49 Fun Facts About Hard Barbie

Which cartoonist drew the Lilli comic character on which the Bild Lilli doll was based?

Reinhard Beuthien drew Lilli as a cartoon for the tabloid Bild from 1952; the doll based on her went on sale in August 1955.

Who was the original Bild Lilli doll marketed to?

They were sold at tobacconists and kiosks, and a 1960s ad told young men to give their girlfriends a Lilli instead of flowers.

How much did Mattel pay in 1964 for the copyright and patent rights to the Bild Lilli doll?

Mattel paid $21,600 in 1964 for the Lilli copyright and patent rights, and German production of the Lilli doll ended the same year.

Which local inventor-designer helped Ruth Handler redesign the Lilli doll into Barbie?

Ryan was a former missile engineer whom Handler hired for his engineering skills.

Roughly how many Barbie dolls sold in her first year, 1959?

About 350,000 Barbie dolls sold in 1959, her first year; they were made in Japan with clothes hand-stitched by homeworkers.

What notable change was made to Barbie's face in 1971?

The original 1959 doll had a demure sideways glance; Malibu Barbie was the first to stare straight at you.

Which rival toymaker sued Mattel in March 1961 over Barbie?

Louis Marx, which had licensed Lilli for the US, sued Mattel in March 1961 claiming Barbie copied the doll; the case was settled out of court in 1963.

An SEC investigation forced Ruth Handler out of Mattel's presidency in which year?

Ruth Handler resigned from Mattel in 1975 amid an SEC probe into false financial reports; indicted in 1978, she pleaded no contest.

After surviving cancer, Ruth Handler founded Ruthton Corp. to make what product?

She said that if Barbie had given girls self-esteem, this could give it back to women who had lost theirs.

Mattel was founded in January 1945 in a Los Angeles garage by the Handlers and which third partner?

Matt plus Elliot gave the company its name; Matson sold out early.

Ken's first year of hair, 1961, was made of what material?

Ken's 1961 hair was felt, the 'flocked hair' collectors prize; it fell off when wet, so Mattel switched to moulded plastic hair in 1962.

Which 1993 Ken doll became a cult collectible after its look was compared to gay club fashion?

Sugar Daddy Ken, aimed at adult collectors, followed in the 2009 Palm Beach line.

When Barbie and Ken split in 2004, which Australian surfer briefly took Ken's place?

Blaine, an Australian surfer doll, became Barbie's boyfriend after the February 2004 split; she and Ken reunited on Valentine's Day 2011.

What was the gimmick of the controversial 1975 Growing Up Skipper doll?

Skipper had been created in 1964 as a little girl; the doll marked her promotion to teenager.

Which 1966 doll, marketed as Barbie's Modern Cousin, was the first to feature rooted eyelashes?

Francie, launched in 1966 as Barbie's MODern cousin, was the first Barbie-line doll with rooted eyelashes; Colored Francie followed in 1967, a year before Christie.

Talking Stacey, Barbie's friend introduced in 1968, spoke with which accent?

Stacey was Barbie's British friend, sold from 1968 as a pull-string Talking Stacey with a British accent and as a Twist 'n Turn doll.

Midge was sold pregnant, with newborn Nikki, as part of which controversial line?

The 2002 Happy Family line sold a pregnant Midge with a detachable belly and newborn Nikki; Walmart pulled it after complaints, and Midge returned in 2013 single and childless.

Teen Talk Barbie's voice box drew four random phrases from a pool of how many?

Each Teen Talk Barbie (1992) spoke four phrases drawn from a pool of 270; one, 'Math class is tough', drew complaints from the American Association of University Women and was dropped.

In 1993 the Barbie Liberation Organization swapped Teen Talk Barbie voice boxes with which toy's?

The Barbie Liberation Organization swapped the voice boxes of Teen Talk Barbie and Talking Duke G.I. Joe in 300 to 500 dolls, then returned them to shelves in a stunt it called 'shopgiving'.

Which Ninth Circuit judge wrote the 2002 opinion rejecting Mattel's lawsuit over Aqua's Barbie Girl?

Alex Kozinski's 2002 Ninth Circuit opinion in Mattel v. MCA Records held the song was parody and commentary, and ended: 'The parties are advised to chill.'

What was Tom Forsythe's 1999 photo series, in which Barbie ends up in a blender, called?

Tom Forsythe's Food Chain Barbie series posed nude Barbies in kitchen appliances; Mattel sued, lost on fair use, and was ordered to pay about $1.8 million of his legal costs.

Which doll, introduced in May 1997, came with a pink wheelchair?

Share a Smile Becky, launched in May 1997 in a pink wheelchair, famously could not fit through the Dreamhouse's doors or into its elevator.

Mattel's Oreo Barbie drew criticism because, as an African American slur, Oreo means what?

Oreo Fun Barbie (1997), a Nabisco tie-in sold in white and Black versions, drew complaints because 'Oreo' is a slur meaning Black outside, white inside; Mattel withdrew the Black doll.

In 2016 Mattel introduced three new body types for Barbie: tall, petite and what?

Curvy, tall and petite joined the original body as Barbie Fashionistas body types in January 2016; Time magazine put the curvy doll on its cover.

Standard Barbie dolls and accessories are made at what scale, which collectors call playscale?

Barbie is 1/6 scale: her 11.5 inches correspond to a 5-foot-9 woman, and collectors call that size playscale.

