Barbie Beginnings

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Where did Mrs. Handler first get her idea for Barbie? She observed neighborhood children playing house. It was actually the idea of Mrs. Handler's designers. She wanted a doll to help her decide what outfits to wear. It was from watching her daughter play paper dolls.

2. Mrs. Handler was told that the doll would be too expensive and difficult to produce, but she kept trying. How did she finally get her idea considered? Since her husband ran the company, she had him submit the idea. She found a doll in Europe similar to the one she was describing and brought it back to the designers. She threatened to go to a different company with the idea. She researched production and presented them with the figures.

3. A very specific body type was used for Barbie. What was the primary reason for this? This was for the ease of dressing the doll. It was easier to pass through an all male design board. She felt it accurately represented the modern woman. The sales would increase based upon the doll's sex appeal.

4. Where did Barbie make her debut? She was in a Christmas window display at Macy's. The girls on the Micky Mouse club played with her during an episode. Barbie was included in a Girl Scouts toy drive. It was at the 1959 American International Toy Fair.

5. What is an innovative marketing technique that Mattel used to help create a demand for Barbie clothing? You could write to Mattel for a free outfit. They placed a Viewmaster with slides of Barbie in her different outfits at each display. They created the same outfits in paper and sold them at the dime store with the paper dolls. The outfits were also sold out of ice cream trucks.

6. By 1965, Barbie's fan club was second only to which other group of that time? The Young Republicans Mickey Mouse Club Marilyn Monroe Official Fan Club Girl Scouts of America

7. One of Mattel's early attempts to change the vinyl mixture Barbie was made from caused what? a less expensive product a softer more flexible torso 'Oily Head' Barbie the Barbie to be dressed easier

8. Who was the first face of Barbie molded from? Barbara Handler, the creator's daughter Charlotte Johnson, Barbie's clothing designer Audrey Hepburn It is totally unique.

9. Francie, made in 1967, was the first attempt at adding what to the Barbie line? a little sister for Barbie an African-American doll a pet for the series making a doll with pierced ears

10. In 1961, the Barbie line got another first. It was another doll to add to the line. It was named after Ruth and Elliot Handler's other child. What was the name of this doll? Ken Skipper Midge Courtney