Barbie

Barbie

The term Barbie Doll is known all around the world. Little girls for decades have been in love with Barbie in all her forms. While in modern times Barbie may have lost some of her appeal to kids who now see things like Monster High and Bratz as being "cooler" than Barbie. The fact is the Barbie Doll is one of the most important toys that has ever been created and while it may not be as popular as it once was there are still some very dedicated Barbie fans out there.

For over 50 years Barbie has been the staple for Mattel when it comes to their "fashion" toys. It was an American businesswoman called Ruth Handler who after seeing her daughter play with paper dolls in the 50's came up with the idea of Barbie. The main catalyst for this was a German doll called Bild Lilli Doll which was not actually supposed to be a child's toy, but a joke gift for adults. This doll was the same kind of idea that Ruth Handler had for her doll, Barbie. The name Barbie actually comes from her daughter who was called Barbara.

The Barbie Doll would be unleashed at the 1959, New York Toy Fair. And despite what you may think the doll was not an instant success. But Mattel was very smart and when the Disney show, The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse was launched. Mattel spent a ton of money advertising their groundbreaking doll. To say their advertisement on the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse worked is an understatement. Mattel which was actually a company started by Ruther Handler and her husband just exploded.

With the success of Barbie a boyfriend for her was created called Ken. Interestingly, Ken got his name from Ruth Handler's son. Ken would be just the start and before long many other friends and family would be added to the Barbie line. As well as a crazy amount of accessories ranging from fairly cheap clothes to a huge dream house.

We have Barbie to thank for the huge amount of dolls that are aimed at little girls now. There is just so much choice out there for a kid these days that it must be hard for them to make a decision. But thanks to its longevity, Barbie is something that many mothers, older sisters, aunts or whatever love to buy for a young girl as it was something they had and enjoyed. Barbie really is the number one girls toy when it comes to passing a toy down from generation to generation.

One smart thing that Mattel has done with the Barbie line is that they recognized that while little girls loved to get a Barbie doll and create a fun life for her. There was also a vast number of collectors out there who loved to buy a Barbie and keep her in the box and make a collection. As a result Mattel has had amazing success with their line of collectible Barbie's. Barbie has even crossed over with such properties as DC with a Catwoman Barbie Doll and a few Disney properties as well.

Barbie is a wonderful toy line to collect for as it has just such a strong historical impact in the world of toys, but it is also a great line as if you are not too picky when it can be a very inexpensive line to collect for. And if you have some serious money to burn. Then there is some amazing showpiece Barbie dolls out there.