When fandoms collide

Recently, a Beach Boys-related account I follow on Instagram posted this commercial from 1987/88:

In late 1987, I was enjoying my job as a tech writer/editor and planning a wedding. I don’t think I owned a TV, nor was I Barbie shopping, so this mash-up of two of my favorite things (Beach Boys and Barbie) passed me by until I saw the Instagram post that immediately sent me scouring online sellers. This arrived late last week.

It’s not often a Barbie in an opened box comes with all the accessories, but this one miraculously did. For example:

Barbie’s sun visor and “flying disk” (probably couldn’t use the Frisbee® trademarked name) were still in their unopened plastic wrapper. They came with instructions for how to apply “labels” to both. And yes, the labels were also there.

In the same sealed package that held Barbie’s beach bag, hairbrush, socks, sneakers, and sunglasses.

The box also contained the original additional materials: a way to join the Barbie fan club, the World of Fashion that catalogs other Barbie accessories for sale, a disclaimer about Barbie’s earrings being unsuitable for small children, and a Barbie comic book sharing “The Treasure Map” adventure of Barbie and some of her friends!

This was already quite a wonderful find, but that it included the playable (at 33 1/3 speed) record (with some extra Barbie punch-out photos) was fantastic! The song probably featured no Beach Boys other than founder Brian Wilson singing all the parts (and doubtless playing most of the instruments, too), and Brian’s writing credits were shared with his manipulative, controlling therapist of that time and the therapist’s fiancee (later, wife). There’s a lot of history packed into that little record. I haven’t tried to play mine because I don’t want to risk damaging it.

Here’s a look at those treacherous earrings. I’ll get the rubber bands out of her hair (those things harden and eventually crumble, and I use less harmful plastic bands–they may weaken over time, but they don’t damage/stain the doll’s hair).

This provides a look at Barbie’s pink camera, still strapped around her arm. The cellophane tape that secured things inside the box, like the camera, has long since lost any adhesive quality, so it’s amazing this camera never fell out and was lost (since the top of the box had been opened). Somebody kept this on a shelf for a long time.

Other dolls were sold in the California Dream line, and here are some fun facts about them. (No reason to discuss the well-known Ken; and I have several similar to this one from 1981 and 1991.)

California Dream marked the debut of Teresa, Barbie’s Latina friend. Teresa still continues to be one of Barbie’s most-often recurring friends and has been represented by more Mattel “friend” dolls than any other except Christie (also shown here), Barbie’s African American friend who was introduced in 1968 and after many versions, was discontinued in 2005/06. In February of this year, Mattel produced a 55th anniversary Christie. I have at least seven Teresa dolls and many AA/Black dolls (Ashi, Shana, Nichelle, Nikki, and Barbie), and my Christie dolls are 1981’s Sunsational Malibu Christie and 1992’s Glitter Beach Christie.

Barbie’s longtime best friend Midge, seated, first appeared in 1963 and hung around until 1967, then re-emerged in 1988 with the California Dream Midge shown here. Midge later married Alan and began having children in the controversial “Happy Family” line. In 2013, Midge appeared again as a teenager who moved to Malibu on the webseries Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse, the whole “Happy Family” line possibly one of the first toy products to be “cancelled” over consumer protests. 😉 I have at least six Midge dolls, but the only Happy Family dolls I own are Midge’s parents, called only “Grandma” and “Grandpa.”