Her swimming suit was different as well, and was now one-piece and striped. She had shorter "bobbed" hair, like the American Girl Barbie, with a blue headband. In 1965 Midge with bendable legs was introduced. Since she came with only a head, another doll had to provide for the body. This was the Midge counterpart of the Fashion Queen Barbie. Early in 1965, Wigs Wardrobe Midge was sold, and consisted of a Midge head with short molded hair and three wigs.
One year later, in 1964 the dolls that were sold had slightly longer hair. A rare Midge with teeth was sold the first year and is now sought after by collectors. įor the first two years that Midge was sold, she had "straight legs" that could not bend at the knee. The first vintage Midge dolls had a value of $175 MIB (Mint In Box) in 2007.
If Midge had red hair her swimsuit was yellow and orange, for blond hair it was in two shades of blue, and if she was brunette it was pink and red. Depending on the doll's hair color, the color of her two-piece swimming suit varied. The dolls that were sold without freckles had a longer hair style and are now hard to find. Her face was usually brushed with freckles. Buyers had an option of buying a doll with one of three different hair colors: red, blond, or brunette. Midge had shoulder-length hair that flipped at the ends. When Midge arrived, the markings on the straight leg body mold they shared changed to include both her and Barbie. Her head mold was stamped "1958", the same as Barbie. This allowed the two dolls to be able to share clothes and accessories. She had a fuller, gentler face mold, although her body proportions were the same as Barbie and they both stood at 11 + 1⁄ 2 inches (290 mm) tall. Midge was the first same-size friend of Barbie ever sold, and was created to oppose these controversies aimed at Barbie. When Barbie first came out, she was the subject of a lot of criticism, some of which that claimed Barbie was too mature-looking for children. In 2013, Mattel decided to revamp Midge's history, reintroducing her as a best friend of Barbie's, but unmarried, without children, and with no connection to Alan. The Happy Family product became the subject of controversy when some parents disliked the "pregnant" Midge toy because they believed that Midge was too young to have children.
This was known as the Happy Family line, and in the set, Midge was sold "pregnant" with Nikki as a newborn baby. They also had twins who were never introduced. Midge and Alan had three children introduced named Ryan, Nikki, and Cassandra. Also in the period, Wedding Day Midge was sold, with the groom being Alan Sherwood, who had been marketed as Midge's boyfriend in the vintage years. The dolls sold in this time period usually had red hair, often with freckles, and her eye color was usually blue. Midge was re-introduced in 1988 as part of the play line, though two vintage reproduction dolls were made specifically for collectors in 19. No Midge dolls were sold for the rest of the vintage years after the 1960s. She was marketed as Barbie's best friend. Midge was created at the same time as Skipper.
Midge Hadley is a fictional doll character in the Barbie line of toys by Mattel that was first released in 1963.