TOY CLASSICS:  THE TIMELESS AND THE TRENDY

by Pam North

Two of the most popular toys of all time could hardly be more different
from each other in what they represent.

The teddy bear's origin goes back to an American president and a
well-known cartoonist.  A cartoon, drawn by Clifford Berryman, was
called "Drawing the Line in Mississippi," and it depicted President
Theodore Roosevelt refusing to shoot a bear.  Roosevelt had journeyed to
the region to settle a border dispute between Mississippi and Louisiana,
and while there he had participated in several days of attempted
bear-hunting.  That endeavor had proved so unsuccessful that an
exhausted bruin specimen was finally roughly rounded up by members of
the expedition expressly for Roosevelt to shoot.
The president refused to dispatch the poor creature in so
unsportsmanlike a situation.  News of the event reached Berryman, and
inspired him to create a cartoon for the November 16, 1902 edition of
the Washington Post that depicted
the double meaning in which Roosevelt had drawn a line -- to set a
border and to refuse to kill a captive animal.  Berryman's original
cartoon showed a large adult bear, but in his subsequent version he drew
an appealing cub, and this was the one that captured the attention and
fancy of the American public.  Berryman expanded the cub character into
a variety of situations connected with President Roosevelt, and the
association with the bear cub had the effect of endearing Roosevelt to
the animal-loving American populace.

The sensation of the cartoon cub prompted a Brooklyn, New York couple,
Morris and Rose Michtom, to make a bear in honor of Roosevelt's
actions.  Calling their creation "Teddy's Bear," they displayed it
prominently in their store window.  Its cuddly, appealing design was an
instant hit, and demand from the public for the bear encouraged the
Michtoms to found the first United States teddy bear manufacturing firm,
the Ideal Novelty and Toy Company.

In the same time frame, the German toy firm, Steiff, had coincidentally
decided to produce a stuffed toy bear inspired by sketches of bears
drawn by Richard Steiff during his visits to the Stuttgart zoo.  The
naturalistic, long-snouted, hump-backed prototype was introduced at the
March, 1903 Leipzig Toy Fair.  European toy buyers greeted the toy with
a lukewarm response, but an American buyer, aware of the burgeoning
popularity of "Teddy's Bear," placed an order for 3,000.  By 1906, teddy
bears had become a huge fad.  Women carried them everywhere, and
children hugged them in photographs.  Competing manufacturing firms
sprang up all over the United States and Europe.  The teddy bear became
the quintessential British childhood toy, and was embraced almost as
enthusiastically throughout the rest of the world as a companion to hold
dear even into adulthood.  In 1994, Christie's auction house sold a rare
bear for a record-breaking $176,000, and in 1999, in the U.S. alone,
collectors purchased $441 million worth of bears.  The teddy bear stikes
an enduring emotional chord, and continues to be a popular toy
symbolizing acceptance, companionship, love and reassurance.

In contrast to the cuddly, furry teddy bear is Barbie, easily the most
popular doll in history.  More than just a doll, she symbolized a new
way of life when she was introduced in 1959.  She was a total departure
from the traditional baby dolls that encouraged nurturing; she
symbolized a different set of values entirely.  Clearly sexuality was
showcased; her looks were a composite of Brigitte Bardot's sultry
hourglass figure and Grace Kelly's sleek style.  Consumerism was evident
in the doll's extensive wardrobe of clothing and accessories (a spectrum
of fashions from pop culture to haute couture), and in the variety of
cars, boats, swimming pools and houses.  Here was the original "Material
Girl."  Female independence was also part of her charm.  Playing mommy
was no longer the focus; this doll was an exciting role model.  She had
careers (model, veterinarian, stewardess, nurse, airline pilot,
astronaut).  Although she had a boyfriend, Ken, and a variety of wedding
dresses to choose from, she never married him, and the pink Corvettes
and condos were all her very own.  She gave a lot of little girls a new
set of non-traditional perceptions.

Barbie was inspired by a real little girl of the same name, the daughter
of Ruth and Eliot Handler, founders of Mattel following World War II
(they also had a son named Ken).   Noticing that her daughter was more
interested in shapely paper dolls, Ruth realized that there was an
unfilled niche in the market for a three-dimensional fashion doll.  The
Handlers designed the Barbie doll, introducing it at the February, 1959
New York Toy Fair, where the dolls sold for a modest $3.00 (those early
dolls in mint condition can bring $1,000 now).  More than 400 million of
the buxom fashionplates have been sold since then (if laid head to toe
in a line, they would circle the earth 3 1/2 times).  Her clothes are
produced at a rate of 20 million outfits a year.  In case you didn't
know, Barbie is a college graduate (from a generic educational institute
called State College), and her last name is Roberts.

The teddy bear celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, and Ruth
Handler, Barbie's creator, died last Monday, April 29, at the age of
85.  Barbie and Teddy are probably the most successful and enduring toys
ever made, and both are tucked lovingly away in the memory cabinets of
adults who have outgrown them but not forgotten them.




Illustrations for article may be found at:

http://teddybearandfriends.com/history.html
Clifford Berryman cartoon from 1902 , "Drawing the Line in Mississippi"

http://barbiefanatic.bobsville.com/coogcoll.htm
9th or 10th photos down page.......1959 Barbie dolls