First Barbie dolls, photo
The Barbie doll turns 9 on March 57! On this occasion, the editorial staff of Woman’s Day traced the history of changes to the beloved toy.
Marilyn Monroe is the prototype of the 60s Barbie
The creator of the Barbie American Ruth Handler (wife of the founder of the toy company Mattel) dedicated the doll to her daughter Barbara.
Moreover, Ruth came up with a fictional biography for the doll. Did you know that Barbie’s real name is Barbara Millicent Roberts and she was born in Willows, Wisconsin?
The first Barbie was released back in 1959 and in appearance was clearly different from the modern one. Then the doll was of short stature, with lush breasts and voluminous hips. She had medium-length curly hair tied back in a low ponytail.
Barbie’s facial features were also completely different: a snub nose, raised eyebrows, lips with a bow. It is said that the actress and singer Marilyn Monroe became its prototype.
Initially, two dolls were released – a blonde and a brunette.
60s barbie with dark hair
A doll in a striped swimsuit was on sale. Costumes for her could be bought for an additional fee. Surprisingly, among the beautiful dresses, skirts and jackets, the doll could wear an astronaut costume! However, this is not surprising: in 1963, Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman to visit space.
Barbie and Ken in the 60s
Barbie’s boyfriend Ken used to look different too. Firstly, he was a brunette, and secondly, he was short.
70s barbie and model Twiggy
In the 70s, Barbie became thinner, her hair was longer, her eyes were larger, and her lips were thinner. In general, she began to remotely resemble a new style icon of that time – the Twiggy model. True, the doll did not look so painful.
In addition, Barbie has girlfriends – Christie, Francie, Julia and Kara. They were all black. Here, too, the creators were guided by fashion: then on the catwalks and in glossy magazines, dark-skinned models began to appear more and more often – Daniel Luna, Iman and others.
In the early 70s, Barbie’s costumes also changed, now they talked about her professions and achievements. In addition to the outfits of the singer and actress, the doll had the costumes of a doctor, a flight attendant, a world champion in athletics, a ballerina and even a winner of the Miss America beauty pageant.
There were still two Barbies: a blonde and a brunette.
80s Barbie and Jane Fonda
The fitness cult in the 80s, of course, could not but affect Barbie. Now she resembled the main guru of that time – the actress and sportswoman Jane Fonda. The doll, like the celebrity, became tall and very thin, with a pronounced waist. She didn’t have any hint of her breasts or hips. But most importantly, she began to smile with her mouth parted!
Barbie also has outfits for training exactly, repeating those worn by aerobics instructors on television: bright leggings, leggings, a swimsuit, a leather belt and a headband.
In addition, the doll has got bright outfits of the singer, reminiscent of those worn by Madonna.
In general, since the 70s, the image of the Barbie that we are accustomed to now has been developing. She turned into the perfect skinny blonde loving pink clothes and all sorts of accessories.
In a few more years, girls will appear who will begin to copy the style of the doll. They will then be called that – Barbie.
90s Barbie and Britney Spears
In the 90s, Barbie’s face and figure remained the same, but the hairstyle changed. Now the doll had two images – long hair to the waist or a bob haircut.
The doll’s clothes have changed under the influence of fashion. She now wore pants, blazers, loose T-shirts or tops, miniskirts, and dresses.
Here the doll was influenced by the most popular singer of the time – Britney Spears. The creators of the doll copied many of the celebrity’s stage outfits. Well, a great PR move!
Barbie presidential candidate
Barbie has more professions. Over the years, she becomes a real careerist: the creators made her a top manager, and then a presidential candidate (pictured above).
Also for Barbie, in addition to the already fed up costumes of doctors and ballerinas, it was possible to buy costumes of a paleontologist, a military officer and a police officer.
Barbie doll in the early 2000s
2000s Barbie, Natalia Vodianova and Anna Selezneva
By the 2000s, Barbie becomes a princess or … a supermodel from the runway. She has a perfect figure 90-60-90, beautiful makeup, luxurious long hair, beautiful dresses … In general, she is perfect!
It is difficult to say with which celebrity the creators copied the doll. Most likely, it was just an image of the model. Then there were a lot of them, and they were all of the same type: Natalia Vodianova, Anna Selezneva, Vlada Roslyakova and others.
But most of all girls and adults were also attracted by new Barbie outfits: long fluffy skirts and dresses with sequins, as well as hairpins and crowns. Primary colors are pastel (mostly pink and blue). No more pretentiousness and outrageousness.
Now on store shelves you can find many options for a Barbie doll: a little mermaid, a fairy, a ballerina, and a super princess. All of them are also perfect: makeup, manicure, hair styling, beautiful outfits …
The doll has a great variety of professions: from a nanny and a veterinarian (by the way, animals are also included) to a bride.
Barbie’s boyfriend, blond Ken, also works tirelessly. He is a reporter, a top manager, and a doctor.
Basically, all dolls are created on the basis of cartoons that have been published since 2001. The latter are Barbie and the Secret Door and Barbie and the Pearl Princess (2014) and Barbie: Super Princess (2015).
Cindy Crawford and her Barbie
For a long time, designers have been making Barbies for celebrities. So, Cindy Crawford, Hilary Duff, Cher, Barbra Streisand, Katy Perry, Halle Berry, Heidi Klum, Naomi Campbell, Lindsay Lohan and many, many others have their own dolls.
Barbie dolls: Monroe, Hepburn and Kelly
There are also dolls dedicated to eternal icons – Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly.