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| Did you know that barbie is the most fashionable doll in the world | |||
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| {{Infobox character | |||
| | colour = #FF69B4 | |||
| | name = Barbie | |||
| | image = ] | |||
| | caption = Barbie logo, 1999 - present | |||
| | first = ] ] | |||
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| | occupation = See: ] | |||
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| | family = See: ] | |||
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| | creator = ] | |||
| }} | |||
| '''Barbie''' is a best-selling ] launched in ]. The doll is produced by ], and is a major source of revenue for the company. The ] businesswoman ] (1916-2002) is regarded as the creator of Barbie, and the doll's design was inspired by a ] doll called ]. | |||
| Barbie has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for nearly fifty years, and has been the subject of numerous controversies and ]s, often involving ] of the doll and her lifestyle. In recent years, Barbie has faced increasing competition from the ] range of dolls. | |||
| ==History== | |||
| ] | |||
| ] watched her daughter Barbara at play with paper dolls, and noticed that she often enjoyed giving them adult roles. At the time, most children's toy dolls were representations of infants. Realizing that there could be a gap in the market, Handler suggested the idea of an adult-bodied doll to her husband Elliot, a co-founder of the ] toy company. He was unenthusiastic about the idea, as were Mattel's directors. | |||
| During a trip to ] in 1956 with her children Barbara and Kenneth, Ruth Handler came across a ] toy doll called ] in ]. The adult-figured Lilli doll was exactly what Handler had in mind, so she purchased three of them. She gave one to her daughter and took the others back to Mattel. The Lilli doll was based on a popular character appearing in a ] drawn by Reinhard Beuthin for the newspaper '']''. Lilli was a working girl who knew what she wanted and was not above using men to get it. The Lilli doll was first sold in Germany in 1955, and although it was initially sold to adults, it became popular with children who enjoyed dressing her up in outfits that were available separately. | |||
| Upon her return to the ], Handler reworked the design of the doll (with help from engineer ]) and the doll was given a new name, ''Barbie'', after Handler's daughter Barbara. The doll made its debut at the ] in ] on ], ]. This date is also used as Barbie's official ]. Mattel acquired the rights to the ] in 1964 and production of Lilli was stopped. The first Barbie doll wore a black and white zebra striped swimsuit and signature topknot ], and was available as either a ] or ]. The doll was marketed as a "Teen-age Fashion Model," with her clothes created by Mattel fashion designer Charlotte Johnson. Around 350,000 Barbie dolls were sold during the first year of production. | |||
| Ruth Handler believed that it was important for Barbie to have an adult appearance, and early ] showed that some parents were unhappy about the doll's chest, which had distinct breasts. Barbie's appearance has been changed many times, most notably in 1971 when the doll's eyes were adjusted to look forwards rather than having the demure sideways glance of the original model. | |||
| Barbie was one of the first ] to have a marketing strategy based extensively on ] ], which has been copied widely by other toys. It is estimated that over a billion Barbie dolls have been sold worldwide in over 150 countries, with Mattel claiming that three Barbie dolls are sold every second.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5370398.stm</ref> | |||
| The standard range of Barbie dolls and related accessories are manufactured to approximately ], which is also known as ].<ref>http://miniatures.about.com/od/playscale/</ref> | |||
| Barbie products include not only the range of dolls with their clothes and accessories, but also a huge range of Barbie branded goods such as books, fashion items and ]s. Barbie has appeared in a series of animated films and makes a brief guest appearance in the 1999 film '']''. | |||
| Almost uniquely for a toy fashion doll, Barbie has become a ] and has been given honors that are rare in the toy world. In 1974 a section of ] in ] was renamed Barbie Boulevard for a week, while in 1985 the artist ] created a painting of Barbie.<ref>http://www.goodbyemag.com/apr02/handler.html</ref><ref>http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/theymadeamerica/whomade/handler_hi.html</ref> | |||
