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Vintage & valuable: Barbie dolls from 1959 to 1972 remain hot collectibles

Barbie(R) was big news in 1959, her debut year, and she retains her tiara as one of the most sought-after collectibles in the new millennium. Collectors define vintage Barbie items as those dolls and fashions made from 1959 to 1972. The many collectors entering the hobby would love to extend that date to 1980. We simply can't get enough of her!

Barbie prices have skyrocketed up the collectibles chart. In 1959, a #1 Barbie doll mint in the box cost $3. In 1977, that doll commanded $500. In today's international market, a brunette Barbie doll mint in the box with all the original cardboard liners, stand and booklet can bring an amazing $10,000.

Lest high prices deter you from getting involved with Barbie collectibles, remember that there are many levels to this pastime. Some collectors enjoy finding played-with dolls and restoring them on their own or hiring a professional to redo them. Others try to piece together, at a substantial savings, rare and hard-to-find fashion ensembles and other accessories-even houses. Barbie collecting seems to be an activity that anybody can join.

It's important to remember that there are many Barbie items out there. After all, Barbie doll was available anywhere, from hardware stores to department stores. Some people have trunks full of their old dolls and fashions stored in their homes-or at their parents' houses. But because Barbie was designed as a plaything, it is unique to find these items mint in the original packaging and in unplayed-with condition. Barbie collectors include those who pay less for imperfect dolls that they put on display as well as those who buy high-priced items that they keep carefully boxed in climate-controlled storage. Since there is no right or wrong way to collect, some Barbie enthusiasts, including me, own a smorgasbord of childhood dolls, gently played-with fashions, some stunning licensed products and a few boxed items acquired either at top dollar or through a lucky find. (A friend of mine recently purchased two #1 Barbie dolls, a #1 stand and a case of fashions for $40 at an estate sale!)

The trail of licensed Barbie products goes back to the early days, when Mattel made its own accessories until it became obvious that the company could not produce everything in-house. Companies such as Standard Plastics Products, Random House, and Irwin and Whitman soon began to create wonderful Barbie-related items. Some collectors, including me, at times will forgo a terrific doll in order to purchase a rare three-ring binder with fantastic Barbie graphics. And in my opinion, the cardboard and vinyl structures made to enhance Barbie's world were among the cleverest doll accessories ever made. These well-conceived items were very popular with Barbie's young fans, too.

It is interesting to note that since the Barbie doll project began with Germany's Bild-Lilly during the mid-1950s, the Barbie dolls and fashions up to 1961 have a 1950s look and feel to them. While the first two dolls and their fashions portray a sophisticated adult, Barbie quickly was redesigned into a doll that was a reflection of an idealized American teen-ager.

Though the dolls are the main focus of collecting, many enthusiasts enjoy tracking down Barbie's fashions, which, in my opinion, are the real reason why the doll became popular so quickly. Even a cursory glance at vintage fashions reveals dressmaker details that rival those on human garments from the period. Many of us have retained the primary parts of fashions from childhood collections. It's those tiny gloves and purses, single-strand pearl necklaces and hankies that we want to find. Such parts and pieces add value to an ensemble. We fantasize about some long-buried vacuum cleaner bag filled with priceless but decaying accessories. What a loss!

Another reason Barbie and items from her world are so collectible is that the early dolls and fashions were very diverse. In my opinion, Barbie's creator, Ruth Handler, wanted little girls to have many choices for play. I think that is why numerous, varied fashions became available during that period. Today, an adult collector who always wanted to be a flight attendant can relive that fantasy with more than 10 Barbie outfits, some of them quite expensive and hard to find. Those who dreamed of being a pictureperfect bride can survey the approximately 100 wedding gowns created for Barbie through the years.

The Achilles heel in collecting early Barbies is that she was not a hair-play doll. After an hour of struggling to take down that ponytail, it was a big surprise to discover a totally bald head. Even the Bendable Leg Barbies from 1965-66 had bad hairlines and hair that could not be restyled. It was not until the later 1960s that the doll's hair could be restyled. This development led to a huge, enthusiastic group of budding hairstylists. Today, the restoration of Barbie's crowning glory is big business.

Some catalog illustrations and television commercials depict young boys playing with Barbie and Ken. I certainly enjoyed the dolls as a youngster. Ken was a terrific role model. I imagined driving with him in his Austin Healy and joining him while he hiked, fished, swam or acted in theatrical productions. Barbie and Ken's world was one for us to dream in. Today, that makes the dolls and fashions very desirable on many different levels.

As the 1960s progressed, Mattel produced dolls and clothing that kept in step with teen fashion. The pendulum swung from prim and proper outfits to the mod London look in just two years. This adds to the fun of collecting vintage items because our collections comprise a multidimensional scrapbook of the 1950s through the 1970s.

Another interesting development in collecting vintage Barbie is that other collectors no longer consider doing so an oddity. In addition, our hobby has a huge following, with everyone from ballerinas to truck drivers eager to acquire Barbies and Kens. Many collectors seem to have considerable disposable income to devote to our hobby, a fact that has kept prices for rare or pristine items high. My unscientific study of recent auctions shows approximately a 25 percent increase in price on mint items in a two-year span (a study that should be taken with a grain of salt). While in many cases prices seem to remain static or are falling on less-than-perfect items, I would describe the vintage Barbie market as one of the most thriving collector marketplaces.

I also think that, in general, collectibles are no longer being promoted as an investment. Perhaps they never should have been in the first place. In our zeal to justify why we have staggering doll collections instead of new tires on the car or a summer vacation cottage, we use the word "investment" to justify the momentary lapse of judgment when the money went instead to buy a doll outfit! Still, prime vintage Barbie items do seem to show a return when it becomes time to resell.

Certainly, we can say that Barbie and her huge array of fashions, friends, vehicles, structures and other related items are the very essence of what makes something collectible and desirable. Today, fashion doll collecting is big business. New, eye-popping creations walk the fashion doll runways at Toy Fair, just like the actual live fashion shows. It is a fashionable doll world and has been since Madame Alexander debuted Cissy in 1955.

But Barbie doll still is queen of the prom. Long may she reign!

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Barbie; The World of Barbie; Ken; Bendable Leg Barbie; Barbie and Ken Little Theatre; Barbie, Queen of the Prom; and Barbie's Fashion Shop are registered trademarks of Mattel, Inc. Cissy is a registered trademark of Alexander Doll Company.