Barbie Makes Her Debut

On March 9, 1959, Mattel introduced the Barbie doll at a toy fair in New York. Today is considered her official birthday. Ruth Handler, inspired by a German doll, came up with with the idea. She's named after Ruth's daughter, Barbara. Over the years, Barbie's friends and family have gown, and so have her clothes, accessories, and related items.

Barbie's full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts. From a series of novels about her published by Random House, we know her parents are George and Margaret Roberts from the fictitious town of Willows, Wisconsin. In these books, Barbie attends Willows High School. However, in the Golden Books about her, she attends another fictitious school, Manhattan International High School.

The doll's boyfriend is Ken Carson, although they did break-up for a time in 2004, and she became friendly with Blaine from Australia. Barbie has had 40 pets and owns a range of vehicles. She has had many careers, including pilot, flight attendant, doctor, and astronaut. She has many friends, like Midge, Hispanic Teresa, and African American Christie. In addition there are siblings and cousins.

I can remember, as a small child, there was some controversy over a doll with a woman's figure in Barbie's early years. But Barbie survived those questions quite well and has gathered a large number of collectors over the years. For a fifty-seven year old woman, Barbie has also held her youth well. She looks as young today as she did when she first came out.

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