You can even build your own empire from toy castles and tiny doll shoes. The main thing is not to give up when something does not work out, and to act always not like the others. Bringing these principles to life, Handler Ruth, from the remnants of a wooden beam and a little-known souvenir doll, created with her husband Elliot Handler the huge world of Mattel, which has been producing various toys, books, accessories for children's parties, heroes of favorite cartoons for 70 years, sportswear for children and adolescents.
Childhood and adolescence Ruth, marriage
November 4, 1916 in the city of Denver (Colorado, USA) a girl was born who was destined to come up with the most famous doll in the history of children's toys. As the tenth child in the family of Ida and Jacob, who emigrated to America from Poland, Ruth Moskovich had already worked at the family pharmacy since ten years, helping her parents. They did not approve of the daughter’s decision to go to college after school, believing that it would be right for a Jewish girl to get married and stay at home, doing housework.
But Ruth, who believed that a modern woman could successfully combine household chores and work, went to college for industrial design courses. From school, she met with Elliot Handler, and in 1938 the couple legalized their relationship and moved to live in Los Angeles. After working a little stenographer at Paramount Pictures, the girl broke up with dreams of cinema and began to help her husband run a family business.
Starting a family business
Elliot Handler, a designer by training, was engaged in souvenir production, and in the mid-forties, together with his wife, they created a small company for the manufacture of wooden picture frames. Out of the remnants of the material, the adventurous Ruth decided to make toy furniture. By that time, the family already had children - Kenneth and Barbara. And like any caring mother, Handler Ruth saw what her daughter was playing. For her baby dolls, the girl made beds from cubes and boxes. Puppet wooden furniture from Ruth and Elliot quickly sold out and brought much more income than frames and souvenirs.
But the company and the family demanded investments, so it was decided to take Harold Matson, a better-off friend, into the business. Talking about the prospects of their offspring, Handlers suggested giving the company a new name. This is how Mattel saw the light of the world, becoming forty years later the world's largest toy manufacturer. In the meantime, she combined the surname and name of the two founders Matt from Mattson and El from Elliot, leaving Ruth in the shadow, but it was she who was to play a leading role in the formation of the corporation.
The company began to produce not only furniture, but also clothes, cosmetics for dolls, and launched children's musical instruments on the market. In the 50s of the past century, Westerns gained popularity, and Mattel produces toy pistols and hard drives.
Meeting with Lilly
The fateful meeting between Mattel's vice president and Lilly took place in 1956 in Switzerland, where the Handler family spent their holidays.
Lilly - the so-called coquette doll, created by Ralph Heuser based on German comics and sold exclusively in pubs. The heroine of the drawn stories was a sort of frivolous girl who wore revealing outfits and fell into piquant situations. She had long legs, a thin waist and a high chest, which made her in the row of asexual little dolls a kind of outcast and a souvenir toy intended only for adults. Moreover, her painted prototype was clearly not distinguished by spirituality and good manners.
The attentive mother of Ruth, Marianna Handler, was again able to see in the doll from the bar the toy that the children were waiting for. Remembering how her daughter painted beautiful outfits for paper dolls, and knowing how the girls want to grow up faster and dress up and paint like an adult, the vice president of the toy company decided to make a new generation doll. In 1957, the company redeems all rights to the image of Lilly and creates Barbie.
Doll work
Having obtained the rights to Lilly, Ruth gets to work. The company creates a new image for the doll and comes up with its biography.
Outwardly, she became like Jane Mansfield, a socialite of that time, a busty blonde with plump lips and thread-eyebrows. The actress and sex symbol of the 50s turned her mansion into a vanilla pink paradise, with cats, hearts and ryushechki. It was this house that appeared in the new doll.
Handler Ruth in 1958 received an official patent for her doll and gave her the name of her daughter - Barbie. Before releasing a new model for sale, a small show was held for mothers and their daughters. All parents negatively perceived the novelty, considering it harmful and unnecessary, and all the girls wanted to have such a doll. Moms believed that, playing with dolls, girls should be aware of themselves as future custodians of the hearth, subconsciously preparing for motherhood.
