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Ep. 255: The Billion Dollar Barbie
Manage episode 426675719 series 1070532
Since the 50’s, no woman has captured the attention of little girls everywhere quite like Barbie. Sure she is only 11 inches tall and made of plastic, but influence is global. This week I talk with M. G. Lord, one of the foremost experts on his iconic fashion doll. When it comes to her history, she definitely has some interesting nuggets most people don’t know about. We start with the complete theft of the Bild Lilli doll, and go through the conviction of Ruth Handler, Mattel’s co-founder. We also discuss Harold Matson, who literally put the “Matt” in Mattel, but got cold feet and sold his shares of the company a few weeks after founding. Then of course we cover Barbie as a fertility god, why she has such odd proportions, and how Disney played a part in her meteoric rise.
Episodes We Mentioned
Fascinating Nouns Ep. on Jack Parsons
FGGGbT Ep. on Barbie
M. G. Lord on Social Media
Website
Facebook
Instagram
Purchase “Forever Barbie”
Fascinating Nouns on Social Media
397 episodes
Manage episode 426675719 series 1070532
Since the 50’s, no woman has captured the attention of little girls everywhere quite like Barbie. Sure she is only 11 inches tall and made of plastic, but influence is global. This week I talk with M. G. Lord, one of the foremost experts on his iconic fashion doll. When it comes to her history, she definitely has some interesting nuggets most people don’t know about. We start with the complete theft of the Bild Lilli doll, and go through the conviction of Ruth Handler, Mattel’s co-founder. We also discuss Harold Matson, who literally put the “Matt” in Mattel, but got cold feet and sold his shares of the company a few weeks after founding. Then of course we cover Barbie as a fertility god, why she has such odd proportions, and how Disney played a part in her meteoric rise.
Episodes We Mentioned
Fascinating Nouns Ep. on Jack Parsons
FGGGbT Ep. on Barbie
M. G. Lord on Social Media
Website
Facebook
Instagram
Purchase “Forever Barbie”
Fascinating Nouns on Social Media
397 episodes
All episodes
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