The
Barbie doll was created by Elliot Handler,
the founder of Mattel, Inc., and his wife,
Ruth in 1959. The doll was named after the
Handlers' daughter, Barbie. Barbie was introduced
to the world at the American Toy Fair in
New York City. The Barbie was intended to
be a teenage fashion doll. There has been
some controversy over Barbie's figure when
it realized but even more than forty seven
years later, Barbie would still be one of
the most successful and enduring toys on
the market.
Let me quote some wonderful records :-
“ …. Each week, Mattel Inc.,
sells over 1.5 million dolls—that's
two dolls per second. Ninety percent of
all American girls in the last forty seven
years have owned at least one Barbie. If
every Barbie doll ever manufactured were
laid end to end, they would circle the earth
three-and-one-half times.”
|
|
|
Regarding
the Barbie’s dress and fittings,”
the designers provide the ever-fashionable doll
with about a hundred new outfits each year. Clothing
has also been created for Barbie by world-famous
designers Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Dior,
Valentino, Perry Ellis, Oscar de la Renta, and
Bob Mackie. Since 1959, over 105 million yards
of fabric have been used to create Barbie's clothes,
making Mattel a huge consumer of cloth, as well
as America's fourth largest maker of women's clothes”
Now Barbie has grown too many different spheres
during her run as one of the world's most popular
toys. . The doll was marketed as a "Teen-age
Fashion Model", so many fashions were available
for her as well. She has been a teacher, astronaut,
soldier, singer, flight attendant, fashion girl
and model. Barbie also keeps up with the latest
technology—she got her first computer in
1985. |
