It seems like every year I find something unique at Value Village in Belleville and I feel compelled to buy it. Today I ventured there to find a halloween costume. Coincidently I was planning to dress up like a 1950's housewife but found nothing that I wanted. I did however find a little gem from the 1960's. I was picking up some play clothes for my children and on back of one of the girls clothing racks was a graveyard of barbies no longer of use to whatever little girl outgrew her girlhood barbie phase. One doll however stood out it had puffy orangish hair and at first I thought "look at that wierd barbie rip off." Curious I picked it up and quickly realized it was a vintage Barbie. Her hair although puffy had mostly maintained it's original shape, her body was in perfect condition (what a bitch), her only flaw was some flaked off make up on her snooty little face. I turned her around to see if she had any markings and sure enough on her right butt cheek was the marking: Midge T.M./©1962/Barbie®/©1958/by/Mattel, Inc./Patented.
When I saw her markings I thought it was a doll called "Midge" which I later learned was Barbie's Best friend who "shares Barbies stylish clothes, all her secrets, but NOT her boyfriend" but I found out that it was indeed Barbie herself. Her hairstyle: The Bubblecut. Colour: either Platinum Blonde, or Brassy Blonde. I figured that out because the lipstick colours on the platinum blonde and brassy blonde dolls were pale colours almost white and I could see on her lips a hint of the whitish coloured lipstick. Her eyes are a sparkling blue (well one eye is almost flaked off) and her make up is a thick line of black liner with blue shadow. Her expression is "I don't have time to look at you." It is no wonder that little girls have complexes! Barbie with her perfectly unachievable bubble cut hair, and her refusal to look at the little girl who is playing with her. Her flawless body containing ridiculously large perfect breasts, long legs and feet made for wearing impractical shoes.
I was late in my termination of my Barbie phase, I'm pretty sure if I wasn't embarrassed that one of my friends would catch me playing with her alone in my basement looking shiftily from side to side to be sure my sister wasn't lurking around the corner with a camera or with one of our mutual friends... I am pretty sure I would have played with Barbie even longer then until I was 13 years old, because for me she represented myself only grown up and sophisticated.
When I was playing Barbie I was Barbie. Perfect in every way. Perfect body, popular, stylish (not wearing altered hand me downs) hot boyfriend (although my Ken doll had real hair that made him look a little like a sasquatch with sewn on underwear.. I did get a Ken doll with plastic hair later who quickly replaced the old Ken. Apparently Barbie prefers a clean cut man.)
So now I am 31 years old, and quite delighted with my new Barbie (well I guess she isn't new, just new to me.) Perhaps her revival will bring about struggles difficult for Barbie to understand. 2008 is completely different than 1960 afterall, she better not bring her Ken around that home wrecking, gold-digging modern day Barbie, or let that little pot head skipper around her perfectly groomed children. She will have to get a job with the economy the way it is today, she won't be able to sit around drinking martini's and telling secrets with Midge anymore, secrets like "How she keeps such a slim figure", or "how her bubble hair stays so bubbly"...those days are behind her now. The cold hard facts are that Barbie's good looks won't carry her on their own. Modern Barbie has been a teacher, a doctor, a mom, a dentist. She's been in the military, (yes there was a desert storm barbie...I was surprised too). She's been a diplomat and even President, a Royal Canadian Mounted Police Officer and she was a Nascar driver. Barbie even did a stint as a Spice Girl... and when times were a little tough she worked at McDonalds for minimum wage. She's done it all. I may have to support 1960's Barbie for a while... I don't think she's ready to go to war or fight for human rights. Oh well... I'll lock the liquor cabinet and try to rehabilitate her and see how it goes. I'm sure after some desensitizing T.V. shows she will become more like our Barbie of today.. she might even look me in the eye.
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