For many, some of the fondest memories of childhood involve their very own Barbie doll. Ken and Barbie and all their friends have helped generations of children fill hours of creative play. Barbie Day celebrates all the strides this doll has made in the over sixty years of bringing joy to the world. Did you have a Barbie doll growing up?

History of Barbie Day

The history of Barbie Day is the history of Barbie herself, as the day marks her official birthday. Barbie debuted on March 9, 1959, at the American International Toy Fair in New York. She was a labor of love from Ruth Handler, who was the wife of the co-founder of the toy giant Mattel, Inc. After watching children playing with baby dolls and paper dolls, she thought that the toy market needed something more.

After a trip to Germany, where she saw a doll that was in line with what she wanted, she convinced her husband and the company to make the first-ever mass-produced doll with adult features. While there have been minor changes through the years, Barbie came off the production line much as we know her today. There were some who objected to her figure, but as you can see with her success, those thoughts were in the minority.

Do you know the background story for Barbie? Her parents, George and Margaret Roberts, named her Barbara Millicent Roberts. Her nickname is the famous Barbie. What about Ken, you ask? His mother, Edna Carson, named him after her father, Kenneth. After a time, Barbie gets a host of siblings, cousins, and friends! To learn more, you can head over to your handy search engine and find all the details. It is exciting to see which dolls are no longer produced and who is the newest to the group!

NATIONAL BARBIE DAY ACTIVITIES

1. Play Barbie, of course

   Create some memories and play Barbie with your children or relatives! We won’t judge you if you get a little distracted and start playing with Barbie yourself.

2. Buy your Barbie new clothes

   Take your Barbie on a shopping spree. You can view a full lineup on the Mattel website or support independent artists by shopping on Amazon. Either way, your Barbie is heading to style city.

3. Blast some Aqua

   You have our full permission to blast Aqua’s 1997 hit “Barbie Girl” (as if you even needed a reason). Life in plastic — it’s fantastic!

NATIONAL BARBIE DAY DATES