Dolls have been a favorite of
little girls since the dawn of time. Even when a child’s family could
not afford to purchase a doll, they were homemade whether it would be
a cloth doll, paper doll or a doll made out of corn stalks. The decade
I am most fascinated with concerning dolls is the 1950’s. I will cover
five dolls that were popular in the 1950’s.
The Deluxe Reading Grocery Store Dolls were sold in grocery
stores in the 1950s. These dolls were very large; they were 30 inch
fashion dolls. The most popular names for the dolls were; Betty the
Beautiful Bride, Sweet Rosemary, and Darling Debbie. Little girls of
the 1950s begged their mothers for this lovely doll. There were some
slight variations in their faces. The dolls were a one piece of soft
vinyl body that was stuffed and had a wire inside each limb which
allowed her to be posed. The dolls also had molded high-heeled feet.
Tiny Tears was also another very popular doll in the 1950s. The
tiny doll had two tiny holes at the inside corner of her eyes that
allowed her to cry real tears when her mommy squeezed her stomach
after she had been fed. Tiny Tears dolls were made with rubber bodies,
the later ones were all vinyl. The Tiny Tears dolls ranged in size
from 11 ˝ to 20 inches.
Toodles, though not as popular as Tiny Tears, was a good seller
in the late 50s, early 60s. They were actually marketed as “Toodles:
The Action Doll" in 1955, and were considered a deluxe, high quality
doll, and they were rather expensive. Their special feature was that
they had extra joints at the elbows and knees which allowed them to be
posed in several positions. Toodles could sit, kneel, put her hands
together as if to pray or play with toys, and could play with her
fingers and toes. Most often they were sold in rompers, but some had
fancy nylon dresses. Some Toodles were also drink and wet dolls.
Vogue had a teenage line of dolls. The more popular of these dolls was
Jill. Jill had lots of outfits that could be purchased separately and
also a variety of accessories and furniture. Jill was first introduced
in 1957 with her friend Jan following a year or so later the dolls
were 10 ˝ inches tall and some were made of hard vinyl with rooted
saran hair. They also had a swivel waist, and no jointed knees. Jill
was all hard plastic with a glued on saran wig. Jill did not have a
swivel waist but did have jointed knees. Both came with earrings.
Most of us are familiar with Dennis the Menace either through comic
strips, cartoons, Television shows or movies. However there were also
dolls of Dennis. Dennis the Menace dolls were based on the popular
comic strip character, and later the TV kid, who wrecked havoc in the
neighborhood, in the 1950s. The Dennis the Menace dolls were made in
the mid-to late 50s. Dennis dolls were 17 inches tall and made of
vinyl. His head was jointed at the neck and his hair was molded and
painted. Dennis had stationary glassine eyes. The only mark on the
doll to identify it is "Dennis the Menace” that is stamped on the back
of the dolls neck.
If you have any of these beautiful dolls you might just have a doll
worth a lot of money, especially if they are still in excellent shape.
These dolls were very popular in the 1950s you often saw little girls
playing dolls together, back when life was simpler. When children were
not so rushed to grow up, a time when little girls in the neighborhood
gathered together to play dolls and enjoy just being children.
Go
to Rewind the Fifties Home
