Tonight marks the world premiere of the first Doctor Who series in which the Doctor is portrayed by a woman. The limited-edition commemorative Barbie available for pre-order starting tomorrow, exclusively through Forbidden Planet. Read the rest
Ever since 1992's Math class is tough/let's go shopping scandal, Mattel has been trying to figure out how to make a more progressive Barbie, something to bring back the edgy glory-days of 1982's teen pregnancy Barbie. Read the rest
Edwin Olding hacked together a Barbie Power Wheels Ford Mustang chassis with an old go-kart frame and a customized Honda dirt bike engine. This hot pink whip now races at 70 mph. From The Drive:
Olding told The Drive, "I wanted to find the cutest Barbie Power Wheels car online and turn it into a drift kart."
With the miniature Mustang's tiny electric motor and plastic tires, that would not be an easy task. Instead of trying to boost the Power Wheels' weak performance, Olding decided to chop out everything that wasn't the car's outer shell and drop that onto a pre-built go-kart found on Craigslist. That, however, presented its own problems. The kart's frame couldn't fit into the Mustang's 36-inch wheelbase, so it had to be cut down and welded back together.
So, Mattel recently caught some slack after announcing a Frida Kahlo Barbie. Kahlo's estate is saying that the toy manufacturer didn't get permission from them to use her image and likeness. Mattel disputes the claim.
They did, however, get the blessing of "geriatric starlet" Iris Apfel to make a single Barbie doll in her likeness. Yes, just one.
Unfortunately, Iris Apfel Barbie is one of a kind. (Same as Iris Apfel herself.) But if you’d like to dress your regular degular Barbie just like her, that will soon be an option. This fall, Barbie will release a “Styled By” Barbie, complete with glasses and necklaces from Apfel’s own Rara Avis collection. In a photo taken “at the Carlyle Hotel” (one of Apfel’s haunts), Barbie even sports a new, short bob haircut to fit the profile.
Note that the emerald green Gucci suit the nonagenerian's Barbie is donning is styled after the one she wore on the cover of her new book, Iris Apfel: Accidental Icon.
Watch as an off-the-shelf Barbie gets a superhero makeover in this delightful tutorial. Includes a list of materials used and a very relaxing voiceover. Read the rest
In the music video for her first EP “Intertwined,” British YouTuber and musician Dodie Clark pairs her melodic song with some darkly surreal Barbie-centric imagery. Read the rest
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Star Trek original TV series, Mattel is releasing a new Barbie collection of Kirk, Spock, and Uhura dolls. These figures would play well with the Star Trek Barbie and Ken released in 1996, during the 30th anniversary of Star Trek.
In 1986, the year before his death, Andy Warhol painted a portrait of Barbie in the style of his famous paintings of Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, and so many other celebrities. But in Warhol's mind, it wasn't a painting of the doll but rather his dear friend BillyBoy*, a 23-year-old jewelry designer who had a collection of tens of thousands of Barbies. For an art exhibit, BillyBoy*'s dolls were dressed by famous fashion designers and he also designed two dolls for Mattel, "Le Nouveau Theatre De La Mode" and "Feelin' Groovy Barbie."
Warhol had asked to paint a portrait of BillyBoy*, who always declined, until one day he said, "Well if you really want to do my portrait, do a portrait of Barbie because Barbie, c'est moi." So Warhol did.
Last year, BillyBoy* sold his Barbie portrait at Christie's for more than $1 million. He's also turned his back on Barbie.
"I think Barbie is no longer touching on the zeitgeist of the moment," he told the BBC News. "If I had a daughter I would not give her Barbie dolls. I wouldn't want my child to be constantly obsessed with getting something, and that immense preoccupation with high-heeled shoes and clothes." Read the rest
Collectors Weekly's Ben Marks says, "Schiffer Publishing has just released 'Doll Junk: Collectible & Crazy Fashions from the ’70s & ’80s,' by Carmen Varricchio, who fills almost 200 pages with images of Barbie and Ken knockoffs and the campy fashions that manufacturers in the U.S. and Europe thought would appeal to little girls. Read the rest
For those uninterested in Kandee Johnson's 13-minute Barbie makeover video, here's a 90-second timelapse. For those uninterested in the timelapse, look at the image here. For those uninterested in the image, just move along.
The storybook has Barbie infecting all her friends' computers with a heart-shaped USB drive, then calling on the boys to fix the computers and program the video-game that she goes on to take credit for. Read the rest
It's on Kickstarter. Read the rest
Sarina Frauenfelder, an heiress apparent to the Boing Boing fortune, created this custom Barbie complete with pink coffin. I like that Barbie's flesh has totally decomposed except for her plastinated face. Read the rest
The Chinese launch of Barbie has crashed and burned, after the multi-million-dollar Barbie flagship store in Shanghai's most fashionable district had to close its doors for lack of business after just two years. Here's Ken Voigt from CNN with an expert's postmortem:
"Barbie spent a lot of money setting up a boutique in the most fashionable part of Shanghai, where you could go and have all of your Barbie needs met. You could have a fashion consultation, you could of course buy lots of Barbie dolls," said Karl Gerth, author of "As China Goes, So Goes the World: How Chinese Consumers Are Transforming Everything."
However, "they didn't think long and hard enough about whether Chinese girls wanted to look sexy or they wanted to look something closer to what you'd associate with Japan -- cute," Gerth added. "So Hello Kitty is doing well, but Barbie is an example of crash and burn."
The Mary Sue tracked down a new career for Barbie -- Weeping Angel. The DIY guide, originally found on Wich Crafting, shows how a simple Barbie (or a less expensive impostor) can become the fearsome Doctor Who villain using a few simple ingredients. (And also breaking Barbie's arms.) Consider this a suggestion for holiday gift-giving, in case you want to see if your child is smart enough to notice a missing toy from their collection. Heheheheh, don't blink, kiddies... (via io9) Read the rest
