Welcome to our site Nautical Knots. Don"t forget to bookmark this page Vintage Matson. If you found what your looking for, please remember to click an appreciation button above for this page.
![]() Vtg. 8X10 Ships Photo Matson Line "HAWAIIAN" US $12.50
|
Vintage Matson
Barbie Dolls--Their History And Origin by John Mowatt
The New York toy fair was the scene of the introduction of the Barbie doll in 1959. Then was born what was to become a phenomenon in toy manufacturing. Barbie is certainly one of the most popular toys ever made and continues in undiminished popularity fifty years later. Before the introduction of Barbie pretty well all dolls were baby or child dolls rather than adult figures. Barbie changed this forever.
In 1945 Elliot and Ruth Handler formed a partnership with Harold Matson to manufacture picture frames. The two names Matson and Elliot were combined to form the company name Mattel. Elliot used the picture frame wood scrap to make doll house furniture. This was the start of the Handler furniture business.
About this time Ruth noticed that her daughter Barbara and friends preferred to play with adult paper dolls rather than child or baby dolls. The girls preferred a doll which could be their role model when they grew up. Ruth realised that there could be big commercial possibilities in the adult doll market. She discussed the idea with her husband but he felt that it would be too expensive to start making the dolls.
Soon after this Ruth made a trip to Germany and purchased a doll called Lilli. This adult type doll was based on a German comic strip. When she came home to the US Ruth redesigned the Lilli doll with the aid of a doll clothes designer. Soon the Barbie doll was born and was named after Ruth's daughter Barbara. The doll was patented by Mattel in 1958 and introduced in 1959. She was to become one of the most well known and well loved toys ever made.
Barbie soon became a collectors doll and was avidly sought after by adult collectors. From 1959 to 1972 the Barbie doll had seven distinct changes in her appearance and design. These Barbies made up to 1972 are recognised as vintage collectible dolls by their fans and are eagerly sought after. The 1959 Barbie doll in mint condition will sell for thousands of dollars. Some have sold for as much as $8000 to $10,000 but you can buy them for much less and $2000 to $3000 is quite common. Later editions fetch proportionately less. You can generally purchase dolls in the 1969 to 1972 range for just a few dollars. Garage sales and flea markets are still the source of a few early dolls. About 300,000 of the 1959 Barbie were made and there are undoubtedly many out there still undiscovered.
About the Author
Would you like to know where you can find thousands of Barbie dolls and accessories for $1 and up?Check this out http://www.collectbarbiedolls.com
You will find a lot of informartion there about barbie dolls also.
If you are looking for a different item here are a list of related products on Nautical Knots, please check out the following:










































