| ==Biography== | |||
| ] | |||
| Barbie's full name is '''Barbara Millicent Roberts'''. According to the ] novels of the 1960s, her parents' names are George and Margaret Roberts of Willows, ]. Barbie has been said to attend Willows High School in Willows, Wisconsin and Manhattan International High School in ], (based on the real-life ]). She has an on-off romantic relationship with her beau ] ('''Ken Carson'''), who first appeared in 1961. Like Barbie, Ken shares his name with one of Ruth Handler's children. A ] from Mattel in February 2004 announced that Barbie and Ken had decided to split up, but in February 2006 they were back together again.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3484949.stm</ref><ref>http://edition.cnn.com/2006/US/02/09/ken.barbie.reut/</ref> | |||
| Barbie has had over forty ]s including ]s and ]s, ]s, a ], a ] cub, and a ]. She has owned a wide range of vehicles, including pink ], trailers and ]. She also holds a ]'s license, and operates commercial airliners in addition to serving as a ]. ] are designed to show that women can take on a variety of roles in life, and the doll has been sold with a wide range of titles including ''Miss Astronaut Barbie'' (1965), ''Doctor Barbie'' (1988) and ''Nascar Barbie'' (1998). <ref>http://groups.msn.com/BarbiesSecret/barbiesmanycareers.msnw</ref> | |||
| Mattel has created a range of companions for Barbie, including ] Teresa, ] Christie and Steven (Christie's boyfriend). For more details, see the ]. | |||
| == Controversies == | |||
| ]]] | |||
| Barbie's popularity ensures that her effect on the play of Western children attracts a high degree of scrutiny. The criticisms leveled at her are often based on the assumption that children consider Barbie a role model and will attempt to emulate her. | |||
| * In September 2003 the ]ern country of ] outlawed the sale of Barbie dolls, saying that she did not conform to the ideals of ]. The ] stated "] Barbie dolls, with their revealing clothes and shameful postures, accessories and tools are a symbol of decadence to the perverted West. Let us beware of her dangers and be careful."<ref>http://www.adl.org/main_Arab_World/barbie.htm</ref> In Middle Eastern countries there is an alternative doll called ] who is similar to Barbie but is designed to be more acceptable to an Islamic market. Fulla is not made by the Mattel Corporation, and Barbie is still available in other Middle Eastern countries including ]. <ref>http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/797/li1.htm</ref> In ], ] are available as an alternative to Barbie.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/1856558.stm</ref> | |||
| * The word ''Barbie'' has come to be used as a ] ] term for a ] or ] who is considered shallow, most notably in the song '']'' (see ] below). In 1992 Mattel released ''Teen Talk Barbie'', which spoke a number of phrases including "Will we ever have enough clothes?", "I love shopping!", and "Wanna have a ] party?" Each doll was programmed to say four out of 270 possible phrases, so that no two dolls were likely to be the same. One of these 270 phrases was "] class is tough!" Although only about 1.5% of all the dolls sold said the phrase, it caused a public outcry.<ref>http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE7DE103AF932A15753C1A964958260</ref> | |||
| ] | |||
| * One of the most common criticisms of Barbie is that she promotes an unrealistic idea of body image for a woman, leading to a risk that women who attempt to emulate her will become ]. A standard Barbie doll is 11.5 inches tall, giving a height of 5 feet 9 inches at ]. Barbie's vital statistics have been estimated at 36 inches (chest), 18 inches (waist) and 33 inches (hips). According to research by the University Central Hospital in ], ], she would lack the 17 to 22 percent body fat required for a woman to ].<ref>http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=1006032310828</ref> In 1997 Barbie's body mold was redesigned and given a wider waist, with Mattel saying that this would make the doll better suited to contemporary fashion designs. <ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/32312.stm</ref> | |||
| ] | |||
| * "Colored ]" made her debut in 1967, and she is sometimes described as the first ] Barbie doll. However, she was produced using the existing head molds for the Francie doll with white European features and lacked African characteristics other than a dark skin. The first African American doll in the Barbie range is usually regarded as Christie, who made her debut in 1968.<ref>http://www.mastercollector.com/articles/dolls/dollnews31301.shtml</ref><ref>http://kattisdolls.net/faces/christie.htm</ref> Black Barbie and Hispanic Barbie were launched in 1980. | |||
