Popular Culture Review Vol. 4, No. 2, June 1993 | Page 27

Toys for Girls

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girls. Mattel promoted Winchester Rifles, the One-Man Army Gun,
the 007 Action Pack, the Bonanza Action Set, and Robot Commando
for boys, and enjoyed more success marketing Barbie, sparking a new
breed of fashion dolls for girls (Cox, Motz). These days, despite a
period during which the term "Barbie Doll" was commonly used
derisively, Mattel is proud, indeed arrogant, about the Barbie
heritage, insisting that "while it's true that Barbie is fashion
conscious, she also has been a very positive role model-and in many
ways, a leader" (Forever Barbie). The insistence that "Barbie has
always worked for a living, first as a baby-sitter and teen model, and
later as an airline stewardess” feigns a vague feminism; if the
statement were not laughable on its own, one only need note the real
'60s heritage of Barbie--two years after "Bride's Dream Barbie"
(1963), for example, came "Barbie Learns to Cook" (1965). She even
held s u b o r d in a te positions w ithin the traditional fem ale
occupational roles in her capacities as "Junior Designer” (1965) and
"Student Teacher" (1965). Budget Barbie clones included Tressy and
sister Cricket, by American Character, both of whom had hair that
could grow and be colored and a "magic makeup face." For the more
responsible 1960s career minded gal, Suzy Homemaker products,
launched in 1966, offered toy versions of an oven, dishwasher, sink,
refrigerator, mixer, blender, juicer, washing machine, iron and ironing
board, vanity and hairdryer, and, perhaps emblematic of it all, a
vacuum. In all, children's toys and other media were unabashedly
restrictive, but we do well to hold in check our ironic postfeminist
mirth over this supposedly bygone era.
In the 1970s child culture at last came under some open criticism
and scrutiny by parents and child advocates. Initially, concerned
adults worked for regulation by the FCC of program-length
commercials and the worst excesses of children's advertising, objected
to the frequency of violence in cartoons, and pushed for more
educational programs for children of specific age groups (Engelhardt
75). During this decade, in response to the emerging women's
movement and open discussion of women's roles in our society, we also
saw a move toward unisex toys and cartoons; for example, basic Lego
sets enjoyed popularity, and Fisher Price's Little People continued
offering connmunity settings that gave children a full picture of men
and women performing community functions. With a variety of "little
people" and settings on hand, children could choose to have a woman