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Troll Dolls of the 1970s

Troll dolls are a widely recognized and fondly remembered toy. Cute creatures complete with pot bellies and heaps of often brightly colored hair sticking from their heads, these toys were popular upon their first release in the 1960s, and again on their subsequent revival in the 70s. Troll dolls' sizes and hair color varied, as did the clothes which came with each figure; some trolls were dressed as wizards, while others wore caveman attire.

History
- Originally conceived by a Danish woodcutter named Thomas Dam in 1959, troll dolls were first launched in the early 1960s, and by 1963 these unusual toys had become something of a craze. This first generation of trolls were often known as Dam trolls after their creator. The troll fad continued for the next few years before the troll dolls fell out of fashion. However, troll dolls remerged in similar fads in the 1970s, as well as in the 80s and 90s. Troll dolls were celebrated by the Toy Industry Association in 2003, when they were included in the "Century of Toys" list, which collected the best 100 creative toys.
70s Revival
- One of the various troll crazes in the latter part of the 20th century, the 1970s troll revival saw an invasion of troll dolls produced by manufacturers other than the toy's Danish creators. This was a result of the creators' inability to comply with copyright laws at the time, and so the U.S. toy marketplace was soon awash with cheaply produced troll imitations. Despite this, troll dolls in the 1970s became popular for a variety of reasons. For example, drivers hung them in their cars, while others collected them for the good luck they were supposed to bring.
Norfin Trolls
- Thanks to copyright issues, the toll doll produced by Thomas Dam's company, Dam Things, in the 1970s were not entirely the same as the toys released by the company in the 1960s. These later troll dolls were known as Norfin dolls after the brand they were launched under in the U.S., and were smaller than the Dam trolls of the 60s.
Collecting
- Troll dolls from the 1970s are generally worth less than the Dam trolls made in the 1960s, as suggested by the Troll Doll.net website. For a start, this is a result of the cheap imitations released during the 70s, and also because the Dam trolls are rarer. According to the Troll Doll.net website, a Norfin troll is likely to sell for less than $50 in 2011, while a Dam troll can be sold to a collector for anything up to $500. Some Norfin trolls do fetch up to $150 however.

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