The Bild Lilli Doll was a German fashion dollproduced from 1955 to 1964, based on the comic-strip character Lilli. Boyfriend Jim doll and little head : U - however, this is a standard stock head and Bild Lilli doll 1955-1964 In 1955 the Bild Lilli doll was first sold in Germany and is UNMARKED. This is a selection of my smaller Lilli clones - ranging from 7"-9" in height. One known version is in a red and white striped strapless dress similar to Barbie doll’s Cotton Casual. exported to several countries, even the USA (have a doll stand with only "Lilli" on them, the a doll with three extra More blank molds went to Fab-LU (Luften, Ltd.) who sold a doll called One shade of blonde is that awful colour kinky brunette which turns, when it is cheaply dyed blonde, a brassy, greenish tone reminiscent of bad suburban dye jobs. The basic idea was that in the complete wardrobe, there was something for every type of middle-class taste. Haro-Mate Ltd. an Australian company, sold The little girl has a big smile, Barbie not quite yet. Everything else was identically the same. sister Sandy doll a Skipper clone. She’s known as much for her good looks and her extensive wardrobe as she is her impressive list of careers. Plastic Molded Arts (PMA) made a Debby doll 11 named Wendy (usually with a swirl pony tail hairstyle) and Bonnie Barbie, however, was injection-moulded high-quality vinyl which did not require stringing as Lilli did. "Cherie" dolls. Hong Kong, written on front. Made from a sumptuous heavy vinyl , she is unusually constructed for a doll of this 11.5 inch , Barbie genre. Bild-Lilli became the source of one of the many Mattel legal battles highlighted in the book: •German patent holder G&H. Barbie Life Barbie Dolls German Fashion Vintage Barbie Body Shapes Fashion Dolls Names Pretty Traditional Outfits "Bild" Lilli’s alias or not, these floozies would haunt the perimeter of the “World of Barbie" forever, as a bitter reminder of her Mattel-denied origins. British Hong Kong firm named Dura-Fam “Das” is life, I guess. In 1955 the Bild Lilli doll was first sold in Some were brittle shiny plastic, others painted as were the first German Lilli dolls. was a blonde bombshell, a working girl. Upon her return to the United States, Handler reworked the design of the doll (with help from engineer Jack Ryan) and the doll was given a name, Barbie… Find out what she does next and Stay Twinned! hollow plastic body straight legs, plastic molded ponytail hair style, which bear a Hong Kong or other doll marking? These were manufactured, amongst others apparently, by Chang-Pi Su Company, who marketed them as Cherie in a pale blue cardboard box with cellophane front. Flight Attendant, Astronaut, Doctor, Nascar Driver Inspiration: Bild Lilli, the German "adult" doll. and a 7" doll named Miss Marlene. Of course, the tiny Bild newspaper which came with the doll during her years in Germany and her comic feature that could be clipped each Sunday from the real newspaper were no longer available. 1/2" tall doll called Bonnie, Japanese, Auctions | Books | were the main thrust of a commercial doll fad, and there was a great choice of both large and small fashion dolls to choose from in a variety of fashion and social messages, the slim fashion doll was just about to come fully into its own. Teenage Fashion Model, 11 1/2" tall, came in a box with clear the Barbie clones, competitors and knock offs page for other similar It surely could not imply that little American girls had fantasies about being big-chested, svelte call girls, or could it? Another set of molds were leased to Chang-Pi Su on head rim, but some maybe un-marked. Kong Lilli's, and there are other dolls too, see below. A selection of early Barbie outfits mint in packagings. Later she was Hong Kong Lilli make-up: hard, harder, hardest. all rights reserved including photos & content. Barbie was modelled on the blonde German fashion doll "Bild Lilli" (herself based on a cartoon character from the German Bild-Zeitung newspaper). The Lilli doll was based on a popular character appearing in a comic strip drawn by Reinhard Beuthin for the newspaper Die Bild-Zeitung. The Teenage Fashion model", Made in the British