History of Joe and Josephine Bruin

Joe and Josephine Bruin are such beloved mascots that it’s hard to imagine a time when UCLA had a different mascot. But it actually wasn’t until 1926 that the university settled on the Bruins. Even after the mascot was chosen, the Bruin image changed quite a bit over the years.

Read more to learn about the evolution of UCLA’s mascot:

Since UCLA started out as a younger sibling to UC Berkeley, the natural choice for a mascot was the Cubs. According to a Daily Bruin article, UCLA also had a live mascot in its founding years: a stray dog named Rags.

In 1924, UCLA decided to rebrand; the Cubs were all set to grow into fierce Grizzlies. However, the University of Montana had already claimed the name for its mascot, so UCLA changed its mascot one last time to the Bruin.

Since then, there have been several Bruin designs. According to the Daily Bruin, the 1920-1930s designs were Mickey Mouse-like, eventually morphing into the design known today. The mascot’s fashion also changed from turtlenecks in the 1940s to basketball jerseys in the 1960s and 1970s.

According to the Daily Bruin, UCLA even had live bear mascots between 1950-1960, which is where Joe and Josephine Bruin got their names. The first Joe Bruin was a Himalayan bear cub that eventually had to be sent to the circus because it outgrew its caretakers’ capacity to handle it. Josephine Bruin was also a bear cub and she was kept in the backyard of the Rally Committee chairman until she grew too big and moved to the San Diego Zoo.

No matter whether the UCLA mascot is a live bear or a cartoon one, the spirit of the Bruins remains the same.