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The Beginning of the Modern Fashion Doll
Barbie was created in 1959 by Ruth Handler. Barbie was inspired by the German doll Bild Lilli and named after Ruth’s daughter Barbara. The first Barbie doll premiered at the American Toy Fair in New York City on March 9th, 1959. Ruth negotiated a deal for Barbie to be the sole sponsor of The Mickey Mouse Club making Barbie the first toy successfully to be advertised solely to children. The original Barbie doll was 11 1/2 inches tall with rooted Saran hair in either blonde or brunette & she came dressed in a Black & White striped Jersey swimsuit, black mule heels, gold hoop earrings and white cat eye sunglasses with blue lenses. She also came with a booklet stating she was a teenage fashion model that showed off some of her many fashions. Barbie was sold for $3.00 USD and she had costumes that could be purchased for $1.00 to $5.00 USD. Mattel sold 351,000 dolls within their first year.
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