When Ruth Handler suggested the idea of an adult bodied doll to her husband Elliot, a co-founder of the Mattel toy company, he was not interested.

In 1956 during a trip to Germany Ruth found and bought a German adult figured doll called the Bild Lilli doll. As soon as she returned to the United States, Ruth redesigned the doll with help from engineer Jack Ryan. The doll was named Barbie, after Ruth's daughter Barbara.

The Barbie doll made its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York on March 9, 1959. This date is also used as Barbie's official birthday. The first Barbie doll wore a black and white zebra striped swimsuit and signature topknot ponytail, it was available as either a blonde or brunette.

The first year alone, around 350,000 Barbie dolls were sold. Today, it is estimated that over a billion Barbie dolls have been sold worldwide in over 150 countries. Mattel claims that three Barbie dolls are sold every second!

In 1964 Mattel acquired the rights to the Bild Lilli doll and production of the German doll was stopped.

© 2007 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)