Barbie Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by the American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched in March 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. Barbie is the figurehead of a brand of Mattel dolls and accessories, including other family members and collectible dolls. Barbie has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for over fifty years, and has been the subject of numerous controversies and lawsuits, often involving parodies of the doll and her lifestyle. Mattel has sold over a
Maco (toy company) of products and did not operate in other countries. Competitors included Hawk Model Company, Applause Inc, and Louis Marx and Company. In 1955, the New York City Council passed a bill to "ban the manufacture, sale or possession of imitation revolvers that resemble the real article too closely". In a debate about the measure, an Army .45 caliber automatic manufactured by Maco was used as an example of a toy gun which was similar enough to the real model to be used as a weapon in a robbery. Maco (toy company) Maco Toys, Inc., was the name of a popular