Barbie: Every Girl's First Best Friend

You and we all know how big of a brand Barbie has become over the past 62 years. She was created after a woman saw her daughter play with paper dolls in 1959.Her name was Ruth Handler. She wanted her daughter to play with a real doll that looked like a human and suggested the idea to her husband.But her husband did not show much interest even though he was a worker at Mattel toy company nor did the company directors who now own Barbie.

But Ruth did not give up and on a tour of Germany with her daughter and son, spotted the exact doll that she always had pictured in her mind. She quickly bought three and gave one to her daughter to play with while she kept the other two for herself.

When she returned to the United States, Handler got to work redesigning the doll and afterward took it to the company once again. That’s when Mattel decided to create Barbie and then a revolution happened on the 9th of March, 1959.

Barbie was displayed at an American International Toy Fair in New York City on the above-mentioned date.

The first Barbie wore a black-and-white striped zebra swimsuit and was available in both blonde and brunette varieties.

After that, the production of Barbie dolls just shot up with the first dolls being made in Japan.

In her first year of production, the sales figures themselves were exceptionally high. 350,000 dolls were bought by customers worldwide.

Mattel then faced controversy in March 1961 when the original company Louis Marx and Company sued them.

Eventually, Mattel ended up buying the patent and rights from the company for $21,600.

Barbie was the first toy to be widely advertised on television to increase sales. This concept was then followed by other toys over a period of time.In the present scenario, over a billion Barbie dolls have been sold in 150 countries, Mattel even claiming that in every one second, three Barbie dolls are sold.

Barbie dolls of today come all dressed up with some even having accessories in the box. Some do not have accessories and are single-piece dolls.

Girls have been crazy for Barbie since 1959 and continue to love her. She’s every girl’s first best friend. Her inception date, which is the 9th of March is taken to be her birthday and is celebrated with great gusto by children and adults alike.

Barbie is now a cartoon series and has also had storybooks to her credit. Girls like to read and see her very much. Barbie dolls even come with a lot of different professions nowadays. This allows every girl to dream of herself in the profession of her choice along with her favorite Barbie doll.

Barbie-themed birthday parties are a favourite of every girl. Everything is decorated in pink as it is Barbie’s favorite colour.

We, at BookPal, wish Barbie a very happy 63rd birthday. May she continue to inspire millions of little girls in the future.