ep. 197: Barbie Part 1: Welcome to the Dollhouse
How did Barbie—a voluptuous fashion doll for children—become the It girl of toy aisle in the early 1960s, and what has it taken Mattel to keep it that way? Answer: Beyoncé-level PR and a whole lotta lawsuits. Intern Anuli and Cristen sleuth out Barbie's ascent from gold digger to girl next door; her creator, Ruth Handler, whose own children hated the dolls; when Mattel took "Barbie Girl" to court; and why it took 21 years for Black Barbie to happen.
Part 1 of 2.
sources:
Associated Press. ‘Bondage Barbie’ Gets a Boost. CBS News. Nov 8, 2002.
Associated Press. Supreme Court rejects ugly fight over Barbie doll. Jan 27, 2003.
Berthelsen, Christian. Mattel Sues Publisher Over Barbie Essays. The New York Times. Dec 6, 1999.
Brittain, Blake. Mattel ends trademark lawsuit over Nicki Minaj ‘Barbie-Que’ chips. Reuters. Sep 14, 2022.
Dupere, Katie. The true story of Mattel accidentally releasing a super gay Ken doll. In the Know. June 29, 2020.
Flynn, Sheila. ‘A little act of revolution’: How Mattel came to make the first Black Barbie. Independent. Mar 24, 2023.
Gerber, Robin. Barbie Forever: Her Inspiration, History and Legacy. Epic Ink. 2019.
Greene, Andy. 'People Probably Want to Kill Us': The Oral History of Aqua's 'Barbie Girl'. Rolling Stone. Apr 1, 2022.
Lobel, Orly. You Don’t Own Me: The Court Battles That Exposed Barbie’s Dark Side. WW Norton. 2017.
Ojala, Kristy. Seal of Disapproval. Seattle Weekly. Oct 9, 2006.
Werde, Bill. Barbie’s Manufacturer Is Ordered to Pay $1.8 Million in Legal Fees to Artist. The New York Times. June 28, 2004.
Wise, Damon. Buzz, Woody…and Barbie plays too. The Guardian. Dec 5, 1999.
Zardynezhad, Ava. Is Barbie a feminist icon? The Gauntlet. Aug 5, 2022.
