9th March: Barbie's Birthday

Barbie, the popular doll, was launched on this date in 1959, and is her official birthday, so here are 10 facts about Barbie.

1. Barbie's full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts. Her parents are called George and Margaret Roberts. Ken's full name is Ken Carson. She has younger siblings called Skipper, Stacie, Todd and Chelsea.
2. Barbie and her family live in the fictional town of Willow, Wisconsin.
3. She has a lot of friends, too, including: Midge, who married Ken's best friend Allan; Christy, an African-American friend; Jamie, Steffie, Whitney, Teresa, Summer (Blaine's sister) and Becky, a disabled character with a wheelchair.
4. Barbie was created by US businesswoman Ruth Handler, who took her inspiration from a German doll called Bild Lilli.
5. Barbie hasn't always been faithful to Ken. Manufacturers Mattel released a press release in 2004 announcing the pair had split up, and Barbie was dating an Australian surfer called Blaine. However, Ken was given a makeover in 2006 and it was announced that Barbie and Ken were getting back together.
6. Barbie has had over 40 pets including cats and dogs, horses, a panda, a lion cub, and a zebra.
7. She has had a huge number of different careers, including art teacher, dentist, vet, paratrooper, firefighter, astronaut, hairdresser, model, singer and tour guide. She has been both doctor and nurse, business executive and secretary, airline pilot and stewardess.
8. Barbie Dolls are collectable. Mattel estimates that there are over 100,000 collectors. The average collector is a woman aged 40, who buys around 20 dolls a year, which might include special collectors editions, depicting Barbie as different races, made of porcelain or dressed up as characters from TV shows. The most expensive Barbie ever was sold at Christie's in London for £9,000 in 2006. Bettina Dorfmann from Germany has the world's biggest collection - over 15,000 dolls.
9. A Barbie Doll is 11 and a half inches tall and said to be at 1/6 scale. A life sized Barbie would be 5 feet 9 inches tall and have an 18 inch waist. Researchers at University Central Hospital in Helsinki, Finland concluded that a real life Barbie would be too thin to have normal menstrual periods. In response to controversy that young girls might try and emulate Barbie, Mattel redesigned her in 1997, giving her a thicker waist.
10. In September 2003, Saudi Arabia outlawed the sale of Barbie dolls, saying that she did not conform to the ideals of Islam.