# Lingerie Barbie? Ummm..no. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 23, 2002, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537 "2002-12-23T13:44:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/1 "2002-12-23T13:44:47Z")
Continuing the recent tradition of the slutification of America’s pre teen girls…we now have [Lingerie Barbie](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A20520-2002Dec21.html). > [@](#): > > Still seeking that perfect gift for a special young girl in your life? Well, look no further than page 50 of the FAO Schwarz 2002 holiday catalogue. For a mere $45, you can surprise and delight her with a Lingerie Barbie. > > And what a Barbie Babe she is, decked out in her sexy black (or, if you prefer, pink) garters, stockings and obligatory stiletto heels. Even her PR is PG, giving the phrase “sex toy” a whole new level of meaning: “Barbie exudes a flirtatious attitude in her heavenly merry widow bustier ensemble accented with intricate lace and matching peekaboo peignoir.” > > Oh darn, reading this too late for holiday gift giving? Not to worry. Mattel plans a February launch for its sixth “limited edition” Lingerie Barbie, promising she’ll be “simply sassy in a short pearl-grey satin slip trimmed in black lace” and “thigh-high stockings” that “add a hint of flair.” Mattel is giving a wink and a nob about its target audience… uh huh > [@](#): > > And girls I know are neither the slightest bit reassured nor deterred by the company’s “for age 14 and up” disclaimer. “Get real,” said one. “No 14-year-old girl would be caught dead playing with a Barbie Doll, ‘lingerie’ or otherwise. Who do they think they’re kidding?” Said another: “Yeah, right. Maybe they mean 14-year-old boys.” > > As for Mattel, it seems to be playing peekaboo with its own LB marketing strategy. Says company spokeswoman Ria Freydl, “We’re not marketing it to kids,” and true enough, the “Barbie Fashion Model Collection” can be found in the more adult-oriented collectible section on Mattel’s Web site. And yet, consider this tag line on LB #5’s blurb: “Golden hoop earrings and high heels complete this simple but elegant ensemble, perfect for dress-and-play fun!” Nice to know that Mattel is getting its product ideas from Abercrombie & Fitch. (our motto :Sluts-R-Us) Mother Fuckers :mad: :mad: :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Testy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c37758/32.png) [@Testy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Testy)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/2 "2002-12-23T14:02:40Z")
Jesus! That’s either nasty (if they’re selling it to kids) or demented. (If for adults) I don’t think Mattel is getting ideas from A&F, more like Fredericks of Hollywood. Testy ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/3 "2002-12-23T14:03:36Z")
“Golden hoop earrings and high heels complete this simple but elegant ensemble, perfect for dress-and-play fun!” they’ve finally done it. They’ve made Skanger Barbie. (Irish Dopers will know :)) ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/4 "2002-12-23T14:03:42Z")
Actually, this doesn’t bother me nearly as much as Sweet Treats Barbie, who come with a short fluffy pink skirt, the obligatory pink heels, a pink and white apron, and her own mixer and baking supplies. I mean, this WAS being marketed to kids. After 30 years of the women’s movement, Mattel decides that Barbie (being bored with such occupations as corporate raiding, medicine, and space travel) needs to show kids that it’s important to look pretty while baking cookies for your man. (insert horrible retching and gagging noises here) ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/5 "2002-12-23T14:08:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Testy \* > \*\*I don’t think Mattel is getting ideas from A&F, more like Fredericks of Hollywood. > \*\* Nope…definitely [Abercrombie & Fitch](http://www.nbc5i.com/news/1468360/detail.html) ---
**Author:** ![Testy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c37758/32.png) [@Testy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Testy)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/6 "2002-12-23T14:12:06Z")
Ya got me! I’ve been away from the US for a while but I **really** thought they sold things like boots and flannel shirts. Damn! I feel like Rip Van Winkle or something!:o Testy ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/7 "2002-12-23T14:18:40Z")
Oh, yeah, absolutely, I agree with the Cat Lady that Sweet Treats Barbie was MUCH more pernicious than Lingerie Barbie. Really. It’s depressing if you think about it, that Veterinarian Barbie and Paleontologist Barbie spend only a few nanoseconds on the ToysRUs shelf before they’re whisked away by Mattel Marketing. This season’s token “We Girls Can Do Anything!” offerings are Dog Groomer Barbie and Art Teacher Barbie, buried under an avalanche of Salon Surprise Barbies and Fashion Photo Barbies and Travel In Style Barbies and Mermaid Barbies and Rapunzel Barbies. ---
**Author:** ![SmileyDeath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb8c5e/32.png) [@SmileyDeath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmileyDeath)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/8 "2002-12-23T14:20:15Z")
I can’t wait until nudist camp barbie. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/9 "2002-12-23T14:22:28Z")
Actually, Mattel is probably marketing this to their adult collectors. They always produce expensive versions of Barbie each year, anything from Barbie as a classic film star, Barbie in gowns that adult designers create for her (I think Bob Mackie was one of them), and so forth. They’re making pricey limited editions that will get put in a glass case in some adult’s house, rather than the type that a little girl would have in a shoebox under her bed. And yes, even FAO Schwartz sells those collector’s editions; I’ve seen them on sale there. ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/10 "2002-12-23T14:54:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ferret Herder \* > \*\*Actually, Mattel is probably marketing this to their adult collectors. \*\* I addressed that point in my OP… > [@](#): > > As for Mattel, it seems to be playing peekaboo with its own LB marketing strategy. Says company spokeswoman Ria Freydl, “We’re not marketing it to kids,” and true enough, the “Barbie Fashion Model Collection” can be found in the more adult-oriented collectible section on Mattel’s Web site.\*\* And yet, consider this tag line on LB #5’s blurb: “Golden hoop earrings and high heels complete this simple but elegant ensemble, perfect for dress-and-play fun!”\*\* ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/11 "2002-12-23T15:33:14Z")
