DANCING (CARE) BEARS

Pink Christmas: Grateful Dead’s Care Bears Coolers Are Back In Stock for the Holidays

With Care Bears replacing dancing bears, the officially-licensed Igloo cooler is perfect for your next long strange trip

By John Lonsdale

John Lonsdale

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December 13, 2022

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Courtesy Igloo

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The tailgate lot before your next Dead show is about to get a little more retro — and a whole lot more fun. The Grateful Dead and the iconic Eighties animated Care Bear characters have come together for cooler company Igloo’s latest colorful collaboration. The release is officially dubbed the Grateful Dead Dancing Bears Little Playmate, and it’s back online for the holidays.

Grateful-Dead-Care-Bears-Cooler

Buy Grateful Dead x Care Bears Igloo Cooler $39.99

The officially-licensed collaboration features a Deadhead-inspired take on the classic Playmate Cooler. The design sees pink Care Bears in place of the Dead’s dancing bears, with the band’s Steal Your Face symbol on the Care Bear’s stomach. According to the cooler company, you can store a tailgate’s worth of 12-ounce cans (nine total) in the seven-quart Little Playmate. The cooler is also a good size for smaller food items or bottles of water, plus a small ice pack or bag of ice.

“This is the triple collab that brings smiles to our faces, rock and roll to our spirits and ice-cold drinks in our hands,” says Brian Garofalow, Igloo’s chief marketing officer, in a statement. “For decades, the iconic Grateful Dead and the lovable Care Bears have represented peace, love, community and lots of color, so it made perfect sense to join them into a design on the fan-favorite Playmate — the cooler that’s been bringing people together during good times since 1971.”

The Care Bears collaboration isn’t the only time Igloo has released a cooler for Deadheads. The company has previously launched other Grateful Dead coolers and cooler backpacks featuring Steal Your Face designs and other Dead-inspired motifs. Igloo has churned out a ton of other cooler collabs in the past, too, from Harry Potter and Simpsons-themed haulers to NFL and NASCAR carriers.

Igloo is part of several other brands that offer officially-licensed Grateful Dead gear. Over the last few years, companies from outdoor brand Slowtide to collectibles manufacturers like Kollectico have announced official merch for fans to collect. That includes everything from camping blankets to dancing skeleton bobbleheads and more. Even brands like the Parks Project and fashion companies like Levi’s have recently released collections to celebrate the band.

Igloo-Grateful-Dead-Cooler-Care-Bears

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Buy Grateful Dead x Care Bears Igloo Cooler $39.99

Fans of the band and cartoon can snag the new, throwback-style Grateful Dead Dancing Care Bears Little Playmate on sale for under $40 right now on Igloo’s website. 

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