Barbie the First 30 Years, 1959 Through 1989 and Beyond: Identification & Value Guide (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "In 1956, while traveling through Europe with her family on a combined business and pleasure trip, Ruth Handler, co-founder and co-owner of Mattel, saw a..." (more)
Key Phrases: foreign outfits, pink skin tone, personality doll, Doll Through the Years, Twist Barbie, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Back by popular demand, Barbie, The First 30 Years is back in an outstanding 2nd edition. This book chronicles Barbieas she changed over the first 30 years of her production, 1959 through 1989 - whether the changes were in her facial features, her hair, her clothes, or the boxes that she came in - and what made these changes significant for Barbie doll buyers. More than 1,000 dolls are presented this time, and over 2,500 Barbiedolls, accessories, sets, and more are showcased. Collectors will find not only Barbie, but Ken, Tutti & Todd, Skipper, Casey, Francie, Stacey, Midge, Christie, and many other friends and family in the book. Variations are now included, and dozens of new photographs of items never before pictured, as well as close-up shots of dolls not provided in the first edition. There are prototypes, foreign outfits, cases, promotional items, displays, gift sets, booklets, and even some dolls from the 1990s. You will be tickled pink with Barbie, The First 30 Years, Second Edition! REVIEW: This book chronicles Barbie throughout her first 30 years of production, and provides an entertaining look at the way she changed over that period of time.

About the Author

Stefanie Deutsch started collecting Barbie dolls in 1980 when she was still attending school in Germany. Her collection grew quickly and she became well-known through the German press, radio, and TV. In 1986, she formed an official Barbie doll collector club for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. For Barbie doll's 30th anniversary in 1989, her dolls were shown in major, Mattel-organized exhibitions all over Germany and Switzerland. After graduating from law school with honors, Stefanie and her family (including some thousand Barbie dolls) emigrated to America. Here, in 1992, she wrote her first book about Barbie dolls, a price guide published in Germany that is now in its second printing. Stefanie also served as president of Barbie Doll and Friends of Vancouver. After the birth of her children, she parted with many of her dolls, but is still very involved in collecting.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Collector Books; 2 edition (May 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1574323164
• ISBN-13: 978-1574323160
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #348,971 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #54 in	Books > Entertainment > Pop Culture > Popular Culture
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good starting point., April 30, 2004

By	Melissa(Vintage Barbie Collector) (Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This book is a good starting point for collectors. With information on vintage dolls and even some newer dolls too. This book explains How to use the price guide, since most dolls found are not truly mint or mint in the box. It also has lots of color photographs, to make identification of a doll easy. The layout of this book is nice too, there are different sections for dolls, outfits, cases and so on. Dolls are listed by year, making a particular Barbie or Friend fairly easy to find.
This book is not as in depth as some other Barbie doll books on the market, you will not be able to find specific markings for each doll as well as a complete list of accessories - exactly what booklet, shoes, wrist tag, box (and so on) each doll came with. Also some of the photographs are fairly small, but that said, this is still a good book.
I would also like to add that this book features many foreign dolls and accessories, Not sold in the US. (Lot's of Barbie stuff that were exclusive to Canadian and European, as well as other markets.)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars not enough information, July 2, 2008

By	Diondra (central New York state) - See all my reviews

this book does not go into enough depth to be of much use as you shop for dolls. you can use it to get some info on year produced, and to get a rough idea of where each doll fits into the larger scheme, but to do it right, you really need a book that includes much more.

2.0 out of 5 stars So much info lost, October 9, 2009

By	Devora "book maven" (Houston TX) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

Please, would someone step outside of their own personal collection and write a TRUE guide to Vintage Barbie and Friends plus fashion and structures? Is it asking too much for someone to put together a comprehensive book on the first 10 or 12 years?

This book would have to be much larger to cover the first 30 years of Barbie alone. There is so much missing.