Barbie

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Barbie, He-Man Flicks Launch Casting Rumors

As two more toy franchises head to the big screen, speculation starts

(Newser) - Now that Barbie and He-Man are joining fellow toy franchises Transformers and GI Joe on the big screen, who can play the iconic characters? The Independent has some ideas. For Barbie:
  • Anna Faris, Heather Graham, or Katherine Heigl: Would be perfect if not for the fact that they’re in
...

Barbie Busts Out in Shanghai
 Barbie Busts Out in Shanghai 

Barbie Busts Out in Shanghai

Hit Shanghai megastore sells 'Barbie lifestyle' to adult women

(Newser) - Mattel is seeking to make up for slowing Barbie sales elsewhere with an aggressive push for Chinese consumers—and not just girls, reports the Washington Post. The company has opened a 6-story flagship store in Shanghai, offering a top-end clothing line and a luxury spa to appeal to professional women...

W. Va. Considers Banning Barbie on 50th Birthday

Lawmaker seeks to switch emphasis from beauty to brains

(Newser) - A West Virginia lawmaker wants to boot Barbie and dolls like her from store shelves before the famous babe celebrates her 50th birthday next week, reports Fox News. Banning the dolls would send a message to children and adults that education is more important than physical beauty, said the lawmaker....

Barbie's Secret: Creator Was Kinky Swinger

New book looks at man behind the doll

(Newser) - If you always thought Barbies were a little creepy, this might be why. The doll's creator was a "full-blown seventies-style swinger" with "a manic need for sexual gratification," a new book reveals. Jack Ryan, who was once married to Zsa Zsa Gabor, held orgies at his LA...

World's Priciest Fake Homes
 World's Priciest 
 Fake Homes 
GLOSSIES

World's Priciest Fake Homes

Forbes list features fake mansions from movies, books, and video games

(Newser) - Forbes has put together its first list of the world’s most-expensive fictional homes. Including literature, video games, and Monopoly, the editors had a few ground rules—no castles, and take it easy on the country estates.
  • Xanadu, $135 million: A perfect mountaintop retreat for Citizen Kane, “a tragically
...

Mattel Plans Edgier Barbie
 Mattel Plans Edgier Barbie 

Mattel Plans Edgier Barbie

Company aims to win back tweens by bringing Barbie back to fashion world

(Newser) - Barbie turns 50 next year and Mattel plans some big changes for the perpetual teenager, the Wall Street Journal reports. The company has been steadily losing girls aged 8 and over to video games, iPods, and racier rival dolls like the now-vanquished Bratz and the Hannah Montana line. The toy...

Barbies of the Future May Grow on Trees

Researchers use wood and wax to make biodegradable alternative

(Newser) - Wooden toys may not be so 1850s, scientists say. A bioplastic made from trees has been used to make everything from golf tees to car parts in recent years, but its sulfurous stink kept it out of the toy market. Now a sulfur-free version of "liquid wood" is available,...

Judge Gives Bratz Doll Line to Rival Mattel

Since MGA founder invented Barbie competitor while on payroll, Mattel owns it

(Newser) - Barbie maker Mattel landed a game-changing blow yesterday against the manufacturer of the hugely popular Bratz dolls, the Los Angeles Times reports. A federal judge ruled Mattel is the legal owner of the line and forbade rival MGA from selling Bratz products. The creator of Bratz was found in July...

Bratz Dolls Must Pay Barbie $100M in Copyright Suit

(Newser) - Barbie will get $100 million from her saucier cousins, the Bratz dolls, for copyright infringement, the AP reports. A federal jury ordered Bratz maker MGA to pay Mattel the sum, but it did not award punitive damages and gave Mattel only a fraction of what it sought. Last month, the...

Elvis, Priscilla Barbies Wed
 Elvis, Priscilla Barbies Wed

Elvis, Priscilla Barbies Wed

Graceland signs off on Mattel collectibles

(Newser) - Elvis and Priscilla Presley wedding day Barbies are the latest in King kitsch, the AP reports. The $65 boxed set, released yesterday, draws on the couple’s 1967 wedding photo—groom in paisley, bride in tiara. One fan paid $6,800 for a pair of dolls signed by Priscilla, while...

Barbie Beats Bratz in Court Battle

Jury finds designer invented Bratz dolls on Mattel payroll

(Newser) - Barbie doll creator Mattel has won a bitter courtroom battle against rival MGA Entertainment, which sells the edgier Bratz dolls. A jury found that Bratz designer Carter Byant conceived the pouty-lipped dolls while on Mattel's payroll, and that MGA secretly plotted with him to steal the billion-dollar idea, reports the...

Iranian Lawman Blasts Barbie
 Iranian Lawman Blasts Barbie 

Iranian Lawman Blasts Barbie

Top prosecutor calls for ban on Western toy imports

(Newser) - Barbie, Batman, and Harry Potter have no place in the Islamic Republic of Iran, says the nation's top prosecutor. He warned of the "social danger" that toys and other Western cultural imports pose to his country and has called for a ban, the BBC reports. Barbie is a big...

Chavez Slams Quincea&ntilde;era Implants
Chavez Slams Quinceañera Implants

Chavez Slams Quinceañera Implants

Venezuelan prez hates popular sweet-15 gift of enlargements

(Newser) - Hugo Chavez has aimed his anti-consumerist wrath at one of Venezuela’s bustiest trends. In a record eight-hour TV address Sunday, the barn-storming president assaulted his countrymen for giving breast implants as presents to girls celebrating their quinceañeras, the traditional 15th-birthday coming-of-age party.  

Prices in Toyland Are Going Up
Prices in Toyland Are Going Up

Prices in Toyland Are Going Up

Consumers will pay for testing toys

(Newser) - Toyland is about to become a more expensive place, as price hikes of 10% or more kick in to pay for heightened vigilance by toy makers following the recall of millions of lead-tainted and otherwise unsafe playthings imported from China. The added costs, which  won't kick in until after Christmas,...

Mattel Plans 3rd Recall of Toys Made in China

Will affect about 675,000 Barbie accessories

(Newser) - Barbie accessories will be reined in by the hundreds of thousands by Mattel, which plans to recall another three quarters of a million Chinese-made toys due to dangerously high lead paint levels, the Wall Street Journal reports. The company's third recall this summer will also affect about 100,000 “...

'Barbie Bandit' Fesses Up in Court
'Barbie Bandit' Fesses Up
in Court

'Barbie Bandit' Fesses Up in Court

Teen bank robber enters weepy guilty plea

(Newser) - Saying she wants to take responsibility for her actions, one of the so-called Barbie Bandits entered a tearful guilty plea today despite not having worked out a deal with prosecutors. In February, 19-year-old Heather Johnston and a fellow stripper robbed a Georgia bank of $11,000, using only sunglasses as...

Look Out, Barbie: Here Comes Moses
Look Out, Barbie: Here Comes Moses

Look Out, Barbie: Here Comes Moses

Faith-based action figures to combat less godly toys

(Newser) - Faith-based action figures will soon compete with the latest Bratz and Transformers dolls on the shelves of a Wal-Mart near you. Tales of Glory figurines, including Samson, Jesus and Daniel (complete with the Lions’ Den), are being promoted as "God-honoring toys" in a market full of figures that "...

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