50 Fun Facts About Hard Barbie

The Lilli doll that inspired Barbie was based on a cartoon character created for which German tabloid?

Reinhard Beuthien drew Lilli, and the doll 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?

That is roughly $218,000 in today's money, and German production of Lilli stopped 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?

They were made in Japan, with clothes hand-stitched by Japanese homeworkers, and beat every market expectation.

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?

Marx held US rights to Lilli and claimed patent infringement, but the suit failed.

Ruth Handler was Mattel's president from 1945 until an SEC probe forced her out in which year?

She and Elliot were found to have issued false financial reports; she went on to found Ruthton Corp.

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?

It fell off when wet, so Mattel switched to moulded plastic; collectors call the originals flocked-hair Kens.

Ken had straight, non-bending arms from 1961 until which doll debuted in 1977?

The Superstar line gave both dolls their big open-mouthed smiles.

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?

The pair officially reunited on Valentine's Day 2011 after a campaign for Ken to win her back.

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?

Colored Francie followed in 1967, a year before Christie, and is sometimes called the first Black Barbie doll.

Barbie's transatlantic chum Stacey was introduced in 1968 during which cultural moment?

She came as a pull-string Talking doll or a Twist 'n Turn version with three spitcurls.

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

Some parents felt Midge was too young for children; Mattel later rebooted her as single, unmarried and childless.

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

One was Math class is tough, said by about 1.5% of dolls, and Mattel pulled it after complaints from the American Association of University Women.

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

They performed surgery on 300 to 500 dolls and returned them to shop shelves, a tactic they called shopgiving.

Which judge dismissed Mattel's lawsuit over Aqua's Barbie Girl, calling the song parody and commentary?

His opinion famously ended by advising the parties to chill.

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

Mattel had to pay Forsythe's legal costs.

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

Fans soon noticed she 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?

The 2001 doll was released in both white and Black versions, which is what triggered the complaints.

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

They launched exclusively in the Fashionistas line; the brand now lists over 22 skin tones and five body types.

A standard Barbie is 11.5 inches tall. At what scale does that make her a 5-foot-9 woman?

Collectors call it playscale, and most accessories are built to match.

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

She came with DEP styling gel and hair 11.5 inches long, the longest on any Barbie at the time.

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?

It sits inside the Louvre complex and included work by artists inspired by the doll.

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

It was Barbie's first computer-animated film and her first film of any kind since two 1987 TV specials.

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

Diana Kaarina took over for A Fashion Fairytale, the eighteenth film in the series.

The doll's two 1987 TV specials, her only screen outings before 2001, centred on which band?

Out of This World was followed by Barbie and the Sensations: Rockin' Back to Earth.

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?

Home video went through Artisan and Family Home Entertainment, then Lionsgate, then Universal.

Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse ran on YouTube from 2012 to 2015. Which studio produced it 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?

Sony took the rights in 2014, cast Amy Schumer and then Anne Hathaway, and let its option lapse in 2018 to Warner Bros.

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

Margot Robbie's casting was confirmed in July 2019 after her company LuckyChap partnered on the project.

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

Filming ran from March to July 2022, with the Venice Beach Skatepark as a key location.

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

COVID supply problems and freezing temperatures had already damaged its stock.

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

It finished on $1.448 billion, Warner Bros.' biggest ever, passing Jia Ling's Hi, Mom for a solo female director.

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

It was the inaugural award in that category and one of eight Oscar nominations followed, including Best Picture.

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

Wolfgang Van Halen and Foo Fighters drummer Josh Freese also played, and Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt wrote it.

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

Celine Dion's Titanic ballad won it in 1999; Billie Eilish and Finneas also took the Oscar and Golden Globe.

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

Her monologue about being a woman became the film's most quoted scene; she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

Barbie was Greta Gerwig's third solo film to be nominated for Best Picture. What were the first two?

She grew up in Sacramento, which is why Lady Bird is set there.

Ryan Gosling's Oscar nomination for Ken was his third. Which two films earned the first two?

He was born in London, Ontario, and started out on The All New Mickey Mouse Club.

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

She founded it with her husband Tom Ackerley, who also produced the film.

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

Denmark hosted that year after winning in 2000; the song came from the band's 1997 album Aquarium.

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

By then 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.