Throwback/ Who is Barbie in real life? The history of world’s most famous doll that inspired 2023's biggest hit

Greta Gerwig's feminist take on the Barbie doll titled Barbie released in theaters earlier this year. In addition to becoming a pop-culture phenomenon, the film won praise from all over the world. Even though we are aware that the Barbie doll was designed by the Mattel toy corporation, little is known about the mind behind the doll's conception and construction, Ruth Handler. 

While the film did include her character in the narrative, there's only so much that two hours can explain about the creator of the Barbie doll, so here is some of the background that Gerwig omitted.

Who is Ruth Handler? 

Ruth Handler was a formidable entrepreneur with lowly origins. She was the uneducated daughter of Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, according to the Contemporary Jewish Museum. When Handler was nineteen, he relocated to Los Angeles and secured employment at Paramount Studios. 

In 1938, she wed industrial designer Izzy Handlerhad started experimenting with making toys, furniture, and accessories out of a new material known as Lucite. Handler assisted in the sales of these goods, and she founded the business "Mattel" with her spouse and a close friend.

The debut of Barbie doll 

Handler made her own action figures in 1945 because she wanted her daughter Barbara to have toys similar to those of her brother Ken. In March 1959, the first Barbie doll made its debut at the New York Toy Fair and it became a household name because of a ground-breaking TV commercial. In that first year, Handler sold 300,000 dolls, and the success only increased from there.

Even after this, Ruth Handler wasn't satisfied with limiting herself to one idea. Soon after, a stunning collection of clothing, shoes, and accessories arrived, along with brand-new quarters in the shape of a chic Barbie Dreamhouse.

Three years after Barbie's release, in 1962, Mattel made the decision to give her a lover. The male doll was given the name of Handler’s son Ken. Barbie did not fade into obscurity even after she changed mainstream culture for the first time more than 64 years ago. If anything, she's more well-liked than ever thanks to a highly anticipated big-screen film that she can now add to her extensive resume.