization Grizzly People.

He lived among coastal brown bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) in Katmai National Park, Alaska, for 13 summers.

According to his book, Among Grizzlies: Living with Wild Bears in Alaska, his mission to protect bears began in the late 1980s after he had survived a near-fatal heroin overdose.

He claims in his book that his drug addiction grew from his alcoholism and attributed his recovery from drug and alcohol addictions entirely to his relationship with bears.

Treadwell spent the early part of each season camping on the 'Big Green', an open area of bear grass in Hallo Bay on the Katmai Coast.

He called the area the "Grizzly Sanctuary".

Treadwell was known for getting extremely close to the bears he observed, sometimes even touching them and playing with bear cubs.

In his book, though, he claimed that he was always careful with the bears and actually developed a sense of mutual trust and respect with the animals.

He habitually named the bears he encountered and consistently saw many of the same bears each summer, and thus claimed to be building a standing relationship with them.

In contrast, Tom Smith, a research ecologist with the Alaska Science Center of the U.S. Geological Service declared that Treadwell "...was breaking every park rule that there was, in terms of distance to the bears, harassing wildlife, and interfering with natural processes. Right off the bat, his personal mission was at odds with the park service. He had been warned repeatedly."

Referring to Treadwell's death, Smith concluded, "It's a tragic thing, but it's not unpredictable."

During the latter part of each summer, he would move to Kaflia Bay and camp in an area of especially thick brush he called the "Grizzly Maze".

Here, the chances of crossing paths with wild bears were much higher, since the location intersected bear trails.

Treadwell recorded almost 100 hours of video footage (some of which was later used to create the documentary Grizzly Man) and produced a large collection of still photographs.

Treadwell claimed to be alone with the wildlife on several occasions in his videos.

However his girlfriend, Amie, was with him during parts of the last three summers (the documentary says two summers) and at the time of their deaths.

Other women Treadwell dated, who remain anonymous, also accompanied him on some expeditions.

In 1987, he legally changed his surname from Dexter to Treadwell, a name from his mother's family that he had used informally for some years.

A lover of animals since he was a child, Treadwell decided to travel to Alaska to watch bears after a close friend persuaded him to do so.

He wrote that after his first encounter with a wild bear he knew he had found his calling in life and that now his destiny was entwined with those of the bears.

Treadwell studied the bears during summer seasons for 13 years before being killed by one of them.

By 2001 Treadwell became sufficiently notable to receive extensive media attention both on television and in environmental circles, and he made frequent public appearances as an environmental activist.

He traveled throughout the United States to educate school children about bears and appeared on the Discovery Channel, the Late Show with David Letterman, and Dateline NBC to discuss his experiences.

He also cowrote Among Grizzlies: Living with Wild Bears in Alaska with Jewel Palovak (his coworker with whom he lived for 20 years), which describes Treadwell's adventures on the Alaska Peninsula.

Treadwell and Palovak founded Grizzly People, an organization devoted to protecting bears and preserving their wilderness habitat.

Naturalist Charlie Russell, who studied bears, raised them, and lived with them in Kamchatka, Russia, for a decade, worked with Treadwell.

Russell advised Treadwell to carry pepper spray and use electric fences.

He originally refrained from commenting on Treadwell after he was killed, but after Grizzly Man was released he wrote a lengthy critique of Treadwell's failure to follow basic safety precautions.

In spite of his criticism of Treadwell, Russell praised him for his devotion to bears and his ability to remain alive for so long.

He defended him against people who criticized his work, writing, "If Timothy had spent those 13 years killing bears and guiding others to do the same, eventually being killed by one, he would have been remembered in Alaska with great admiration."

Russell was critical of Grizzly Man, saying it was unfair to Treadwell, and if Palovak "really was a protector of bears, she should have looked for a filmmaker who would have been sympathetic towards them."

On October 5, 2003, Treadwell and his girlfriend Amie Huguenard were killed and almost fully eaten by a 28-year-old male bear whose stomach was later found to contain human remains and clothing.

Treadwell's life, work, and death were the subject of Werner Herzog's critically acclaimed documentary film Grizzly Man (2005).

Treadwell was born in Mineola, Long Island, New York, one of five children of Val Dexter and Carol Ann (née Bartell).

He attended Connetquot High School, where he was the swimming team's star diver.

He was very fond of animals and kept a squirrel named Willie as a pet.

In an interview in Grizzly Man (2005), his parents say he was an ordinary young man until he went away to college.

He attended Bradley University on a swimming and diving scholarship.

There, he claimed to be a British orphan and on other occasions claimed that he was from Australia.

According to this account, his father said Timothy "spiraled down" and became an alcoholic after he lost the role of Woody Boyd to Woody Harrelson in the sitcom Cheers.