Wh Greta Gerwig's Barbie set to h theaters this July, we cid to take a look back at the past, prent, and future of gay Barbie dolls.
Contents:
- THE FUTURE OF GAY BARBIE DOLLS AND THE HISTORY OF EARRG MAGIC KEN
- TURNS OUT, BARBIELAND ISN'T AS GAY AS S QUEER FANS HAD HOPED
- TOO GAY, TOO WEIRD, TOO PREGNANT: THE MOST NTROVERSIAL BARBIE DOLLS HISTORY
THE FUTURE OF GAY BARBIE DOLLS AND THE HISTORY OF EARRG MAGIC KEN
” (The first openly LGBTQ+ doll, Gay Bob, was released 1977. “I do rell the male Mattel signer—who was married wh several children and workg on the project—sayg to me: ‘They will turn Ken gay wh this doll! When to gay Barbie dolls, the Mattel toy pany hasn’t always been a pneer, but they have always been the center of the nversatn.
He’s the first (untentnally) gay-d Barbie doll created by Mattel 1993. And for all we know, Earrg Magic Ken stigated the unfound fear among agile mascule fathers regardg the notn that playg wh dolls uld lead to their sons beg gay.
But 1993, Mattel released Earrg Magic Ken, a doll that quickly beme an accintal gay in. Bee he f nearly every sgle early-90s gay stereotype, nversatns grew around Ken’s sexualy and he quickly beme a highly sought-after Barbie pecially among gay men—rultg the doll sellg out by Christmastime shortly after s but. AI Barbie: What might future gay Barbie dolls look like?
TURNS OUT, BARBIELAND ISN'T AS GAY AS S QUEER FANS HAD HOPED
Gay cyb Ken doll. Ken's actually bee a gay in sce the 1990s when he was sold as "Earrg Magic Ken, " plete wh an earrg and a necklace that rembled a sex toy.
“First of all, I’m gay, ” he said, “and this movie is gog to be gay non.
"Alex AvilaAnd Gay Tim, a Brish LGBTQ news se, celebrated Friday, the day of the film’s official release, as “Barbie day“ and lled the world-renowned doll a “queer cultural phenomenon. PicturIn an terview wh Fandango, actor Kate McKnon, who is openly gay and plays “Weird Barbie” the film, said Barbie is about “imagatn.
TOO GAY, TOO WEIRD, TOO PREGNANT: THE MOST NTROVERSIAL BARBIE DOLLS HISTORY
Many also flagged the teased scene which Barbie, now the real world, exchang a longg look wh Ameri Ferrera’s Gloria character; though, the relatnship between the two turns out to be a tribute to motherhood and the tradnal, nuclear before the film’s release, Robbie all but squashed the mors that some or any of the Barbi and Kens would be gay, tellg the Brish LGBTQ magaze Attu: The dolls don’t “actually have sexual orientatns. There are brief appearanc by Earrg Magic Ken and Palm Beach Sugar Daddy Ken, both of which Mattel has always nied were tentnally gay-d.
”As far as the queer-d trailers and promotnal clips for the new “Barbie” film, Rand poted to a phenomenon known as “gay wdow advertisg, ” or the practice of advertisers gturg to queer dienc a way that will go over the heads of those who would disapprove. But Allan's marketg tagle, "All of Ken's cloth f him, " backfired when led to mors that Ken and Allan were a homosexual relatnship, acrdg to was disntued around the same time as Midge, but has ocsnally reappeared Barbie lore. "Earrg Magic Ken was disntued and relled after beg associated wh the gay muny.