Crown Colony of These dolls expressions, via mass-production of the painting of the face, would turn sometimes sour, with pursed lips and a definitely bored-to-death air. tall, small Lilli clone, made in Hong Kong. Lilli clone head, sold in Woolworth's and similar stores, maker unknown. Considering her initial intentions as a gag doll who hung around in bars, this is pretty poignant and revealing about American culture. Tina Marie, 11 1/2" tall, (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Bild Lilli Forum | Lilli plays a significant role in the fashion doll history and the toy industry. Mattel Barbie was They made a rare black will be mis-matched along the front seam, which is a clue that it isn't Ruth Handler, who created the Barbie doll, was inspired by a German doll from the '50s and '60s called Bild Lilli. The hard make-up and generic spit curl of Lilli's hairdo, quite charming as a matter of fact. Who Will Win The Hello Kitty Vs. Barbie Sartorial Smackdown? The painting of lips changed but that is probably because for real women it had also changed. In reality, the Barbie we all came to know and love was actually inspired by this German doll that first came into consumer's lives and hearts during the 1950s. Until 1967 Barbie doll had the so-called “iceberg look”, which in spite of several hairdo changes and an assortment of wigs, would not soften up. (very similar, slightly different face with a pony tail and bangs) both Doll; Clones, Competitors and Look a Likes 1960s. Original Small Bild Lilli Doll With RARE Outfit 1181 114 Best Bild Lilli Images On Pinterest Modern Dolls: 2 Petite Bild Vintage Free Moving Ken Doll Lalka Bild Lilli Clone Doll 16" Resin Black & White Gala Gabby And Violett Dressed Barbie Collector 2011 Holiday African-American Doll 114 Best Bild Lilli | 1966-1968 | 1969-1970 | heads you could inter-change on the body, bubblecut & ponytail related The once heavy, slightly orange painted, solid plastic Fraulein would, in her mass-productions, sometimes become a little thinner, with a lighter plastic in a much whiter shade of “skin" when un-painted. Initially, during the first few years, Barbie’s wardrobe would oscillate between copies of Paris fashion and middle-class interpretations of American fashion only to find an eventual niche in middle-of-the-road values and all that is now known as “popular” culture, that ultimate “Gee, Mom!” way of life. Forum | Doll Glossary | also known as Goldberger Toys. Ryan also made the talking mechanism for Chatty Cathy and the Vrroom motors for the Mattel bikes. The Bild Lilli Doll was a German fashion dollproduced from 1955 to 1964, based on the comic-strip character Lilli. These are likely the earlier sample issues although there exists prototype Hong Kong Lilli’s which are painted nearly exactly as the German “Bild” Lilli dolls were. Barbie went on to getting mass produced by the American company Mattel, Inc. 8 Original German Vintage Bild Lilli Barbie - $1,500 Bild Lilli features on this list because many serious collectors consider her to be the original Barbie. Less sleazy and, according to the advertising, “fully-lined," Barbie’s clothes would soften the “ice-bitch” goddess look (one Barbie doll collector’s description of her personality), she had as a hold-over from her German incarnation. (See also Later, by Fab-Lu Ltd., also from "Bild" Lilli moulds, complete with the high heels and asterisk-shaped flower earrings moulded onto the doll. “Unlike Barbie, Lilli doesn’t have an arched foot with itty-bitty toes. More Galleries of Modern Dolls 1 Bild Lilli In :. Ltd. which produced the same 11 1/2" American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration.. Barbie is the figurehead of a brand of Mattel dolls and accessories, including other family members and collectible dolls. Barbie also would have a more haute couture-oriented wardrobe, that is with ensembles directly inspired by French and Italian high fashion, which was interspersed among Barbie’s otherwise suburban tastes. hairstyles in various hair colors. The Barbie Ensemble Pak's complete high fashion outfits” by 1965 had a number of real haute couture tendencies reflected in the wardrobe, but the majority looked like American suburban ready-to-wear. sold in 1959 (USA) and was loosely based on the Bild Lilli doll. Miss Paris by EL MAR, a clone of a clone of Bild Lilli. 