Hobbies And Interests
Wooden Dolls
From around 1680 to the early 1800s, English craftsmen fashioned wooden dolls, called Queen Anne dolls, although the Queen's reign from 1702 to 1714 covered only part of the wooden doll era. Craftsmanship was meticulous, with careful attention to facial expression, glass eyes, and delicate fingers and toes. The upper arms of these dolls were linen, but otherwise they were all-wooden dolls.
First Infant
During the 19th century, French doll makers created the first infant doll, aptly named "Bebe." It was something completely different from the dolls fashioned up to that point, which did not have baby features. Top quality porcelain infant dolls were soon all the rage in France and beyond.
From Illustrations
In 1909, the "Ladies Home Journal" published drawings in its Christmas issue by a self-taught illustrator, Rose O'Neill (1874 to 1944). Her drawings of "Kewpie," a sweet little person with large round eyes and a pointy tuft of hair, created a sensation. O'Neill said her inspiration was her baby brother, whom she sketched while caring for him. Her enormously popular drawings led in 1913 to the production of real dolls made of bisque and celluloid. J.D. Kestner Co., in Germany, manufactured the kewpies in nine different sizes at 21 factories to meet worldwide demand that would last for decades.
Madame Alexander
Madame Alexander collectible dolls are the creations of Beatrice Alexander Behrman (1895 to 1990), daughter of Maurice Alexander who opened the first doll hospital in America. Behrman established the Alexander Doll Co., Inc., in 1923. By the following decade, the company had major success with its dolls based on licensed characters from literature and films, including "Alice In Wonderland," "Little Women" and "Gone With The Wind." During the 1940s, the company manufactured the first dolls with eyes that open and close, and the first line of patriotic dolls. In 1953, the company introduced the 8-inch Alexanderkins that remain in production. Madame Alexander focused on creating top quality dolls, and fashionable hairstyles and clothing. Special lines of accessories meant that each Madame Alexander doll could be stylishly outfitted at all times.
Movie Star Doll
Shirley Temple was the most popular Hollywood child star of the 1930s, starring in films that were huge box office hits. Shirley Temple dolls, particularly the composition dolls made of sawdust-based wood pulp in the 1930s, are highly collectible. Most of the dolls' outfits are replicas of what Shirley Temple wore in her films, such as "Baby Take A Bow" (1934). Shirley Temple dolls manufactured of vinyl in the 1950s, and subsequent dolls, are also popular collectibles. Today's auction prices show an ongoing demand for all Shirley Temple dolls.