April Bookish Bingo

 Here is the new card for April.

My Books:

1. Pirate Passover--Judy Press (1 square): E-Book
2. Apocalypse Baby--Virginie Despentes (11 squares): Library Book, Physical Book, Not in a Series, LGBTQ+, Crime Boss, Job/Career, Sleuthing, Presumed Dead, Missing Person, Cliffhanger
3. How to See--Thich Nhat Hanh (1 square): Audiobook
4. Mystique--Amanda Quick (6 squares): Free Book, Shelf Love, Free Space, Love/Lust, Jilted Lover, Trust Issues
5. Check & Mate--Ali Hazelwood (1 square): Book Club Read
6. Another Kind of Madness--Stephen P. Hinshaw (1 square): Mental Illness
7. By the Light of the Study Lamp--Carolyn Keene (2 squares): In a Series, Library
8. Zillah & Me--Helen Dunmore (1 square): Flowers
9. The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez--Adrianna Cuevas (1 square): Four Elements

25 squares completed on April 16

F: Francie

 

Francie

Francie was Barbie's MOD'ern Cousin from the U.K. The character capitalized on the British Invasion in pop culture, coming with mod-style clothing of the late 1960s and early 1970s. She had a friend named Casey, whose head mold was also used for Mattel's Twiggy doll.  Francie was also made as an African American doll, but this version was not labeled as Barbie's cousin. The AA Francie doll used a now-outdated term in the doll's name. Francie never got a boyfriend, however. Before she disappeared, Francie was incorporated into the annual Barbie swimsuit line (known by the Malibu name until the mid-80s).

Mattel's 1971 catalog promoted a doll named Becky (with Casey's head mold) as a new friend of Francie, but the Becky doll was never produced. In 2009, however, a Most Mod Party Becky doll was made. Yet another use of the Becky name in the Barbie line. 

Francie would not be the only cousin of Barbie's to have her own line of friends and fashions. Another will be mentioned later.

E: Earring Magic Ken

 

Earring Magic Ken

One of the iterations of Ken depicted in the movie is that of Earring Magic Ken from the early 1990s. This one caused controversy as the doll made people believe that Ken was gay. His story is documented in this video (Warning: May contain harsh language):

This was in the pre-Internet, pre-social media era, yet there were plenty of media remarks about the doll. The short-lived Chevy Chase Show on Fox and The Tonight Show With Jay Leno both made remarks about this Ken. (see Wikipedia article). 

Around the same time as the Earring Magic dolls, Mattel produced a line based on the hit TV show Beverly Hills 90210. The Dylan doll in this series was made with a single pierced ear, but received none of the negative publicity that Earring Magic Ken faced.  

Earring Magic Ken has since been a sought-after doll by collectors as well as a gay community icon.

D: Derek, Dana, Dee Dee, and Diva

 

Derek, Dana, Dee Dee and Diva

These were the bandmates of Barbie in the Barbie and the Rockers line of 1986. Dana was Asian; Dee Dee, African American; and Diva, a redhead. Derek was supposedly Hispanic. Ken (with rooted blond hair) would join the band a year later. Yes, Barbie had a band at one point among her many careers. Another missed opportunity for a movie reference. A video was made of the band, and cassettes were included with the dolls. The Rockers line was designed to compete with Hasbro's Jem and the Holograms line. 

The Rockers line was succeeded by Barbie and the Sensations, a video of which was also produced. 

The Derek head mold would be reused in a later Barbie line that not many people remember--one of the posts to come.

C: Christie

 

Christie

Christie was Barbie's first African American friend, though not the first AA doll in the line. That would be Barbie's cousin Francie in an AA version (more on this to come). But let's get back to Christie. She was first introduced in 1968 as part of the Talking line. She got a new face mold that was also used on the Julia doll. 

Christie seems to have come and gone from the Barbie line many times. After disappearing in 2005, she came back in 2015 only to be discontinued once again. She had a boyfriend in the 1970s named Brad, but the two were temporarily replaced by Cara and Curtis. Cara appeared in three Barbie lines, but Curtis's only appearance was in the Free Moving Line of 1975. Barbie herself was first made in an AA version in 1980, and Ken's first AA version was in 1982. New AA character Steven was introduced in 1988, but he only appeared in the annual swimsuit lines. 

I would have liked to have seen Christie portrayed in the movie.

See Christie's history in this video:

Although the character was discontinued in 2015, a 55th anniversary Christie was issued in 2023 (pictured below). Christie's place in the line-up of friends has been taken by another doll (this will be in another post). 

B: Becky

 

Becky

Becky was a friend of Barbie's who used a wheelchair, introduced in 1997. This was one attempt by Mattel to show diversity in the line. She appeared in three lines (the first of which, Share a Smile, is pictured below) until she was discontinued, the reason being that her wheelchair could not fit into Barbie's Dreamhouse. From this link:

... Kjersti Johnson, a girl with cerebral palsy, realized Becky’s wheelchair didn’t fit in the dream house elevator, so she wrote to Mattel to ask if the dream house elevator could be modified to accommodate Becky’s wheelchair. After several unsuccessful redesign attempts, they discontinued the doll. In the 2019 Barbie Fashionistas line, Barbie was finally actually in a wheelchair herself, offering a more diverse representation of beauty....

It's too bad the doll had to be discontinued for reasons like this. But least they found another way to represent those in need of such accommodation in the line.

This is not the only time the name Becky was used in the Barbie line, however. Mattel tends to reuse names in the Barbie line (and in other toy and doll lines), seemingly not to lose the rights to the names. But when used in the same line, it can get confusing.

One character named Becky was in the Barbie and the Sensations line from the late 1980s (the successor to Barbie and the Rockers, which I will be discussing later). Becky is the doll on the left of the photo, with Bopsy in the middle and Barbie on the right (the fourth member, African American Belinda, is not pictured). A video was made of this line.

And in 1995, Barbie's Baby sister Kelly (now called Chelsea) was introduced, and she had her own line of toddler friends, one of whom was named Becky. Becky and the rest of Kelly's little friends (including Ken's little brother Tommy) disappeared after Kelly's name was changed to Chelsea.

Are you confused yet? There is still another use of the name, which will come into discussion in another post. Sorry to keep you in suspense.

--Ending for today.

A: Alan

 Blogging A to Z 2024 has begun. My theme this year is Barbie. For Day One:

 

Alan

"There is only one Alan," so says the narration to the Barbie movie. Indeed, Alan's best-known version is the one depicted by Michael Cera in the film, in the multi-color striped shirt. Originally spelled Allan, the character was introduced as Ken's friend in 1964. He was named for Mattel founder Ruth Handler's son-in-law.

Allan was discontinued after 1965, but reintroduced in 1991 (and the spelling of his name changed to Alan), when he and Barbie's friend Midge were married, in the Wedding Day series. A year later, a proposed line with Alan and Midge with twin babies was shown in promotional booklets, but never made.  

In 2002, the Happy Family set with Alan, Midge and their son was produced, with Midge pregnant with their second child. This caused controversy, and Walmart pulled the dolls from their shelves. Read more about the doll series here. An African American version of the series was also released; this was the only time Midge and Alan were portrayed as such. 

The pregnant Midge was depicted in the film, but apparently has no relationship with Allan in the striped shirt. This despite Alan being discontinued a second time. More on Midge herself to come.

One of Barbie's younger sister Skipper's early friends, Ricky (pictured below), bore a strong resemblance to Allan. Ricky was often thought to be Allan's brother, though that was never said to be true.

End of Day One.