Totally Hair Barbie, the best-selling Barbie ever, was designed by whom?

Carol Spencer, a Mattel fashion designer from 1963 to 1999, designed Totally Hair Barbie (1992), which came with Dep styling gel and crimped hair reaching her toes.

Which pop artist painted a portrait of Barbie in 1986?

His foundation teamed up with Mattel in 2015 to make an Andy Warhol Barbie.

Which Paris museum held a Barbie exhibition in 2016?

The Musée des Arts Décoratifs, in the Louvre's Marsan wing, staged the 'Barbie' exhibition from March to September 2016 with some 700 dolls.

Barbie in the Nutcracker (2001) was animated by which Canadian studio?

Mainframe Entertainment of Vancouver animated Barbie in the Nutcracker (2001), the first computer-animated Barbie film and her first since two 1987 TV specials.

Who voiced Barbie in the animated films from The Nutcracker until she was replaced in 2010?

Kelly Sheridan voiced Barbie from Barbie in the Nutcracker (2001) until Diana Kaarina took over for A Fashion Fairytale (2010); Sheridan returned in 2012.

In her first 1987 TV special, Out of This World, Barbie fronted which band?

Barbie and the Rockers: Out of This World (1987) was her first screen outing; in the sequel, Rockin' Back to Earth, the band renamed itself the Sensations.

Which character won Barbie as Rapunzel a DVD Premiere Award for Best Animated Character Performance?

Anjelica Huston voiced the witch, and the film had eight nominations in all.

Which US channel broadcast the Barbie animated films from 2002 to 2017?

Nickelodeon aired the Barbie films in the US from 2002 to 2017, after which new releases went to Netflix; home video passed from Artisan to Lionsgate to Universal.

Which studio produced the 2012-2015 YouTube series Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse with Mattel?

Arc Productions of Toronto made Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse with Mattel; Kate Higgins voiced Barbie and Sean Hankinson voiced Ken in the parody-flavoured shorts.

Which studio first announced a live-action Barbie film, in September 2009, with producer Laurence Mark?

Universal Pictures announced a live-action Barbie film with producer Laurence Mark in September 2009; Sony took the rights in 2014 and let its option lapse to Warner Bros. in 2018.

Which actress was cast as Barbie before Anne Hathaway, then left in 2017 citing scheduling?

Amy Schumer was cast as Barbie in December 2016 and left in March 2017 citing scheduling conflicts; Anne Hathaway was then attached before Sony's option lapsed.

Where was the 2023 film's principal photography primarily shot?

Barbie shot mainly at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in England from March to July 2022, with location work at the Venice Beach Skatepark in Los Angeles.

Which paint company ran out of pink because the Barbieland sets used its entire stock?

Rosco Laboratories' fluorescent pink ran out after the Barbieland sets used its entire stock; COVID supply problems and the 2021 Texas freeze had already depleted it.

On what date did the film cross $1 billion worldwide, a first for a solo female director?

Warner Bros. announced on August 6, 2023, 17 days after release, that Barbie had passed $1 billion worldwide, making Greta Gerwig the first solo female director of a billion-dollar film.

Besides Best Original Song, what new award did the film win at the 2024 Golden Globes?

Barbie won the inaugural Cinematic and Box Office Achievement award at the January 2024 Golden Globes, alongside Best Original Song; eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, followed.

Which Guns N' Roses guitarist played on I'm Just Ken?

Slash played guitar on I'm Just Ken alongside Wolfgang Van Halen, with Josh Freese on drums; Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt wrote the song.

What Was I Made For? won the Grammy for Song of the Year, the first film song to do so since which track?

'My Heart Will Go On', Celine Dion's Titanic theme, won Song of the Year in 1999; Billie Eilish and Finneas's 'What Was I Made For?' won it in 2024 and also took the Oscar and Golden Globe.

America Ferrera earned an Oscar nomination for playing which character in the 2023 film?

America Ferrera played Gloria, the Mattel employee whose monologue about being a woman became the film's most quoted scene; she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

Before Barbie, which two Greta Gerwig solo films were nominated for Best Picture?

Lady Bird (2017) and Little Women (2019) were both Best Picture nominees, so Barbie (2023) made all three of Gerwig's solo features nominees.

Which two films earned Ryan Gosling his Oscar nominations before Barbie?

Half Nelson (Best Actor, 2007 ceremony) and La La Land (Best Actor, 2017 ceremony) preceded Gosling's Best Supporting Actor nomination for Ken.

Margot Robbie's Best Picture nomination for Barbie came as a producer through which company she co-founded?

Robbie co-founded LuckyChap Entertainment in 2014 with her husband Tom Ackerley, who shared the Best Picture nomination as a Barbie producer.

Barbie Girl by Aqua was performed as the interval act at which event in 2001?

Aqua performed Barbie Girl in the interval of the 2001 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, which Denmark hosted after the Olsen Brothers won in 2000; the song came from 1997's Aquarium.

Mattel claimed in 2006 that how many Barbie dolls were sold every second worldwide?

Mattel claimed three Barbie dolls were sold every second; by 2006 more than a billion had been sold in over 150 countries.

Which Mattel fashion designer created the clothes for the original 1959 'Teen-age Fashion Model' Barbie?

Charlotte Johnson designed the first Barbie's wardrobe; the doll launched in a black-and-white zebra-striped swimsuit.