| * In 1997 Mattel joined forces with ] to launch a cross-promotion of Barbie with ] ]s. ''Oreo Fun Barbie'' was marketed as someone with whom little girls could play after class and share "America's favorite cookie." As had become the custom, Mattel manufactured both a ] and a ] version. Critics argued that in the ] community ''Oreo'' is a derogatory term for a person like the chocolate sandwich cookie itself, meaning that the person is black on the outside and white on the inside. The doll was unsuccessful and Mattel recalled the unsold stock, making it sought after by collectors.<ref>http://www.authentichistory.com/diversity/african/images/2001_Oreo_Barbie.html</ref> | |||
| * In May 1997 Mattel introduced ''Share a Smile Becky'', a doll in a pink ]. Kjersti Johnson, a 17-year-old high school student in ] with ], pointed out that the doll would not fit into the ] of Barbie's $100 Dream House. Mattel announced that it would redesign the house in the future to accommodate the doll.<ref>http://www.washington.edu/doit/Press/barbie.html</ref><ref>http://gallery.bcentral.com/GID4729088P1681774-COLLECTIBLES/BARBIE/SHARE-A-SMILE-BECKY.aspx</ref> | |||
| * In March 2000 stories appeared in the media claiming that the hard ] used in vintage Barbie dolls could leak toxic chemicals, causing danger to children playing with them. The claim was rejected as false by technical experts. A modern Barbie doll has a body made from ] plastic, while the head is made from soft ].<ref>http://collectdolls.about.com/library/ucbarbieresponse.htm</ref> | |||
| * In December 2005 Dr. Agnes Nairn at the ] in ] published research suggesting that girls often go through a stage where they hate their Barbie dolls and subject them to a range of punishments, including ] and placing the doll in a ]. Dr. Nairn said: "It's as though disavowing Barbie is a rite of passage and a rejection of their past."<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/somerset/4539862.stm</ref><ref>http://www.bath.ac.uk/news/articles/releases/barbie161205.html</ref> | |||
| == Parodies and lawsuits == | |||
| ]'' by ] led to a five year ]]] | |||
| Barbie has often been referenced in ] and is frequently the target of ]. Some of these occasions include: | |||
| * In 1997 The ] pop-dance group ] released a song called '']''. It contained lyrics such as "''You can brush my hair / Undress me everywhere''" and used graphics similar to the pink Barbie ]. Mattel argued that this constituted a ] infringement and filed a ] lawsuit against ] on ], ]. In July 2002, Judge ] ruled that the song was protected as a parody under the ].<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2150432.stm</ref><ref>http://www.purelyrics.com/index.php?lyrics=fhjpacrk</ref> | |||
| {{listen | |||
| |filename=Barbie girl aqua.ogg | |||
| |title=Aqua - ''Barbie Girl'' | |||
| |description=listen to a clip from the song. | |||
| }} | |||
| * A commercial by ] company ] featuring dolls similar to Barbie and Ken was the subject of another lawsuit in 1997. In the commercial, a female doll is lured into a car by a doll resembling ] to the dismay of a Ken-like doll, accompanied by ]'s version of the song '']''. According to the makers of the commercial, the dolls' names were Roxanne, Nick and Tad. Mattel claimed that the commercial had done "irreparable damage" to its products, but lost the ] infringement lawsuit.<ref> MTV.com September 24, 1997</ref><!-- <ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwMG7ifuTjQ</ref> -- rm copyvio --> | |||
| * '']'' aired a parody of Barbie commercials featuring the fictional "Gangsta Bitch Barbie" doll and a "Tupac Ken" doll.<ref>http://www.chillibomb.com/barbie/pages/gangsta-barbie_jpg.htm</ref> | |||
| * ] displayed a fictional "Barbie ] Lab" which mocked how Barbie usually has a career that is "in keeping with the times or in this case, in keeping with society's current problems." | |||
| * ] is a parody of Barbie in the cartoon series '']''. In the 1994 episode '']'' Lisa is disgusted by the "] drivel spouted by Malibu Stacy", leading her to market an alternative "Lisa Lionheart". | |||
| * In 1999 Mattel sued the ] ] Tom Forsythe over a series of photographs called ''Food Chain Barbie'', which included a photograph of a Barbie doll in a ]. Mattel lost the lawsuit and was ordered to pay $1.8 million in costs to Mr. Forsythe.<ref>http://www.out-law.com/page-4681</ref><ref>http://barbieinablender.org/</ref> | |||