1/2" tall, Hong Kong marked, by Debby Toy, Lilli clone, cello over the front, much like the Mattel dolls, maker unknown. And though the risqué 1955 doll has largely been overshadowed by the … in Hong Kong. Vintage BARBIE/ BILD LILLI/TRESSY Clone Doll Fashion Red Coat Set- HONG KONG. Sak Industries,  Inc. used the mold and sold a doll named Make sure to like comment share and subscribe! by Larami Corporation. In 1953 Bild-Zeitung decided to market a Lilli doll and contacted Max Weissbrodt from the toy company O&M Hausser in … Bobby & Janie Teen Fashion Shoppe Gift set - Janie Many vintage Barbie collectors collect these dolls because they are so like the early vintage Barbie dolls. Bubble cut Barbie, circa 1962, in her tasteful print dress. 1971-1972 low end of the business. They would also continue the seven inch version as well which can be found unmarked, or marked with various “Made in Hong Kong” markings. (shown on right) 1960s Suzette Fashion Model Doll made by Her usually “bleached blonde” hair, the original option, would now be expanded upon. Barbie’s origins The emblematic doll was created by Ruth Handler, who was inspired by the German doll Bild Lilli. Babette ponytail with bangs that preceded Mattel's Julia doll, it Free shipping . Babs, 11 1/2" tall (shown on left), packaged in a clear tube with "Babs", The Bild Lilli Doll was a German fashion doll produced from 1950 to 1964, based on the comic-strip character Lilli. many dolls will have this head mold and the U marking and may not be Wendy Like the charming 1960’s French doll Mily , made by Gege , Sevinyl is strung on elastic. The Lilli doll was first sold in Germany in 1956. During a trip to Europe in 1956 Ruth Handler saw a German doll called Bild Lilli. Bild Lilly, mentor of Barbie, finds Barbie’s house after 50 years but doesn’t like her new style. Germany and is UNMARKED. The so-called “Hong Kong” Lillis, previously scorned by collectors and originally incorrectly thought to be only “cheap” copies of German Lilli have been found in authentic Lilli costumes identical except for the snaps, Lilli’s snaps originally being peculiar-looking gripper snaps from Europe of the fifties, these are Pyrm-marked and usually used by the DreiM - Maar company for all their doll’s clothing and also later for the mid-sixties Gotz Sasha doll clothes. So or even an Uneeda made doll. tall doll, Lilli look a like head and face, bubble-cut or ponytail She, like the attitude she projected, seemed brittle. Mattel acquired the rights to the Bild Lilli doll in 1964 and production of Lilli was stopped. Cold and glacial, Barbie was presented with what the designers at Mattel thought was, according to Mrs. Handler, the woman behind the first Barbie doll, a “blank” expression “so that little girls could project their fantasies into the doll”. hairstyle with bangs or swirl, often marked on back of $139.00. The first Barbie doll wore a black. Later she was exported to several countries, even the USA (have a doll stand with only "Lilli" on them, the German stand says "Bild Lilli"). Once in a while, a “mystery” doll with moulded-on high heels would appear, and others, such a Mitzi, Babette, and another scandalously cheap versions in a moulded lace push-up bra and matching girdle, could be “had” in a low-budget cellophane baggie wrapper, also resembling a body bag. Barbie had a sister—Bild-Lilli, a buxom, flirtatious and racy doll marketed to men. It was 1956 and Handler was on vacation in Europe when she encountered the Bild-Lilli doll, a gag gift that men gave each other at bachelor parties. $40.00 + shipping . However, the Lilli dolls’ construction was ultimately the best way to form the doll and … details have become obscured with time. Some are identical to the German Lilli dolls, in medium tone pinkish painted plastic in the same manner as classic Lilli, only they have moulded on them, usually on the upper back, “Made in Hong Kong” in an inverted “U” - shape. Unlike Lilli, the "star of every bar", Barbie will be "the hostess with the mostess", an image and aspiration greatly emphasized in advertising at times. She is hand painted and hand airbrushed , like all my dolls. Lilli, who was first manufactured as a novelty item for men, was sold in Germany from 1955 (four years before the first Barbie was manufactured in the United States). 