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  • Ana DuVernay’s Limited-Edition Barbie Doll Sells Out In Just One Hour

    Ava DuVernay’s limited-edition Barbie doll sold out in just one hour earlier this week.

    In a telephone interview on Tuesday’s Good Morning America, the Selma director gushed over having a doll with her likeness.

    DuVernay said that while she was a “big Barbie girl growing up,” none of the ones she had “looked like me.”

    “So with the opportunity to create a doll who had brown skin and natural hair and was directing her own movie, that was an incredible opportunity, so I went for it,” DuVernay said of her motivation to help design a doll that looked like her.

    She to GMA that her favorite features of the doll were Barbie’s hair and a director’s chair that accompanied the doll.

    “The natural hairstyle was very important to me. I think that’s something that should be celebrated — the differences in all of us. With so much rhetoric about collapsing who we are, it’s about expansion and celebrating everyone,” DuVernay said. “And then the chair was my favorite thing, because it took me a long time to earn that chair. So I wanted every girl and boy to have one.”

    DuVernay said she hoped the doll would inspire people to accept different images in storytelling.

    “Everyone should be able to see themselves. That’s really what my point is in doing this. Images and balance in storytelling, our imagination, is something that should be embraced and widened and expanded,” she said. “So that’s what I’m hoping this does: Changes the view of who we think a director can be, changes the view of who we think a Barbie should look like.”

    Unfortunately, those who were hoping more DuVernay Barbie’s would be forthcoming are out of luck.

    Mattel’s social media team kept busy on Tuesday, tweeting an explanation for the limited number of dolls to disappointed consumers. “Our Platinum Label dolls are highly collectible. These dolls tend to sell out quickly & this one is no exception,” the company wrote on Twitter.

    “It was always supposed to be a limited run. It was only supposed to be one doll, and it was by popular demand that it was expanded. So it was a short-term celebration, but a good thing,” Ana DuVernay said.

  • Normal Barbie: Are You Buying One This Christmas?

    It’s time to start shopping for Christmas and many little girls will be asking for Barbie dolls this year.

    While Barbie has changed a lot over the years, a recent doll called Normal Barbie may bring the biggest changes yet.

    The Normal Barbie, whose name is Lammily, is supposed to be modeled after the average 19-year-old woman.

    She is curvier than the original Barbie and has thicker arms and legs. She also wear less makeup and comes with acne, blemishes and stretchmark stickers.

    Over the years, many people have argued that Barbie’s unattainable looks make girls feel bad about themselves for how they look and give them an unrealistic image to try to live up to.

    The Normal Barbie was made to help inspire girls and women to be happy with the way they look and to feel confident about their bodies. The Barbie was developed by Nickolay Lamm.

    “I want to show that reality is beautiful,” Lamm said. “I just think she’s really relatable.”

    While the Normal Barbie may seem like a good idea, many parents don’t think they will appeal to their children.

    “My daughter probably wouldn’t give this doll a second glance as it is now,” Jill McSheridan, of Harwood Heights, said in an email to the Chicago Tribune. “Give this doll more hair color options and better clothes, then it’d be great.”

    Other women say that the original Barbie is fine the way she is and that just because she looks a certain way doesn’t mean girls expect to look like her.

    Do you think the Normal Barbie is a good idea?

  • Plus Size Barbie Is Causing An Uproar

    Plus Size Barbie Is Causing An Uproar

    Many kids have played with, and dreamed of being that beautiful Barbie doll from childhood, and remember that slim, gorgeous beauty that was so popular, nearly all-little girls have some version of her.

    A version, meaning one of the vast selections of different collection dolls available today – such as the Happy New Year Doll, The Blondes Blond Gold Barbie, The Hunger Games Barbie and many more.

    When the Barbie doll was created by Mattel in 1959, nobody had a clue it would become such a huge success. Selling at a rate of two dolls per minute, Barbie has become one of the top selling toys every year since its creation.

    “In 1959, its first year, 351,000 Barbie dolls were sold at $3 each — a new sales record.”

    The idea behind Ruth Handler’s creation, the wife of Mattel owner Elliot Handler, was a teenage looking doll that little girls could dream their futures through. The doll was designed around a teenage fashion model concept.