| * In November 2002 a ] judge refused an ] against the ]-based artist Susanne Pitt, who had produced a doll called ] in ] clothing. Judge Laura Taylor Swain stated: "To the court's knowledge, there is no Mattel line of ] Barbie."<ref>http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=1242812002</ref> | |||
| == Collecting == | |||
| ] | |||
| Mattel estimates that there are well over 100,000 avid Barbie collectors. Ninety percent are women, at an average age of 40, purchasing more than twenty Barbie dolls each year. Forty-five percent of them spend upwards of $1000 a year. | |||
| Vintage Barbie dolls from the early years are the most valuable at ], and while the original Barbie was sold for $3.00 in 1959, a mint boxed Barbie from 1959 sold for $3552.50 on ] in October 2004.<ref>http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/scoop_article.asp?ai=6539&si=123</ref> On ], ], a Barbie doll set a world record at auction of 9,000 pounds sterling (US $17,000) at ] in ]. The doll was a Barbie in Midnight Red from 1965 and was part of a private collection of 4,000 Barbie dolls being sold by two ] women, Ietje Raebel and her daughter Marina.<ref>http://au.news.yahoo.com/060926/15/10osv.html</ref> | |||
| In recent years Mattel has sold a wide range of Barbie dolls aimed specifically at collectors, including ] versions and depictions of Barbie as a range of characters from television series such as '']'' and '']''.<ref>http://www.barbiecollector.com/showcase/product.aspx?id=1001084&t=modern</ref><ref>http://www.barbiecollector.com/showcase/product.aspx?id=150303&t=modern</ref> There are also collector's edition dolls depicting Barbie dolls with a range of different ethnic identities.<ref>http://www.barbiecollector.com/showcase/gallery.aspx?t=modern&y=tmp1</ref> In 2004 Mattel introduced the Color Tier system for its collector's edition Barbie dolls, ranging through pink, silver, gold and platinum depending on how many of the dolls are produced.<ref>http://www.barbiecollector.com/collecting/tiers/</ref> | |||
| ==Barbie versus Bratz== | |||
| ] dolls]] | |||
| In June 2001 ] launched the ] range of dolls, a move that would give Barbie her first serious competition in the fashion doll market. In 2004 sales figures showed that Bratz dolls were outselling Barbie dolls in the ], although Mattel maintained that in terms of the number of dolls, clothes and accessories sold, Barbie remained the leading brand.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3640958.stm</ref> In 2005 figures showed that sales of Barbie dolls had fallen by 30% in the ], and by 18% worldwide, with much of the drop being attributed to the popularity of Bratz dolls.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4350846.stm</ref> | |||
| In April 2005, MGA Entertainment filed a ] against Mattel, claiming that the ] range of Barbie dolls had copied the doe-eyed look of Bratz dolls. The lawsuit is currently pending in the court system of ].<ref>http://promomagazine.com/news/mgaent_mattel_041905/</ref> | |||
| Mattel is also suing MGA Entertainment and Carter Bryant, a former doll designer for Mattel, claiming that company secrets were stolen by MGA.<ref>http://www.associatedcontent.com/pop_print.shtml?content_type=article&content_type_id=90322</ref> | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| == Further reading == | |||
| * Lord, M.G., ''Forever Barbie: The Unauthorized Biography of a Real Doll''. Paperback ISBN 0-8027-7694-9. | |||
| * Rogers, Mary F., "Barbie Culture". Paperback ISBN 0-7619-5888-6. | |||
| * Knaak, Silke, "German Fashion Dolls of the 50&60". Paperback www.barbies.de. | |||
| * Beckham, Victoria (Foreword), John, Elton (Foreword), ''The Art of Barbie''. Paperback ISBN 0-9537479-2-1 | |||
| * Essays, ''Guys'n'dolls: Art, Science, Fashion & Relationships.'' Paperback ISBN 0-948723-57-2 | |||
| ==References== | |||
| <div class="references-small"> | |||
| <references/> | |||
| </div> | |||
| == External links == | |||
| * — Owned By | |||
| * -- interview with an ex-Barbie designer first published in ''Fashion Doll Quarterly'' | |||
| *New York Times: by Dave Cullen | |||
| *Washington Times: by Paul Martin | |||
| * St. Petersburg Times Floridian: , an article about the "Muslim Barbie" by Susan Taylor Martin | |||
| *BBC News: , ] ] | |||
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Revision as of 03:00, 3 June 2007
Did you know that barbie is the most fashionable doll in the world