M: Midge

 

Midge

Let's take a look at Barbie's old friend who caused controversy when she was packaged as pregnant, as already noted in the Alan entry.

Midge dates back to 1963, as one of Barbie's first female friends. One of the ways she originally looked was like this:

Midge had been out of the line for years before being reintroduced in 1988 in the annual Barbie beach line. It was in 1991 that she and Alan were married. A wedding set was produced with Barbie as the maid of honor and Ken as the best man. A ring bearer named Todd and a flower girl named Kelly were also in the wedding party. It is not certain who this character Todd is supposed to be, that if he is Barbie's brother Todd who has occurred twice during the doll's history. 

An originally planned family set shown in promotional booklets of Alan and Midge with a twin boy and girl was never produced. This was supposedly inspired by the Heart Family which had been cancelled in 1990. Some thought a Midge and Alan family line would be more successful since they have clear ties to Barbie, unlike the Heart Family. The controversial "Happy Family" line did not surface until 2002. 

What might have been (above) vs.
what actually was (below). 

Here is a video on Midge's controversial history:

 

 

 

After her family line was discontinued, Midge disappeared until 2013 appearing in the web series Barbie: Life in the Dream House. The series ended in 2016, and Midge dolls stopped appearing once again, except for reproductions.

Skooter, an early friend of Skipper's (pictured below), was often thought to be Midge's sister. The two had some resemblances, but were never said to be sisters. Some have thought Skooter could also be Allan's sister and that Ricky could be Midge's brother, though many have thought Allan and Ricky looked like brothers. Again, none of this was never said to be true. Midge did, however, have a sister named Lila, who was featured in the Wee Friends line. And apparently another sister as well. 

Allan and Midge (top row) and
Skooter and Ricky (bottom). Any resemblances?