> [@](#): > > Mattel decides that Barbie (being bored with such occupations as corporate raiding, medicine, and space travel) needs to show kids that it’s important to look pretty while baking cookies for your man. Hey! What’s wrong with looking pretty while baking cookies for your man? Between that and corporate raiding, I know which one I’d rather do. (Space travel would still be better, but the baking is a close second.) ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/12 "2002-12-23T15:35:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by beagledave \* > I addressed that point in my OP… Sorry, I did notice that, but didn’t address it fully. What I’m saying is that expensive Barbies in less-than-kid-friendly costumes certainly are nothing new. I don’t know if the ad/packaging tactics were similar on the other dolls - perhaps Mattel tries to stick to similar Barbie marketing to appeal to the collector’s sense of “authenticity” or something. It’s twisted, but other than establishing if that bit of copy is different from previous promotions, it’s right in line with what Mattel’s been doing. ---
**Author:** ![Arden\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b487fb/32.png) [@Arden\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arden_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/13 "2002-12-23T15:40:36Z")
[sub]I want one.[/sub] There! I admitted it! I also want one of the Bob Mackie Barbies but I couldn’t justify spending more on a sparklie dust collector than I do my own clothes. ---
**Author:** ![GythaOgg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@GythaOgg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GythaOgg)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/14 "2002-12-23T16:26:45Z")
Long-time lurker here… I actually own several dolls in this line. They are by no means at all a ‘play’ doll (what Mattel refers to as ‘pink box’.) This is a high-end collector’s line. The doll itself would make a very poor toy - it’s made out of a heavy material called ‘Silkstone’ that feels like porcelain, they’re only minimally jointed, and they’re not sold in places parents normally buy toys for kids. You’re not going to find them on the aisle at Target or Toys R Us. They’re at FAO because FAO is, in many ways, just as much of a ‘toy collectibles’ store as it is a toy store for kids, and they’re sold in that part of the FAO dolls section that sells collectible dolls. FAO segregates the pink box Barbies in another area. As for Mattel’s advertising copy - well, collectors dress and undress their dolls, too. There are seperate outfit packages - VERY high fashion and very expensive - that are sold particularly for this collector’s line. And this line is also sold as part of a set that includes two or three outfits and the lingerie doll. Some serious Barbie collectors see being able to play with and dress and undress the dolls as part of the fun. That’s the niche adult market Mattel is marketing this doll to. There’s even a column in the monthly Barbie collector’s magazine (Barbie Bazaar, on the rack at Barnes and Noble) about doing just that. As a small-scale Barbie collector, I can tell you that I was far more bothered by the ‘Butterfly Tattoo Barbie’ that came out a few years ago than I am by this - and that one WAS marketed to children in the pink box aisle. BTW, the first doll in the Lingerie Barbie line came out some three years ago. What took y’all so long? 🙂 Gytha (Look! I made a post!) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/15 "2002-12-23T16:34:40Z")
Now they have to make Gangsta Bitch Barbie, with her homey, Tupac Ken. That was an old SNL skit, and it was hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![dragongirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b38774/32.png) [@dragongirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dragongirl)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/16 "2002-12-23T16:56:25Z")
All right, I admit it, I collect Barbie dolls and I play with them and redress them all the time. These dolls are not being marketed to children. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/17 "2002-12-23T17:02:57Z")
I don’t mean to drag this thread off-topic, but has there ever been a study to show how influential Barbie dolls are? I had one back in the mid-60s, and despite her bouffant hair, satin wedding gown, and other girly-girl accessories, I never aspired to grow up to be like Barbie. Nor did my brother want to be GI Joe, with or without Kung-Fu grip. Are children incapable of recognizing toys as being merely playthings and not life-directing forces?? ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/18 "2002-12-23T17:07:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by beagledave \* > \*\*Nope…definitely [Abercrombie & Fitch](http://www.nbc5i.com/news/1468360/detail.html) \*\* Currently rolling in grave. David T. Abercrombie You’re damn right I’m rolling in my grave! That son of a bitch Abercrombie always got top billing! I don’t care if he founded it! Just once, I’d like someone to refer to “Fitch clothing!” Ezra Fitch ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/19 "2002-12-23T17:09:06Z")
Help! Xmas is almost here, and I haven’t been able to find U.N. Weapons Inspector Barbie anywhere! Can anyone help? ---
**Author:** ![Binarydrone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@Binarydrone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Binarydrone)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537/20 "2002-12-23T17:36:14Z")
Small complaint: The page that the OP links to forces me to take some demographic survey before I can continue. Although I am wearing my tinfoil hat, I fear that the Black Helicopters will arrive soon. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lingerie-barbie-ummm-no/144537.md?page=2)