Yes it was a wild animal. Lived in the wild. BUT...My buddy has bears in his yard that play his with dogs but he doesnt consider them tame. This kids riding on him, petting him is urban legend. It was not tame by any means. It was an old bear in a populated area, so it learned to be less afraid of humans but it would be scared off and worse kill a human.
It's not like this guy went to the zoo and shot a bear. It was wild, traveled, mated, hibernated.
It was basically tame, they did have kids petting and sitting on him. It was hand-fed pies and such it's whole life.
This came directly from the friends of the guy that "raised" it.