Ruth Handler watched her daughter Barbara play with paper dolls, and noticed that she often enjoyed giving them adult roles. At the time, most children's toy dolls were representations of infants. Realizing that there could be a gap in the market, Handler suggested the idea of an adult-bodied doll to her husband Elliot, a co-founder of the Mattel toy company. He was unenthusiastic about the idea, as were Mattel's directors.
During a trip to Europe in 1956 with her children Barbara and Kenneth, Ruth Handler came across a German toy doll called Bild Lilli.[1] The adult-figured doll was exactly what Handler had in mind, so she purchased three of them. . The Lilli doll was based on a popular character appearing in a comic strip drawn by Reinhard Beuthin for the newspaper Die Bild-Zeitung.The Lilli Doll is a adult-figured doll it was played only by adults till then.
Ruth Handler took the Lilli Doll to Mattel .But intially Mattel refused to accept the doll . So she reworked the design of the doll with the help of an engineer Jack Ryan . It was given a new name "Barbie" after Handler's daughter.The doll made its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York on March 9, 1959. Mattel acquired the rights to the Bild Lilli doll in 1964 and production of Lilli was stopped. The first Barbie doll wore a black and white zebra striped swimsuit and signature topknot ponytail, and was available as either a blonde or brunette. March 9 1959 is celebrated as Barbie's official birthday. The picture in the right is the first released Barbie doll.
During a trip to Europe in 1956 with her children Barbara and Kenneth, Ruth Handler came across a German toy doll called Bild Lilli.[1] The adult-figured doll was exactly what Handler had in mind, so she purchased three of them. . The Lilli doll was based on a popular character appearing in a comic strip drawn by Reinhard Beuthin for the newspaper Die Bild-Zeitung.The Lilli Doll is a adult-figured doll it was played only by adults till then.Ruth Handler took the Lilli Doll to Mattel .But intially Mattel refused to accept the doll . So she reworked the design of the doll with the help of an engineer Jack Ryan . It was given a new name "Barbie" after Handler's daughter.The doll made its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York on March 9, 1959. Mattel acquired the rights to the Bild Lilli doll in 1964 and production of Lilli was stopped. The first Barbie doll wore a black and white zebra striped swimsuit and signature topknot ponytail, and was available as either a blonde or brunette. March 9 1959 is celebrated as Barbie's official birthday. The picture in the right is the first released Barbie doll.
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