The inspiration for Barbie was the doll
version of a high-end call girl from a
German comic strip. The Bild Lilli doll
was a popular ‘50s adult novelty, but
eventually caught the attention of kids –
including a young Barbara Handler. Her
mother then bought some in Europe,
created a new doll for children, and
named it after her daughter. Source
Barbie’s original “look” was basically straight up copied from Bild Lilli–some of the dolls above are Lilli & some are Barbie. that might illuminate a bit of why Barbie looked the way she did in the beginning. 😉
Mooncustafer 