Eve Out of The Garden: German Lilli Doll Was First Barbie

Barbie began as Lilli. Or, Lilli inspired Barbie. How ever you look at it, Barbie has a past that's linked to the Bild-Lilli Doll of Germany. First Lilli was a comic, a pin-up girl, drawn by cartoonist, Reinhard Beuthien for the newspaper tabloid, Bild-Zeitung in Hamburg Germany.

Lilli was lookin' so smokin' hot that someone (most likely a male) envisioned her in 3-D, in the form of a novelty doll. Lilli on paper became Lilli the doll, in sizes 7-1/2 inches and 12 inches, available in smoke shops and targeted for the male buyer, as kind of a gag gift. It was 1955, and no one knew that this sexy pin-up doll would ever find a place into a young girl's heart.

Image: wikipedia

Three years after the first cartoon drawing, Max Weißbrodt, working for the O & M Hausser Toy Company in Germany, sculpted the Lilli doll model.

The Lilli doll had three new patents:

the head wasn't connected to the neck
the hair was part of a cutout scalp attached with a screw
the legs didn't sprawl open

Yep, that's right Miss Lilli kept her legs together, so there's some modesty for you. If you've ever had a Barbie doll, you know about those legs, they only do the splits -- one leg forward, one leg backward -- and it's difficult to pull them apart to get Barbie's pants on. My daughter used to get so infuriated with the whole process, that she angrily bit Barbie's toes in frustration. Her Barbies have permanent damage.

Image by Tinker*Tailor loves Lalka via Flickr

Lilli was made of rigid plastic, jointed arms and legs, molded eyelashes, earrings and "high-heel" feet. Her painted eyes were glancing to the side (she didn't look you straight in the face), high arched eyebrows, red painted pouty lips and red fingernails. Her shoes were painted on as well. She wore her blonde pony tail high up on her head with one curl slipping over her forehead.

Barbie was a knock-off Lilli doll. Ruth Handler bought the Lilli doll while traveling to Germany in 1956, returned home to the U.S. and with Mattel, fashioned the new doll -- named "Barbie," after her daughter, Barbara. She had a son too -- Ken. In 1959, the Barbie Doll debuted in New York City as the hot teen fashion doll. She had the same eyes, glancing sideways, but painted toenails and removable shoes.

1st Barbies:

1st Barbie face:

Image via Wikipedia

Ruth Handler, lookin' a little bit like an older Barbie, check out that make-up (she just needs to be looking sideways.)

Ruth and her husband, Elliot had a business making wooden picture frames in the 1940's. But the wooden scrapes became more profitable -- Elliot began to use them to make toys. Then, 1945, with close friend, Harold Mattson they formed a toy company -- Mattel -- Matt (for Mattson) and El (for Elliot). Then came to trip to Germany. The rest is history.