1963-1967   $55.00 The Lilli head molds however were sold to a British Hong Kong firm named Dura-Fam Ltd. which produced the same 11 1/2" doll which is found marked "Hong Kong". Marks | doll was exactly what Handler had in mind, so she ... Lilli. 1/2" tall, Lilli like clone, usually with a golden blonde ponytail, hollow plastic body, stationary legs and her arches have twin A few outfits were extremely fashionable, others simply considered the era’s idea of good taste, and still others specifically for teenage, sports, and household activities. larger 15" doll called Miss Seventeen "A Beauty Queen", The adjustments to the original "Bild" Lilli included the removing of her asterisk-shaped flower earrings from the mould as well as the removal of the moulded-on shoes. Fabulous for collectors now, of course. dolls are marked on the neck: E43. a Mattel Barbie swimsuit). Today Lilli is a collector's piece and commands prices … Larami Corp. - made a Bobby (Ken The Barbie doll has long been the symbol of the all-American woman. In the beginning Lilli was a German cartoon character, created by Reinhard Beuthien for the tabloid Bild-Zeitung in Hamburg, Germany. is found marked "Hong Kong", these dolls are referred to as the Hong Born in 1952 in Germany, the inspiration … The eyebrows vary a bit on these dolls. Uneeda made a Wendy, 11 1/2" The first Barbie doll wore a black and white zebra striped swimsuit and signature topknot ponytail, and was available as either a blonde or brunette. This is conjecture but highly possible. Lilli doll which Dec 1, 2017 Magda Origjanska. Values, All trademarks are respective of their owners and have no affiliation to this website, Doll Reference  © Copyright 2020 Barbie’s physical appearance was modeled on the German Bild Lilli doll, a risqué gag gift for men based upon a cartoon character featured in the West German newspaper Bild Zeitung. clones, competitors, knock offs and look a like dolls in the 1960s many of Seyinyl Doll , Caprice , Lalka Bild Lilli. Out of the so-called “procuration of the rights” to "Bild" Lilli (a “contractual settlement for the rights of Lilli," according to Beverly Cannady, previous director of licensing for Mattel in the Barbie News Network magazine, vol. It started with a paper doll. clone dolls identified. Doll Books | Dolls For Sale | Besides the “classic “Bild” Lilli dolls, I have purchased quite a few “Hong Kong” Lilli’s in Germany and Austria. It’s particularly ironic that a female “hooker” doll would later inspire and become the world’s most popular doll. This is also very likely to be the case but the Ruth Handler, who co-founded Mattel with her husband, Elliot, spearheaded the introduction of the doll. Suzette's boyfriend is a Ken clone doll named Marked on back: Davtex made who made all those Bild Lilli doll He was the sixth husband of actress Zsa Zsa Gabor. doll 11 1/2" Lilli clone with plastic molded hair, came with three additional outfits, Elite Creations, Inc. had an 11 1/2" doll was simply ripped off by unscrupulous toy makers of both the high and 1964-1965 The adult-figured. The original head, made in two pieces in order to insert from the back the mohair ponytail and spit curl, would be transformed into a single piece head in heavy vinyl material as the hair on Barbie Doll was rooted and without a spit curl but with a full set of curly bangs -very Gidget looking. Doll Marks | Doll Values. Clone dolls, related Barbie Dolls  1959-1962  Shelley Winters as the wife of Humbert Humbert, the lecherous and overtly villainous step-daddy in the eternally poignant film Lolita by Stanley Kubrick immediately comes to mind.....as well as “Camp Climax for Girls”....Yet it did not make that much of a difference in the mixed visual message of hard woman and high school girl prevelant at the time. 2. Barbie debuted at the New York toy fair on March 9, 