    The first Barbie though, had only one version – until 1961 the founder of Mattel decided Barbie needed a mate – and out came Ken.

    The creation of the slim, gorgeous Barbie was the impetus of the 1950’s era. Obesity was a foreign word, and housewives everywhere skipped meals and ate like birds to maintain that ‘female’ figure to please their men.

    What Mattel has just done to the 54 year history of Barbie, the beauty queen, blonde model who dresses in gowns and fancy clothes – has shattered an over half-century image of Barbie.

    Mattel has created “Plus Size” Barbie. Could it have been done to ease the minds of obese people all over the U.S.?

    Others were critical of the idea in general, such as one woman who noted, “We shouldn’t encourage people to be unhealthy… Maybe we should make a heroin addict Barbie too?”

    Mattel has been known to be quite controversial in the past, for example, in 1967 Mattel released the first African-American Barbie, a bold move during a tumultuous time in America. Additional Barbie dolls from other ethnic groups were released over the following years. In 1997, Mattel widened the doll’s waist to fit more realistic, contemporary fashions.

    The company can’t be criticized for not ‘staying with the times’ and creating controversy, however this creation is a bit broad.

    Image via Twitter

  • Plus Size Barbie: Good For Whose Self-Esteem?

    A debate has emerged this week over an image shared by plussizemodeling.com on their facebook and website. Because more and more plus size models are emerging to represent plus-size shoppers, there was a question of whether or not the iconic Barbie doll should also be made in a plus size version.

    Says the accompanying text, “In all honesty, we want to know…”

    Well, they are certainly finding out.

    There are over 40,000 likes on the image, which is being shared all over the internet. The original image of the plus-size Barbie was taken from a winning Worth1000 contest entry, which has received renewed interest in recent days.

    While some are supportive of the idea of a plus-size Barbie, not everyone is on board.

    (image)

    First there are the health advocates who feel that it is counterintuitive to give girls a doll that they feel promotes obesity as normal rather than as a serious health risk. Says one commenter, “No one is naturally fat for gods sake, that’s sending the message to girls that it’s ok to look like this and be unhealthy.. How about we stop obsessing about being overweight and teach our children to eat healthy and get out and play…”

    Plus-sized women came forward to cast their doubts about the image as is. The main issue many had was with the “triple-chin.” Excess weight can usually cause women and men to have double-chins, but the triple-chin was seen as a bit much. One woman even wrote, “Barbie doesn’t need a double chin. You can be ‘plus size’ w/o the double chin. They could make a ‘thick’ Barbie.”

    There has been plenty discussion as to why there is always an extreme with Americans when it comes to weight. Either a person has to be extremely thin, and if that ideal is seen as unfair, one has to be extremely overweight to make up for it. Some are wondering why there’s never any middle ground in the debate about positive body image for women.

    But one of the most interesting series of questions asked was this: “Why make a plus-sized Barbie? Who is the target audience? What is the goal? That’s what we should be discussing.”

    The majority or even all of the debate being had is by adults. Has anyone stopped to ask if kids even care? Or even if kids, overweight or not, would be interested in a plus size Barbie?

    It seems that this is just another battlefield for grown-ups determined to control what’s seen as healthy or attractive and what isn’t. With that in mind, perhaps Barbie and other toys should be left out of it. If parents are concerned about a child’s body image or health then it’s a conversation that they need to step up and have with their kids.

    Image via Worth1000 Facebook

  • “Goth Barbie” Gives “Be Yourself” Message In World Of Bullies

    “Goth Barbie” is what everyone–including Mattel executives–is calling the girls of Monster High, a relatively new line of dolls who are descendants of famous monsters.

    The toy line debuted in 2010 and blew up, way beyond the expectations of even the people who made them, and while Mattel says little girls still want their Barbie dolls, more and more are gravitating towards her skeletal, pale-skinned freak cousins. That’s especially important in today’s world of online bullying, says Cathy Cline, who is in charge of marketing for Mattel.

    “The message about the brand is really to celebrate your own freaky flaws, especially as bullying has become such a hot topic,” said Cline. “And it’s also one of the fastest growing brands within the entire toy industry.”

