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The Barbie doll was designed and invented by a lady named Ruth Handler in the 1950s. She named the doll after her daughter, Barbara. She gave the doll the full name of Barbara Millicent Roberts. Ruth came up with the idea for Barbie when she saw that Barbara liked to play with adult looking dolls rather than baby looking dolls.
The Barbie doll was first introduced at a Toy Fair in New York by the Mattel toy company. The day was March 9, 1959. This day is celebrated as Barbie's birthday. When Barbie was first introduced she had a black and white swimsuit and her hair style was either blonde or brunette in a pony tail with bangs. Other unique features for this first Barbie include eyes with white irises, blue eyeliner, and arched eyebrows.
Barbie would become a very popular toy with young girls for many reasons: she was one of the first dolls that was an adult, not a baby. This allowed girls to imagine being grown up and to play at different vocations such as teacher, model, pilot, doctor, and more. Barbie also has a wide variety of fashions and one of the biggest wardrobes in the world. Barbie's original fashion model outfits were designed by fashion designer Charlotte Johnson.
Mattel introduced many other dolls to go along with Barbie. This includes the famous Ken Doll which was introduced in 1961 as Barbie's boyfriend. Other notable Barbie characters include Skipper (Barbie's sister), Todd and Tutti (Barbie's twin brother and siter), and Midge (Barbie's first friend introduced in 1963).
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