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 was based on the German Bild Lilli doll which Handler had purchased while in Europe. 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, animated films, television/web series, and a live-action film.
Blythe is a fashion doll, about 28 cm (11 inch) tall, with an oversized head and large eyes that change color with the pull of a string. It was created in 1972 and was initially only sold for one year in the United States by toy company Kenner. In 2001, the Japanese toy company Takara began producing new editions of Blythe dolls. There is a network of hobbyists who customize the doll for resale and create clothing and shoes for Blythe. Enthusiasts share photographs of their work and other types of dolls on the Internet.
What's Her Face! was a line of customizable dolls that straddled the line between traditional fashion dolls and creative activity toys. Made by Mattel, the line ran from 2001–2003, and enjoyed only a modest success in a market dominated by Mattel's iconic Barbie and MGA Entertainment's Bratz dolls. Following the discontinuation of the What's Her Face! line, their body molds were used for the Wee 3 Friends line of Barbie-related dolls. Several fashion, wig, and activity packs were also released for the What's Her Face line.
MGA Entertainment Inc. is a manufacturer of children's toys and entertainment products founded in 1979. Its products include Bratz, Num Noms, Lalaloopsy, and Rainbow High, as well as toys targeted at boys such as Scan2Go. MGA also owns Little Tikes and animation studio MGA Studios.
My Scene was 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 was one of the dolls in the toy line. The My Scene dolls' bodies were slim, similar to earlier Barbie dolls, but their heads were 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.
Diva Starz was a series of talking fashion dolls created and released by Mattel in October 2000. They are similar in design to MGA's Bratz and Tiger Electronics' Furby. Alexa, Nikki, Summer—later replaced by Miranda—and Tia were offered in the original debut. Originally produced as robotic dolls, Mattel would also release miniature and fashion doll versions in response to their initial success. The line was discontinued in 2004.
Bratz is a 2007 American teen comedy film based on the fashion dolls of the same name from MGA Entertainment. The film is directed by Sean McNamara with a screenplay by Susan Estelle Jansen, from a story written by Adam de la Pena and David Eilenberg. It is the first live-action film based on the toyline after a series of direct-to-video animated films and a television series.
Bratz Kidz are the child equivalent to the popular Bratz doll line. The dolls are six inches (152.4 mm) tall and are proportioned to be shorter than the normal Bratz.
Carter Bryant is an American toy designer, artist, and inventor. He is best known for inventing the Bratz fashion doll and his previous work as a Barbie product designer for Mattel.
Blue's Room is an American puppet television series spin-off from Blue's Clues. It was created by Traci Paige Johnson and Angela Santomero. The show aired on Nickelodeon as part of the Nick Jr. block, and originated as short segments on Blue's Clues episodes in season 6.
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.
Pound Puppies is an animated children's television series developed by Wendy Klein Moss, Nancy Steingard, Paul Germain and Joe Ansolabehere for the Hub Network. It premiered on October 10, 2010 in the United States as the first Hub "original series". It also aired on YTV in Canada and on Boomerang in the UK, Ireland and Australia. Produced by Hasbro Studios, it was the second series to adapt Pound Puppies into a cartoon format. Originally a property by Tonka, Hasbro acquired Tonka itself and currently manages Pound Puppies. The plot style and music were similar to the 1960s TV series Hogan's Heroes and to films like Stalag 17 and The Great Escape. 9 Story Entertainment animated the first 7 episodes of the series, but DHX Media/Vancouver took over production starting with episode 8.
Bratzillaz (House of Witchez) was an American line of fashion dolls released by MGA Entertainment in 2012. The line was a spin-off of the company's popular franchise Bratz. Bratzillaz dolls have been marketed as witches with special powers that would make each character so unique. The Bratzillaz girls are cousins of the Bratz and most of the characters have a similar name to a Bratz character. Starting with the Summer/Fall 2013 doll lines, MGA began to use "House of Witchez" in the main logo to emphasize the Bratzillaz's "witchy" nature. The commercials for the "Back to Magic" and "Witchy Princesses" lines never said Bratzillaz in them, only "House of Witchez".
Novi Stars were an American line of fashion dolls released by MGA Entertainment in 2012. It revolved around a set of alien girls who land on Earth and want to be like humans. At the end of 2013, MGA Entertainment announced that no new Novi Stars will be produced, making it obvious that the line itself has been discontinued. However, the last line of Novi Stars were released in fall of 2014, before the line was officially discontinued.
Littlest Pet Shop is a Flash-animated musical children's television series produced by DHX Media and Hasbro Studios. The series is based on the Littlest Pet Shop and Blythe toylines by Hasbro and was broadcast on Discovery Family from November 10, 2012 to June 4, 2016. It centers on Blythe Baxter, a teen girl who, after moving into an apartment in a city named Downtown City, gains the ability to communicate with animals. Located below her apartment is the eponymous pet store where Blythe works and talks to a group of pets who regularly reside at a daycare in the shop. Worried that a corrupt rival business might drive their shop out of business, it is up to Blythe to drive business into the store with her pet fashion designs.
Puppy Dog Pals is an American animated television series created by Harland Williams. The series debuted on Disney Junior in the United States on April 14, 2017.
Pinky & Pepper Forever is a graphic novel created by Eddy Atoms. It debuted at the 2018 Toronto Comic Arts Festival before being widely released on May 30, 2018. Pinky & Pepper Forever follows anthropomorphic dog girlfriends Pinky Cooper and Pepper Parson after the former commits suicide in a performance art piece, after which both of them go to hell. The graphic novel is based on the discontinued Pinkie Cooper and the Jet Set Pets toyline that ran in the early-mid 2010s. Pinky & Pepper Forever was widely praised for its writing, art, and themes.
