"DOLLS OF THE CENTURY" > Page 1, 2, 3

Dolls Of The Century

Your Guide Picks THE dolls that define the 20th Century

Ok, drum roll please!  Here are my top SIX picks for Dolls of the 20th Century:

6. Kammer and Reinhardt Character Dolls: Kammer and Reinhardt popularized the Character doll, the forerunner of today's Artist Dolls.  K*R character dolls were modeled after real children, which was a huge innovation circa 1909.  Until that time, most dolls had stylized "dolly" faces which lacked emotion and realism. 

5. Artist Dolls:   As a group, these dolls have had amazing influence.  Only made in the last 40 years or so, with their influence and acceptance picking up considerable steam in only the last 15 years, these dolls have made dolls more than just a plaything for children--they have made dolls acceptable as true art. 

4. Madame Alexander Dolls: For most of this century (since 1929) , the dolls of Madame Alexander have epitomized the "better" doll;  the special occasion doll that children get to play with only on Sunday, or get to admire on their bedroom shelves.  The dolls were made special by the incredible costume design of Madame.  The very first doll in my personal collection was a Madame Alexander Christening doll, literally given to me the day of my birth, by my Godmother.  If you talk to collectors today, many of them started their collections with the well-preserved Madame Alexander dolls from their youth (and, yes, my daughter has several Madame Alexander 'shelf" dolls in her room as well. 

3. Armand Marseille 390 (and other molds) Bisque Dolls: Armand Marseille produced huge amount of   bisque doll  heads from 1900 to 1930 (by some estimates, over 1,000 doll heads a day!)  This was a watershed event in making quality dolls available for large groups of children at low cost.  Also, although these dolls are not the most sought-after dolls by antique doll collectors today, the very first antique doll owned by many of these very same doll collectors was an Armand Marseille.  Therefore, Armand Marseille dolls continue their influence, by bringing many new, modern collectors to the history and charms of antique dolls.

2. Raggedy Ann & Andy:    Not the first mass-produced cloth dolls, but by far the ones with the longest staying power (in commercial production since 1920!).  I played with one as a child, as did my grandmother, mother, and daughter!  I can say that about NO other doll on this list!   Little girls of today  may have Barbies and American Girls in great numbers, but many of them still tuck in at night with a Raggedy Ann doll.

1. Barbie®:  What can I say?  Everything about the Barbie doll, from her innovative marketing on children's television shows, to her stylized adult body and detailed original fashions have helped make Barbie my number one Doll of the Century.   What put her firmly on top, however, was her universality--billions of Barbies have been sold, on almost every continent of the planet.  Finally, add Barbie's staying power (40 years at the top of the doll market) and she is THE doll--my pick for the most influential doll of the century.

Prior Page > Top Dolls of the Century 6 through 12  > Page 1, 2, 3

Next Page > Runners Up for Dolls Of The Century  > Page 1, 2, 3

And, don't miss Greatest Toys of the Millennium

Don' forget to visit the Dolls Forum and tell me how wrong (or right!) you think I have gotten the dolls in my Dolls of the Century List!

And, vote for YOUR favorite in my Poll for Doll Of The Century!

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Photo by Denise Van Patten, © 1999.  All rights reserved.