    Of course, it doesn’t hurt that sales for the company have grown 56% this year thanks to the dolls. By jumping into the market right at the time that “Twilight” was blowing up, the dolls were on the shelves while vampires and werewolves were being made cool again, and the girls still do all the fun things Barbie and her friends do. Aimed at girls age 6-12, they couldn’t exactly be ferocious killers. Dracula’s daughter, Draculaura, isn’t even a bloodsucker.

    “She’s a vegan. She’s turned off by meat,” says Kiyomi Haverly, the company’s vice president in charge of design. “Girls could really relate to that because that’s part of what they’re thinking of these days.”

    The main complaint about the Monster High dolls is that they’re so thin, which was already a complaint about Barbie dolls. In fact, one artist recently took Barbie’s measurements and gave her a “real woman” makeover so that she looked like an average girl. The difference in her body was amazing, and several people–including celebrities–applauded the change. Mattel hasn’t announced any plans to alter her appearance–or the Monster High dolls, for that matter–but with sales skyrocketing, they more than likely won’t have to.

  • Valeria Lukyanova Wants to Be a Human Barbie Doll: Twitter Reacts

    Valeria Lukyanova, in this writer’s humble opinion, is one seriously scary individual. I may lose some credibility amongst my fiercely heterosexual friends, but the Ukrainian model gives me the creeps. Maybe its her giant, glassy eyes, or, perhaps, her impossibly tiny waist. Whatever the case may be, looking at her pictures gives me a serious case of the willies. If David Cronenberg or David Lynch ever want to make a motion picture about misplaced ambition and/or humanity’s obsession with constructing the so-called “perfect body”, she should be the frontrunner for the lead role. I feel like I’m looking at stills for the next installment of the Tekken franchise.

    Seriously, folks. I’m frightened.

    Then again, what do I know? According to The Inquisitr, Lukyanova claims to be “the most famous Russian woman on the Russian-language Internet.” She’s amassed quite an online following — her YouTube channel sports nearly two million views — though it’s taken a bit of work for the 21 year-old to transform herself into a living Barbie doll. Again, am I the only straight guy on the planet who thinks this is just plain wrong?

    In order to achieve the look you see in the slideshow embedded above, Lukyanova has undergone a series of surgeries, including procedures to enhance her breasts, trim her waist, and sculpt her face. She also spends quite a bit of time applying make-up to achieve that thoroughly plastic complexion. But don’t take my word for it — have a look at the bizarre cartoon below, a clip which eerily showcases all of the steps Lukyanova has taken to transform herself into a mock human being you see today. You can thank the folks over at Jezebel for pointing me in the direction of the video.

    If you doubt the girl’s authenticity, you can gawk at pics of her without make-up on her official Facebook page.

    As far as Twitter reactions go, this one has been particularly interesting. Most people seem to think that all of these images have been Photoshopped, while others seem to believe she’s nothing more than a freak looking for a bit of attention. Whatever the case may be, Valeria Lukyanova has already achieved one her dreams.

    Lots of people on the Internet are talking about her, for better or for worse.

    (image)@Marionberry3
    Marionberry Style    She doesn’t even look like a real person! http://t.co/XRzA0Jkh(image) 3 minutes ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@starplusIE
    starplus.ie    Valeria Lukyanova dubbed real-life Barbie doll. You know how to test it – check she’s wearing matching shoes. QED http://t.co/zIcf8njD(image) 11 minutes ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@StargazingBlog
    Malene Arpe    Barbie look-alike will haunt your dreams: There’s some debate over whether Valeria Lukyanova is in fact a real p… http://t.co/yyhggq7f(image) 1 hour ago via twitterfeed ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@meagankunkel
    Meagan Kunkel    Ok. Now I feel much better about my life… Valeria Lukyanova Is A Real-Life Barbie Doll (VIDEOS) http://t.co/VpftHHz2 via @HuffingtonPost(image) 1 hour ago via Tweet Button ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    (image)@ShujaRabbani
    Shuja Rabbani    Okay, this is almost scary, not beautiful anymore: http://t.co/wU2pWfeh(image) 4 hours ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto