On this day in 1959, the first Barbie doll goes on display
at the American Toy Fair in New York City.
Eleven inches tall, with a waterfall of blond hair, Barbie
was the first mass-produced toy doll in the United States with adult features.
The woman behind Barbie was Ruth Handler, who co-founded Mattel, Inc. with her
husband in 1945. After seeing her young daughter ignore her baby dolls to play
make-believe with paper dolls of adult women, Handler realized there was an
important niche in the market for a toy that allowed little girls to imagine
the future.
Barbie’s appearance was modeled on a doll named Lilli, based
on a German comic strip character. Originally marketed as a racy gag gift to
adult men in tobacco shops, the Lilli doll later became extremely popular with
children. Mattel bought the rights to Lilli and made its own version, which
Handler named after her daughter, Barbara. With its sponsorship of the “Mickey
Mouse Club” TV program in 1955, Mattel became the first toy company to
broadcast commercials to children. They used this medium to promote their new
toy, and by 1961, the enormous consumer demand for the doll led Mattel to
release a boyfriend for Barbie. Handler named him Ken, after her son. Barbie’s
best friend, Midge, came out in 1963; her little sister, Skipper, debuted the
following year.
Over the years, Barbie generated huge sales–and a lot of
controversy. On the positive side, many women saw Barbie as providing an
alternative to traditional 1950s gender roles. She has had a series of
different jobs, from airline stewardess, doctor, pilot and astronaut to Olympic
athlete and even U.S. presidential candidate. Others thought Barbie’s
never-ending supply of designer outfits, cars and “Dream Houses” encouraged
kids to be materialistic. It was Barbie’s appearance that caused the most
controversy, however. Her tiny waist and enormous breasts–it was estimated that
if she were a real woman, her measurements would be 36-18-38–led many to claim
that Barbie provided little girls with an unrealistic and harmful example and
fostered negative body image.
Despite the criticism, sales of Barbie-related merchandise
continued to soar, topping 1 billion dollars annually by 1993. Since 1959, more
than 800 million dolls in the Barbie family have been sold around the world and
Barbie is now a bona fide global icon.
Compiled by Anderson Cage
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