Who here hasn’t owned (or at least played with) a Barbie doll at one point in their lives? Since she was introduced to the world in 1959, Barbie has been a cultural icon and one of the most sought-after toys for small kids. But as iconic as she is, how much do we really know about Barbie? To celebrate Barbie’s big-screen debut, here are some of the most interesting facts about her we bet you didn’t even know about.

She was born in 1959

This Barbie is a 1959 original! In that year, she began to embark on her long list of careers, starting as a fashion model.

Barbie has had over 200 careers so far. She has gone to the Moon, won presidential campaigns, and starred in dozens of films, to list a few. pic.twitter.com/GFyQXC6LGL

— Smithsonian (@smithsonian) July 19, 2023

Ruth Handler introduced the iconic doll on March 9, 1959 at the American International Toy Fair in New York. Barbara “Barbie” Millicent Roberts was wearing her iconic black-and-white striped one-piece, a female adult doll made for little girls. The toy sold about 300,000 units in its first year.

She was modeled after an R-rated German doll

‘Lilli’ originated as a semi-pornographic comic strip about a call girl. The comic was such a sensation in Germany that Lilli dolls soon began popping up for sale in adult novelty stores, tobacco kiosks, and bars. pic.twitter.com/TaLjfeLVdP

— Zee-briskie Point (@Zalifornia) July 17, 2023

Handler says the idea for an adult woman doll came to her when she saw her daughter playing with make-believe paper dolls. However, her make and build were modeled after the German Bild Lilli doll, originally sold in tobacco shops and adult stores as a gag gift for males. When Mattel brought the rights to Lilli, Handler turned that image upside down until the dolls became the iconic toys of today.

Barbie (and Ken) were named after their creator’s children

Did you know that Barbie is short for ‘Barbara’? The doll’s name was inspired by the creator’s daughter, Barbara Handler. Barbie’s parents are named George and Margaret Roberts and they live in the fictional city of Willows, Wisconsin. Ken, on the other hand, was named after the Handlers’ son. Human Barbara is still alive to this day. We wonder what she thinks of the Barbie movie premiere and what it feels like to see how her parents touched the lives of millions of little girls all over the world.

She has siblings

ICYDK, Barbie is part of a family with seven children. Her siblings include: Skipper, Tutti, Todd, Stacie, Kelly, Chelsea, and Krissy. In 1971, Tutti, who was Todd’s twin, went missing from the narrative. When Barbie’s siblings met again in 1992, Stacie was introduced as Todd’s twin. It’s a head-scratching moment that has so many convinced that Stacie is somewhat a reincarnation of Tutti.

She has had her fair share of controversies

[credits to=”The Society Pages” url=”https://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2009/06/10/white-privilege-and-the-trouble-with-homogeneity-the-black-oreo-barbie/”]

Barbie has experienced it all, after more than six decades on this green earth. She has faced criticisms left and right that made Mattel either pull out their dolls or discontinue them. In 1963, a teenager babysitter Barbie came with a tiny diet book that only had one rule: “Don’t eat!” It was criticized for imposing unrealistic body standards on little girls.

In 1992, one of Teen Talk Barbie’s pre-programmed phrases include “Math class is tough.” The negative implications prompted the American Association of University Women to ask Mattel to fix it. Barbie even had an Oreo Fun version in collaboration with Oreo cookies, without realizing “Oreo” is used as a derogatory term for someone “who is seen as black on the outside but white on the inside.” She might seem like she’s perfect but Barbie has definitely made mistakes of her own.

She and Ken called it quits once

Believe it or not, Barbie and Ken once broke up. Gasp. This just proves that navigating love and relationships is as tough for dolls as it is for humans. In 2004, while the iconic couple were on a break, Barbie began dating a doll called Blaine, an Australian surfer dude. To make matters worse for Ken, Blaine even bested him on an online popularity poll at the barbie.com website. Yikes! But in 2006, fate brought Barbie and Ken back together, the latter sporting a “New Look” that highlighted his updated and modern image. Since then, Blaine dolls were shelved and Barbie’s romantic history with him was mostly forgotten.

She holds an impressive resume

Barbie’s resume is undoubtedly the most impressive one on earth. She has had almost 200 careers in six decades ranging from hairstylist, rapper, and baker, to astronaut, Olympic skater, and presidential candidate. Barbie is the epitome of woman empowerment, teaching kids since 1959 that they could do anything they set their minds to. Even Handler, her creator, had the same vision for her: “My whole philosophy of Barbie was that through the doll, the little girl could be anything she wanted to be. Barbie always represented the fact that a woman has choices.”

Some of her versions are now worth hundreds of thousands of dollars

[credits to=”Stefano Canturi” url=”https://www.canturi.com/us/news/barbie-stefano-canturi”]

Barbie is the real #ExpensiveGirl. Her Original version initially sold for $3 or roughly Php 163. But Original Barbies these days are a collector’s item and could be auctioned for up to $25,000 or roughly Php 1.3 million. Vintage Barbies in mint condition now cost a pretty penny (it’s as if her salary went up from her impressive 200 careers!).

However, the most expensive Barbie to be ever made and sold is the Stefano Canturi Barbie valued at — are you sitting down? — $302,500 or roughly Php 16.5 million. No, she wasn’t made from gold, but she did come with a diamond necklace that features a rare Australian pink diamond in the center. You’ll be glad to know that this Barbie was made to raise funds for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

What other facts about Barbie did we miss? Share it with us in the comments section!

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