Ruth Handler | |
|---|---|
 Handler in 1961 | |
| Born | Ruth Marianna Mosko November 4, 1916 Denver, Colorado, U.S. |
| Died | April 27, 2002 (aged 85)[1] Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | President of Mattel (1945–1975) |
| Notable work | Barbie |
| Successor | Robert A. Eckert |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Barbara and Kenneth |
Ruth Marianna Handler (née Mosko; November 4, 1916 – April 27, 2002) was an American businesswoman and inventor. She is best known for inventing the Barbie doll in 1959,[2] and being co-founder of toy manufacturer Mattel with her husband Elliot, as well as serving as the company's first president from 1945 to 1975.[3]
The Handlers were forced to resign from Mattel in 1975 after the Securities and Exchange Commission investigated the company for falsifying financial documents.[3][4]
Handler was prominently characterized in the 2023 film Barbie.
Ruth Marianna Mosko[5][2][3] was born on November 4, 1916 in Denver, Colorado, to Polish-Jewish immigrants Jacob Moskowicz, a blacksmith, and Ida Moskowicz, née Rubenstein.[6] Ruth was the youngest of ten children.[3] When Ruth was six months old, her parents sent her to live with her older sister Sarah. Ruth stayed with Sarah until the age of nineteen [3] and developed an enthusiasm for business by working at Sarah’s drugstore/soda fountain.[3]
In 1932, Ruth fell in love with Izzy Handler,[3] an art student. The summer of her sophomore year at University of Denver, Ruth went to Los Angeles and landed a job at Paramount Studio. Ruth and Izzy married in 1938 in Denver. Returning to California, Ruth encouraged her husband to drop the stereotypical "Izzy" to go by his middle name, Elliot.[3] After marriage, Ruth returned to work at Paramount while Elliot was employed as a lighting fixture designer.
Elliot tried his hand at a hobby of furniture making. He decided to make furniture from two new types of plastics, Lucite and Plexiglas. Ruth suggested that he start doing this commercially and they began a furniture business. Ruth worked as the sales force for the new business, landing contracts with Douglas Aircraft Company and others.[7]
Ruth and Elliot founded a furniture company with Harold "Matt" Matson, naming it Mattel by combining the surname Matson with the first name Elliot;[8] Elliot later said the founders could not fit Ruth into the name of the company.[9] When sales fell during World War II, Mattel began to make toy furniture. The success of this business caused Ruth and Elliott to move Mattel fully into toy manufacturing.
Observing her daughter Barbara and friends have fun with paper dolls and role-play adult scenarios, Ruth Handler noticed a market void.[8] Dolls available at that time featured mainly babies or toddlers, but nothing really adult.
During a trip to Europe in 1956 with Barbara and son Kenneth, Ruth came across Bild Lilli,[10] a German toy doll. In an interview with Mary G. Lord, the author of Forever Barbie, Handler said that she saw the doll in Lucerne, Switzerland. However, the book points out that on other occasions Handler said that she saw the doll in Zürich or Vienna. The adult-figured doll was exactly what Ruth had in mind, so she purchased three of them. She gave one to her daughter and took the others back to Mattel. The Lilli doll was based on a popular character appearing in a satirical comic strip drawn by Reinhard Beuthin for the newspaper Bild. The Lilli doll was first sold in 1955 in Germany, and although initially sold to adults, it became popular with children who enjoyed dressing it up in outfits that were available separately.[11]
Upon return to the United States, Ruth Handler redesigned the doll with help from local inventor-designer Jack Ryan. Handler named her doll Barbie (full name Barbie Millicent Roberts) after her daughter Barbara, and said Barbie was from Willows, Wisconsin. Premiering on March 9, 1959, at the American International Toy Fair in New York City,[12] the first Barbie doll cost $3 and was an instant hit.[13] In its first year, 300,000 Barbie dolls were sold.[13]
Later, the Handlers and Mattel added a boyfriend for Barbie named Ken after the Handlers' son.[14] That was followed by the release of a huge range of new Barbie dolls, with more than 125 careers.[8] Barbie wasn't just a representation; she was known for her versatility and fashion. Expanding the line after its initial success, Ruth Handler added cars, sports gear, clothes, and doll furniture to Barbie's collection.
Handler was diagnosed in 1970 with breast cancer. She had a modified radical mastectomy, which was often used at the time to combat the disease. She spent less time at Mattel to focus on improving her health. Her loss of self-esteem affected her leadership and she lost control of her own business. In an interview in 1980, she explained to a reporter, “When I conceived Barbie, I believed it was important to a little girl’s self-esteem to play with a doll that has breasts. Now I find it even more important to return that self-esteem to women who have lost theirs.”[3]
Due to difficulties in finding a good breast prosthesis, Handler decided to make her own. With the help of new business partner Peyton Massey, and under her new company Ruthton Corp., Handler manufactured a more realistic version of a woman's breast called "Nearly Me", aiming to boost confidence for women regardless of their health condition. This invention became quite popular, and then-first lady Betty Ford was fitted for one after having a mastectomy.[15]
Ruth Handler received various awards for her philanthropy and business activities. She earned titles such as Woman of the Year in Business (Los Angeles Times), entry into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame (Toy Manufacturers of America), the Volunteer Achievement Award (American Cancer Society), and was the inaugural "Woman of Distinction" recognized by the United Jewish Appeal.[3]
Following several investigations of producing fraudulent financial reports, Handler resigned from Mattel in 1975. Investigations continued after her resignation, and, in 1978, Handler was charged with fraud and false reporting to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. She pleaded no contest, and was fined $57,000 (equivalent to $260,000 in 2022[16]) and sentenced to 2,500 hours of community service. She blamed her illness for making her "unfocused" on her business.
Handler died on April 27, 2002, in California from complications during surgery for colon cancer. She was age 85.[17] Her husband Elliot died nine years later at the age of 95.
Handler is portrayed in the 2023 film Barbie[18] by actress Rhea Perlman. As depicted, the ghost of an elderly Handler resides in an office on the 17th floor of Mattel headquarters in Los Angeles. There she meets the movie's stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie). Later, while advising Barbie, Handler tells her about her creation and how it related to her daughter, Barbara. Barbie then takes the name "Barbara Handler" as her own.
The film stirred a wave of media coverage of Handler.[19][20][21]
