Barbie is a fashion doll created by American businesswoman Ruth Handler, manufactured by American toy and entertainment company Mattel and introduced on March 9, 1959. The toy is the figurehead of an eponymous brand that includes a range of fashion dolls and accessories. Barbie has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for over six decades. Mattel has sold over a billion Barbie dolls, making it the company's largest and most profitable line. The brand has expanded into a multimedia franchise since 1984, including video games, computer-animated films, television/web series and a live-action film.
Bratz is an American fashion doll and media franchise created by former Mattel employee Carter Bryant for MGA Entertainment, which debuted in 2001.
The Mego Corporation is an American toy company that in its original iteration was first founded in 1954. Originally known as a purveyor of dime store toys, in 1971 the company shifted direction and became famous for producing licensed action figures, celebrity dolls, and the Micronauts toy line. For a time in the 1970s, their line of 8-inch-scale action figures with interchangeable bodies became the industry standard.
Totally Hair Barbie is a fashion doll, in the Barbie line by Mattel, that was released in 1992. The doll's extra-long hair reached all the way to her toes and at the time, she had the longest hair ever for a Barbie doll at 11.5 inches in length. She is notable for being the highest selling Barbie doll in history.
Fashion dolls are dolls primarily designed to be dressed to reflect fashion trends. They are manufactured both as toys for children to play with and as collectibles for adults. The dolls are usually modeled after teen girls or adult women, though child, male, and even some non-human variants exist. Contemporary fashion dolls are typically made of vinyl or another plastic.
Dollfie is a brand of vinyl doll created by the Japanese company Volks in 1997. It is a highly poseable hybrid of fashion doll and action figure. A Dollfie doll is about the size of a Barbie doll, 1/6 or playscale, though there are variants in different heights ranging from 23–29 cm (9–11.5 in). Dollfie dolls generally come blank, with unpainted heads intended for the user to customize themselves. Dollfie dolls feature a larger range of motion and more points of articulation than a typical Western fashion doll, due to their target audience of adult collectors rather than children.
My Scene is an American series of fashion dolls that Mattel released in 2002. They were discontinued in the US in 2008, and worldwide in 2011. Mattel's Barbie character is one of the dolls in the toy line. The My Scene dolls' bodies are slim, similar to earlier Barbie dolls, but their heads are larger. The New York Times described their features as "exaggerated lips and bulging, makeup-caked eyes." My Scene were designed to appeal to the tween market and compete with the Bratz dolls from MGA Entertainment.
Sindy is a British fashion doll created by Pedigree Dolls & Toys in 1963. A rival to Barbie, Sindy's look and range of fashions and accessories made her the best-selling toy in the United Kingdom in 1968 and 1970. After Marx Toys' unsuccessful attempt to introduce Sindy in the United States in the late 1970s, Hasbro bought the rights to Sindy and remodelled the doll to look more American. As a result, the doll's popularity declined; in addition Barbie manufacturer Mattel filed a lawsuit for copyright infringement, which was settled when Hasbro agreed to remodel Sindy's face. During the 1990s, Barbie's share of the doll market continued to grow while Sindy's diminished, which led to Sindy being delisted from major retailers in 1997. Hasbro returned the doll's licence to Pedigree, and the doll was relaunched in 1999, manufactured by Vivid Imaginations. Sindy's 40th anniversary in 2003 saw a new manufacturer, New Moons, and another relaunch and redesign. There was a further relaunch in 2023.
Francie Fairchild is a fashion doll issued by Mattel from 1966 to 1976 and re-introduced in 2011. Marketed as "Barbie's MODern cousin" from England, the doll had an extensive line of "mod"-style clothing, often employing bright colors and geometric patterns similar to fashions associated with Carnaby Street in the late 1960s to early 1970s. At 11¼ inches tall, the Francie doll was shorter than Barbie, but taller than Skipper, making the character presumably between the two in age.
The Sonny & Cher dolls were a collection of 12-¼ inch high celebrity doll likenesses of pop rock duo Sonny & Cher. The line was released by Mego Corporation in 1976. The release of these fashion dolls coincided with the popularity of The Sonny & Cher Show prime time variety TV show.
The Museum of Lifestyle & Fashion History is a non-profit organization located in Palm Beach County, Florida. Currently the museum is seeking a permanent location.
Monster High is an American multimedia-supported fashion doll franchise created by toy designer Garrett Sander and launched by Mattel in 2010. The show is aimed at children ages 7-14, the franchise features characters inspired by monster movies, sci-fi horror, thriller fiction, folklore, myths and popular culture, centering around the adventures of the teenage children of monsters and other mythical creatures attending a high school of the same name.
The Barbie Basics is a line of collector's edition Barbie dolls. They were created by Mattel designer Bill Greening and were introduced in late 2009 to be officially released in the spring of 2010.
Mdvanii was originally conceived as a conceptual art and fashion doll for adults by artist BillyBoy*. Since 1990 it has been a collaboration with his life partner, artist Jean Pierre Lestrade. The 25 cm (9.8 in) tall doll was originally made in a matte Caron make-up toned hard resin. Mdvanii debuted on February 14, 1989 in London, England.
Jozef Szekeres is an Australian artist, animator, writer, toy designer, sculptor, creative director, arts lecturer, and a director of the Black Mermaid Productions creative team based in Australia. He is best known for his doll creation Elizabet Bizelle, launched through his company Jozef Szekeres Dolls in 2003. He was a finalist in the 2011 Australian Cartoonist Association Stanley Awards, with nominations for Best Australian Illustrator and Australian Comic Book Artist.
Nicole "Nikki" Watkins is a Mattel fashion doll, marketed as one of Barbie's best friends in 2006. She shouldn't be confused with a character of the same name that debuted in 1996 as part of the "Teen Skipper" line. Nikki was originally released as Skipper's first African American friend in 1996 as part of the "Teen Skipper" line and as the younger sister of Christie, one of Barbie's best friends. Since 2006, Nikki Watkins has replaced Christie as one of Barbie's friends. Nikki Watkins debuted as one of Barbie's best friends in the Glam Beach Line and later in Fashion Fever Line. Since then, Nikki has been featured in several Barbie doll series.
Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse is an American web series of CGI-animated shorts produced by Arc Productions and Mattel. The series was released on YouTube and the official Barbie website from May 11, 2012 to November 27, 2015.
The Marvelous World of Shani, also known as Shani & Friends or simply Shani, was a fashion doll line manufactured by the American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched in 1991. The principal designer of the dolls was longtime Mattel toy designer Kitty Black Perkins, also responsible for designing 1980's First Black Barbie doll, and many other African American dolls in the Barbie line.
