Barbie: the Early History by Erica Wolf Essay

Do you know anyone who has their own dream house, everyplaceseer fun pool house, pick apart convertible, or their own magical melodious movies? No, Im not chew outing slightly Paris Hilton or Lindsay Lohan, This girl is more classic, and more of a role model to every short girl around the world. Shes a fun, outgoing shell with an outfit for every occasion. Shes Barbie. Today we lead learn about this amazing doll and the affect she has had on toy indus guess. First we go away examine the pink and perfect history of Barbie, then we will try on the some(prenominal) unlike characters in Barbies family, and ultimately we will hit the shelves to examine the merchandising of Barbie merchandise.First we will examine the pink and perfect history of Barbie. Barbie was first introduced at the American International wreak Fair in New York in February of 1959 according to Barbie The Early account by Erica Wolf last updated in 2000. Ruth and Elliot Handler, the creators of Barbie, sim ulate her after the German doll known as Lilli. Ruth ascertained Lilli while shopping in Switzerland and brought her home for her daughter to play with. This excite Ruth to create an adult doll make specifically for little girls. Handler eventually had Jack Ryan, an executive of Mattel, purchase the rights for Lilli and make a deal with the company to create a doll similar to Lilli. The impudently doll would urinate a more soft look and didnt look as made up with makeup as Lilli. Finally, in 1958, the stark naked doll, Barbie Millicent Roberts (named after Handlers daughter, Barbara) was born.At 11 inches tall, debuted as a teenage model in a black and sinlessness striped swimming suit that came with sunglasses, high-heeled shoes, and gold colored hoop earrings. The be was shapely with a movable head, arms, and legs. Barbie would be the first doll in America with an adult-like body. Though Barbie was thought to be a huge success, approximately people in America had a terribl e reaction toward this new phenomenon. Many female adults frowned upon her mature body figure. Mothers said they would not allow their daughters to play with Barbie because of her very grown up figure. The doll quickly caught the financial aid of little girls across the country. Soon, the small, sophisticated doll became a worldwide sensation, and mud the top fashion doll today.Next, I am going to talk about the legion(predicate) different characters of Barbie. Including some of her superstars, the different types of Barbies throughout the years, and the many outfits of Barbie. During the first decade of Barbie in the 60s, there were themes that went with Barbie. Such as Barbie Goes to College . In 1961, Ken was introduced. He wore swim trunks and an unbuttoned shirt, and came with blond, cook or black hair. Alternative clothes included a boaters outfit, a college student look and casual ensembles for picnics or movies. correspond to Barbies of the 60s by Amanda Hermes last up dated in 2013, in 1963 Mattel released Barbies best friend, Midge, who had nutbrown hair and wore a sleek red swimsuit and red heels. Barbies little sister, Skipper, appeared in 1964, along with her own boyfriend, Allan.A year later, Barbies family grew to include twins Tutti and Todd followed by her more modern cousin, Francie, who also came in Japanese and African American versions. Christie, the first African American friend of Barbies, came along in 1968. In Barbie bird History, there have been legion(predicate) types of Barbies made since she was first introduced. With a rare exception here and there, Barbies body hasnt changed much. Some may have more transportable parts, but the size and shape remains the same. Her face however, is a different story. Vintage Barbies were made from 1959 to 1966. Vintage Barbies made from 1967 to 1973 are considered to be fashionable Barbies. One of the most notable dolls in this era was Malibu Barbie. She represented a gear in Barbies ev olution. She was made from 1971 to 1977.The next big shift in Barbie Doll History happened in 1977, when in the era of the cramp Dress and Farrah Fawcett hair Barbie underwent a dramatic transition in the soma of Superstar Barbie. Barbies were made with the big toothy smile and haemorrhoid of long blonde hair for the rest of the 1970s, all of the 1980s and a large part of the 90s. Well-known designers such as Bob Mackie created many of the early collectible Barbie Dolls. One of Barbies first transformations after so many years with the Superstar face was with the Mackie Face.In 2000, Mattel introduced the Fashion sit around Collection, also known a Silkstones. They use the vintage Barbie face and have been very successful with Barbie collectors. Barbie has undergone many changes and a lot of diversity over the last ten years. Now a variety of different tegument tones, hair colors and face sculpts are used. Mattel released a series of 12 Black Label Basic Barbie Dolls, the next step in Barbie Doll History, each featuring different types of Barbie face sculpt.Finally, we will hit the shelves to examine the marketing of Barbie merchandise. Every second 2.5 Barbie dolls are sold. This contributes to sales of more than $1.5 billion U.S. annually, reservation Mattels Barbie the most successful doll in history. Today, women have officious lifestyles, balancing career and home activities creating a very different degustation in doll buyers. Mattel first failed to realize the importance of this shift in 2001 when MGA Entertainment released their Bratz dolls, a doll with personality and attitude for the new multiplication of girls.Mattel is still suffering today due to the invention of Bratz dolls. Not except did Mattel not recognize these threats, they also thought it unwise to make major changes to Barbie afraid consumers might not like the changes. It was too late when they finally realized that not changing the look of Barbie would be a destructive idea . In 2006, sales had dropped 30% despite rushed changes being made to Barbies figure, looks, boyfriends and clothing. They also introduced their own new line of modern dolls called My moving-picture show girls. It was obvious to consumers that this was an imitation of the Bratz dolls, so it never matched popularity.