1959. Silkstone Barbie Dolls were introduced in 2000 and are also called Fashion Model Barbie dolls. Missy - made in Japan, The Whereas the original German Lilli model had on rare occasions tasteful in comparison henna red, jet black, and deep brownette or auburn-coloured hair, the Hong Kong versions were seen with a more shocking version of henna red, dyed-looking blue-black, and even a strange mousy brown shade of hair, the odd colour of old newspaper. Those found on the “Hong Kong” Lillis are most usually the more familiar silver snaps, like those on Barbie clothing - others have enameled outer snaps very similar to the Pyrm ones. Or change her “profession” as “star of the bar”. G&H sued Mattel in 1961 over patent infringement, claiming Barbie was … Don. the Lilli head mold for an 11 She is the predecessor of Barbie. Gina Ann Modes doll, 7-8" Or maybe she just changed her name to Barbie and immigrated to the United States, as inferred the aforementioned Internet article. Doll Auctions | Mattel acquired the rights to Lilli in 1964, thus her production ceased. dolls marked "Hong Kong" and carried the registration number of "British Patent 804566 and U.S. patent 2925684. Weissbrodt designed a prototype doll based on Beuthien's cartoons, which was sold from 1955 to 1964; that year Mattelacquired the rights to the doll and German production stopped. L. Davis Textiles Co. Limited (Davtex)  11 1/2" tall - came as a single doll, or A plastic burlesque doll in Germany called Bild-Lilli caught Ruth Handler's eye. | 1973-1974 | The same small version has been found in the same box, but red cardboard, marked The Fashion Model and “Made In The British Colony Of Hong Kong” with the original 88 cents price tag of the Sprouse-Reitz stores on the package. 1959-1963 | Barbie, the doll which many young girls have played with and may have shaped their perceptions of female beauty, was inspired by a doll that may have seemed to be her precursor but, in fact, was not originally intended for children. Before Barbie There Was Bild Lilli Barbie was introduced to the world as a teenage fashion model, full name Barbara Millicent Roberts, from the town of Willows in Wisconsin. 4 as well as in personal conversations), Mattel Toy Corporation would evolve the Barbie doll. tall, ponytail swirl rooted hair in several colors, came as a baggie, 1968-1972   Maybe, as indicated by the original creator in a recent interview, Lilli 1975-1976 | She is the predecessor of Barbie. Even though she was slightly, and I do mean slightly, facially adjusted for the American market, Barbie would project a new personality into the slim doll. Upon seeing that a broader commercialization of the doll as a toy was not working for them, as they were a small company having legal disputes with Mattel Toys, perhaps the doll was sold or turned over to Fab-Lu Ltd, as well as Dura-Fam, Ltd and the others mentioned above, to market. Barbie’s predecessor, Lilli, was a brazen German woman who liked to have a good time. wore a knit striped swimsuit in various colors (generally the stripes Vintage Barbie Bild Lilli Clone doll Made in Hong Kong Dolly Molded Hair 11in. Most of these dolls Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by the American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched in March 1959. She is the predecessor of Barbie. Barbie’s appearance was modeled after a doll named the Bild Lilli, which had been inspired by a German comic-strip character. In one article on the Internet recently, they claimed her “nipples” were filed off with a Swiss army knife, this being pure gossip since “Bild” Lilli never had anything as flagrant as nipples. clone) and Janie (Barbie clone) dolls, they are made of very cheap hollow Co. who reduced them to 7 1/2" - 8" and released them as 2, no. come from the 1960s -1964. Debbie in Different Moods - 11 Meanwhile, the "Bild" Lilli doll would be continued to be made in Hong Kong probably at first by. It was the famous Jack Ryan, star marketing man and co-ordinator at Mattel Toys ( for whom this author wrote his official obituary for The London Standard) who made these slight changes to the doll and conceptualized her marketing in the USA.