Everything you want to know about Mod Barbie's geneology

Barbie's history

It sure can be confusing figuring out Barbie’s genealogy! So I pulled together a list from various sources to come up with a quick cheat sheet of how the Barbie family and friends are related to one another. And if you’re particularly interested in a particular doll, check out the individual tabs under “Barbie & Friends” (coming soon)! Their stories are a work in progress for me but, as I discover more, I will continually add to these pages.

* The year denotes when the doll was created.

Barbie Millicent Roberts (1959) – The first Barbie doll was described as a “Teen Age Fashion Model” and her parents’ names are George and Margaret Roberts. Barbie grew up in fictional Willows, Wisconsin. (I love this little fun fact since I also grew up in Wisconsin!)

Midge Hadley Sherwood (1963) – She was Barbie’s best friend and the third character introduced to the Barbie line, following Barbie and Ken. She was paired with Allan Sherwood, Ken’s best friend, when Allan was introduced in 1964.

Skipper Roberts (1964) – Skipper was the first character added to the line as part of Barbie doll’s family. Skipper is Barbie’s younger sister. Skipper’s best friend’s name was Skooter (1965) and Skipper’s boyfriend was Ricky (1965).

Tutti and Todd Roberts (1965) – Younger twin sister and brother to Barbie and Skipper. Tutti and Todd had a female friend named Chris (1967).

Francie Fairchild (1966) – Francie is Barbie’s cousin. In the March 1966 issue of Barbie Magazine, Francie was the daughter of Claude and Lily Fairchild. Some believe that the Francie doll may have been based on the character “Gidget,” whose real name was Frances Lawrence (sometimes called Francie). Francie was such a smash hit that she led the way for Barbie’s makeover and MOD debut in 1967.

Casey (1967) – The second doll in Francie’s size, Casey, was issued as “Francie’s Fun Friend.”

Twiggy (1967) – Twiggy was based on the famous fashion model, Lesley Hornby Lawson, of the Mod era. Twiggy resembled Casey but with heavier painted-on makeup. The Twiggy doll was made through 1968, and Casey through 1970.

Stacey (1968) – Stacey was Barbie’s “British chum,” part of the new group of Talking dolls in 1968. She was later issued as a Twist ‘N Turn version. These are the only two types of Stacey dolls ever made.

Christie (1968) – Christie was Barbie’s first African-American friend.

P.J. (1969) – P.J. was a friend of Barbie’s and initially marketed as “New ‘N Groovy Talking P.J.” To date, Mattel has declared that the initials P.J. don’t stand for anything, that it is simply the character’s name.

Julia (1969) – She was based on Diahann Carroll’s character from the TV show Julia.

Jamie (1970) – Walking Jamie was a Sears exclusive doll.

Steffie (1972) – She was available as Busy Steffie, Talking Busy Steffie, and Walk Lively Steffie. Though the character was discontinued after only a year, she is notable in that none of the three Steffie dolls featured the same eye color/hair color combination.

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