DOLLS

PlayMates Toys Launches New Doll Lines

Expanding on the success of the Disney Little Princess dolls, Playmates Toys is introducing a deluxe line of Little Princesses that allow girls to add color change surprises to their Magic Color Change Surprise Doll. By using a special wand and a touch of cold water, pretty designs will appear on the doll’s cheek, lips, nails and outfit. My Baby Princess launches in Fall 2004 as a little girl’s “My First” princess baby doll.

New from the Waterbabies brand, the Wiggly Waterbabies feature three dolls with classic play patterns, wearing trendy outfits and accessories. A line of licensed Waterbabies will include a line of Care Bears, Shrek 2, Baby Looney Tunes and Peanuts dolls.

Playmates Toys will also launch a line of Hilary Duff dolls that capture the many talents of Hilary’s career, including Rock Star, Movie Star and TV Star dolls. With the release of Hilary’s new movie, A Cinderella Story in July, the company will offer an exclusive Special Edition doll that features fashions and accessories straight from the movie.

Baby´s Got Bottom

New from Fanny´s Playhouse (ToyDirectory, ToyShow), a company that specializes in products that cater to the early childhood school market and specialty stores, are Baby Bottoms dolls. This line of 12" anatomically correct, multicultural dolls have adorable faces and soft, huggable bodies and are machine washable. These cute dolls, great for kids of any age, are especially useful to teach children about their bodies.

Team GK Dolls Offer Training Manual

Teddi Toys Inc.´s (ToyDirectory, ToyShow) popular line of TeamGK dolls now include a Top Secret Manual that gives dolls owners the information they need to join and be a part of TeamGK, a group of nine characters that fight together to defeat the evil forces of today. The manual is loaded with fun games and puzzles for kids of all ages, as well as the addition of "Trouble´s Monkey Rules," which help give clarity and direction to basic behavioral guidelines parents can teach their children. Also included with each purchase are a set of TeamGK stickers and a "Trouble" the Monkey pencil top. These dolls are a great way to help enlighten, teach and empower children.

Key to the Classics

The Brass Key, Inc. (ToyDirectory, ToyShow) was recently granted licenses to create porcelain dolls from Warner Bros. Consumer Products for Gone with the Wind TM and The Wizard of OzTM. Characters from these classic properties will be created in porcelain for the first time as highly detailed, affordable doll lines, to be revealed at the American International Toy Fair this month.

Neva Dolls: Modern Dolls Made with Old World Techniques

Neva Dolls by Neva Imports, LLC (ToyDirectory) are handcrafted by master artisans in St. Petersburg Russia using ingenious Old World doll crafting techniques that have been passed down through the generations. Each doll comes complete with a background story and certificate of authenticity. The Russian fashion doll manufacturer has pledged that a percentage of all proceeds from the sales of Neva Dolls will go to the Tolmachevo Children’s Orphanage of Luga, located in the St. Petersburg region of Russia.

Language Littles Expands Doll Line

To commemorate its third anniversary in the specialty toy industry, Language Littles (ToyDirectory) is expanding its line of dolls. January 2004 will bring the first of the Language Littles school supply line with the Language Littles Talking Journals. The journals, available in Spanish Lizzie and Ricky, French Jolie, Chinese Ling and Italian Sophie, will feature a talking Language Littles face on the front of the fuzzy journal and pages printed with “Hello, Hola, Bonjour, Ni Hâo, Ciao,” an added language tool. At Toy Fair 2004 in New York, Language Littles will unveil its two newest languages: Greek and Korean.

The company has also recently introduced Cutie Cakes. Each collectible doll celebrates a different party that young girls celebrate, including Birthday Party Becky, Slumber Party Samantha, Garden Party Gracie and Craft Party Chloe. They each come with a purse in the shape of a cake to store accessories.

Takmay Gets Dolled Up

New from Takmay Industrial Company Ltd. (ToyDirectory) comes a line of dolls that do much more than just sit pretty. Baby Crawler comes with a switch that makes her crawl on laugh; soon after she falls and cries, then gets back up and crawls again. B/O Lifelike Crying Expression Baby with Accessories comes with a nappy, rattle, bucket and vinyl duck. She also cries, laughs, blinks and moves her mouth like a real baby. With a press of a button, the B/O Dancing Doll dances by moving her head, arms and legs.

Madeline, The Classic Literary Heroine, Turns 65

To celebrate Madeline’s 65^th birthday, RC2 Corporation (ToyDirectory) launching a new line of toys inspired by the classic literary heroine. Available in limited quantities, the 18” Madeline Doll features a stylized vinyl face, poseable limbs, signature outfit, and comes in a collectible gift box. In addition, the Talking Madeline Ragdoll speaks five basic phrases in both English and French when her tummy is pressed.

Also in the special collection, the Madeline 8” doll comes with a redesigned face, updated clothing, longer hair and bendable joints. La Petite Madeline is a new take-along collection of 3: Madeline mini-dolls, including accessories and play sets.