Barbie destroyed all archaic ideas about the role of women. The doll wanted to dress up, be popular, have friends and fans, relax and have fun.
1959 and the first publication
For the first time, Barbie was shown at the annual toy fair, which constantly takes place in New York. Long-legged blonde and brunette in bright swimsuits and sandals, with manicure and makeup, with the forms of an adult woman caused a mixed response from buyers. Many were sure that parents would forbid their daughters to have such toys.
Then Ruth turned to television. And here she is, the magical power of advertising: the first few hundred thousand dolls sold out very quickly, and the company earned several million.
Star Trek Barbie
For the first decade, selling dolls brought the couple Handler half a billion dollars. Today Barbie dolls are sold in more than 150 countries. And together with the mouse Mickey Mouse and Coca-Cola are listed as the cultural heritage of the last century.
Barbie has a large family, many friends and girlfriends, pets. Each model also had its own wardrobe, car, furniture, and accessories. Barbie also got a constant fan of Ken - a doll with a beautiful male figure. Manufacturers have shown that nothing is alien to the plastic beauty, and she always follows fashion. So, the company released an aerobics cassette for Barbie, when the whole country was obsessed with physical education to music. For dolls, fashion designers created world-famous names: Dior, Pierre Cardin, Kenzo.
Barbie dolls tried themselves in different professions: astronaut, surgeon, nurse, fashion designer, ballerina. Lines of dolls depicting famous people or movie heroes were also released: Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Grace Kelly and others.
Fame Ruth
Handler Ruth becomes the most famous woman in the United States. The “mother” of such a popular toy (according to statistics, in 1991 95% of American girls played Barbie dolls) showed the whole world that a woman's place is not only at home by the stove. You can be a caring wife and mother and create your own empire. The American Toy Manufacturers Association first elected her to the position of vice president, previously this position was held only by men. She also becomes a member of the board of directors of the Federal Reserve System. 1970 brought her appointment as a member of the Presidential Nixon Business Advisory Council. More than once, Ruth was chosen as the woman of the year.
Illness and criminal record
Unfortunately, the 70th year brought Ruth Handler and bad news - a tumor was discovered in her. The operation and long treatment have knocked the soil out from under the legs of this strong woman.She returns to the company, but only nominally occupies the post of president in it, giving the reins of government.
In 1978, she was accused of fraud with the securities of his company. The sentence was five years probation, the payment of 57 thousand dollars and two and a half thousand hours of community service. Bullying begins in the press and on television, the country's former darling becomes her outcast.
“There is still a lot of fighting spirit in me”
The illness brought Ruth Handler much suffering, but she also helped her find another way. After breast removal, she had to wear silicone prostheses, which were very uncomfortable and looked ugly. Thinking about why men create such a necessary thing for women, Ruth turned to qualified prosthetics master Peyton Massey with a proposal to create a joint production.
The new company employed women who also underwent a similar operation. It became known as Ruthon, by the names of Hendler herself and the orthopedic master.
The company was engaged in the production of high-quality and comfortable dentures Nearlu Me (the name in translation sounds like “Almost me”). Selected exactly in size, they turned out to be inexpensive in price and helped women feel confident. These prostheses were even used by the wife of President Betty Ford. In 1991, Ruth Handler sold her brainchild to the medical corporation Kimberly-Clark. This did not bring her much money. But it led to a reduction in the cost of prostheses and the possibility of using them more women. Once again, Ruth proved that neither a disease nor failure will break a strong woman.
Moving away from business, Ruth continued to lead an active life. She met many people, spoke at various seminars, shared her life experience. Even released a book. In 1991, a new blow overtook her - the son of Kenneth died. Relations with her daughter began to deteriorate, Barbara Handler accused her mother of her misfortunes, believing that the plastic doll took away all of Ruth's attention. In addition, giving a name to a popular toy, a woman had to correspond to her all her life, because Barbie has always been a standard of style and beauty.
The creator of Barbie dolls in a Los Angeles hospital died from complications that developed after an intestinal operation. It happened on April 27, 2002.
