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After Mattel‘s culture sweeping debut of Barbie in 1959, it took nearly 17 years for the brand to come out with a version of the collectible doll that represented more than one type of skin color. Barbie was a a firefighter, a teacher, an actor, a lifeguard, a doctor. But it wasn’t until 1976, when Kitty Black Perkins joined the brand as Chief Designer of Fashion Doll concepts, that Barbie was Black.
Now, Barbie is celebrating the 45th anniversary of their first-ever Black Barbie doll with a collectible doll of creator Black Perkins, who worked at the brand as a pioneering designer until 2004.
The doll wear an off-shoulder gown, featuring a cascading chiffon and satin skirt and sweetheart neckline, alongside matching red heels and a golden cuff bracelet as a nod to the accessory on the 1980s doll.
The story behind the titular Black doll Mattel released in 1980 was definitively told for the first time in Lagueria Davis’s debut documentary “Black Barbie,” released in 2023. The film delves into the tumultuous journey towards diversity and inclusion at the iconic toy brand.
Lagueria’s doc mostly focuses on her own aunt Beulah Mae Mitchell, who was among the employees who started advocating for a Black Barbie in the early ’60s. It took nearly two decades for that advocacy to arrive in the person of Black Perkins, who had Diana Ross in mind when she designed Mattel’s first Black Barbie and dressed her in a red gown, with a little back and a little leg showing.
Now, of course, Barbie comes in innumerable iterations, representing nearly every culture, ethnicity and background one can think of. Earlier this month, Barbie unveiled a Lunar New Year Doll for 2025.
Shop Kitty Black Perkins’ Barbie on Target for $35.49.
