Kenneth Sean "Ken" Carson Jr. is a

fashion doll Fashion dolls are dolls primarily designed to be dressed to reflect fashion trends. They are manufactured both as toys for children to play with and as collectibles for adults. The dolls are usually modeled after teen girls or adult women, though ...

introduced by American toy company

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company headquartered in El Segundo, California. Founded in Los Angeles by Harold Matson and the husband-and-wife duo of Ruth Handler, ...

in 1961 as the counterpart of

Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll created by American businesswoman Ruth Handler, manufactured by American toy and entertainment company Mattel and introduced on March 9, 1959. The toy was based on the German Bild Lilli doll, Bild Lilli doll which Hand ...

, who had been introduced two years earlier. Similar to Barbie, Ken is from Willows,

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, and has a fashionable line of clothing and accessories (although he made his debut wearing only a swimsuit). In the Barbie

mythos Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

, Ken met Barbie on the set of a TV commercial and is her boyfriend, per promotional box inscriptions from his debut until 2018. , he is perceived as one of Barbie's main friends. Since his debut, Ken has held over 40 occupations, the latest being "beach" (standing in the sand and surveying the waves), as depicted in the 2023 ''

'' film.

History

Ken was introduced as the male counterpart to

by the American toy company

in 1961. He was named after

Kenneth Handler Kenneth Robert Handler (March 22, 1944 – June 11, 1994) was an American screenwriter, director, and film composer. He was the son of Mattel founders Elliot Handler and Ruth Handler, creators of the Barbie and Ken doll, the latter of which is ...

, son of Barbie creator/inventor

Ruth Handler Ruth Marianna Handler (née Mosko; November 4, 1916 – April 27, 2002) was an American business magnate and inventor. She is best known for inventing the Barbie doll in 1959 and being co-founder of toy manufacturer Mattel with her husband Ell ...

, just as Barbie was named after her daughter. Ken Handler died in 1994 of a brain tumor. From 1961 to the debut of Superstar Ken in 1977, Ken had straight arms that did not bend. His head could only turn left and right. Ken's hair was made of

felt Felt is a textile that is produced by matting, condensing, and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic fiber, acrylic or acrylonitrile or ...

in his first year (known to collectors as the " flocked" hair Ken), but this was replaced with a plastic, molded hairstyle when the creators realized that the felt hair fell off when wet. Superstar Ken featured a dimpled smile, a head that could swivel, bent arms, a more muscular physique, jewelry, and underwear permanently molded to his body. Allegedly Ruth Handler built Ken's appearance in resemblance to her husband. In February 2004, Mattel announced a split for Ken and Barbie, with Russell Arons, vice president of marketing at Mattel, saying that Barbie and Ken "feel it's time to spend some quality time – apart...Like other celebrity couples, their Hollywood romance has come to an end", though Arons indicated that the duo would "remain friends". In February 2006, however, a revamped version of the Ken doll was launched, though it was stated that his relationship with Barbie was still purely platonic. In 2011, Mattel launched a massive campaign for Ken to win Barbie's affections back. The pair officially reunited on

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a Christian martyrs, martyr named Saint Valentine, Valentine, and ...

2011. In 2011, Mattel introduced Japan Ken, the first Ken doll to be included in the "Dolls of the World" collection, which was formerly a Barbie-only line. The Japan Ken doll features a new face sculpt. In 2021, Mattel announced 15 new looks for Ken. This included looks with different skin tones, body shapes and hair styles. Barbie underwent a similar makeover in 2020. Outside of this change, Ken has not changed much since he was introduced years ago.

Notable lines

Earring Magic Ken

In 1993, Earring Magic Ken was released. The style of the doll was thought to resemble fashions and accessories worn by some segments of the

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

community at the time, and "Earring Magic Ken" subsequently attained a cult following, becoming a collector's item.

Sugar Daddy Ken

In October 2009, Mattel announced a new ''Palm Beach'' line which included a "Sugar Daddy Ken" doll aimed for adult collectors. The said line officially debuted in the spring of 2010. The line proved to be controversial, because of Ken's suggestive-sounding name. The doll had a more mature appearance and came with a West Highland Terrier puppy. Mattel defended the doll's name, saying that the puppy's name is "Sugar", thus making Ken "Sugar's Daddy". The doll's outfit resembled an outfit worn by a socialite seen in

Slim Aarons Slim Aarons (born George Allen Aarons; October 29, 1916 – May 30, 2006) was an American photographer noted for his images of socialites, jet-setters and celebrities. His work principally appeared in ''Life'', '' Town & Country'', and ''Holiday' ...

' photo ''Palm Springs Party''.

Other lines

Ken's best friend, Allan Sherwood ( Midge's boyfriend, later husband), was introduced in 1964. In 1968 Brad, the first African American male doll, was introduced as the boyfriend of Barbie's African American friend, Christie, who was introduced in 1967.

Careers

Astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

(clothing pack 1965) * Banker (playset 1995) *

Barista A barista ( , ; ) is a person, usually a coffeehouse employee, who prepares and serves espresso-based coffee drinks and other beverages. Etymology and inflection The word comes from Italian, where it means a "bartender" who typically works be ...

(2019) * Baseball player (clothing pack 1991) * Basketball player (clothing pack 2021) * Beach (2023) * Boxer (clothing pack 1963) * Businessman (clothing pack 1992) * Cameraman (playset 1987) * Coach (clothing pack 1992) * Country Western singer (1999) * Cowboy (Venezuela-exclusive ''Llanero'' 1989) * Dancer (2011) * Dentist (2020) * Doctor (1963-1965 fashion pack,1987, 1988, clothing pack 1992, 1998, 2010, 2012) * Dog trainer (2020) * Drum major (clothing pack 1964) * Farmer (2019) * Fashion model (2003) * Film art director (2003) * Firefighter (2010, 2019) * Football player (clothing pack 1992) * Golfer (clothing pack 2019) * Hamburger chef (clothing pack 2020) * Movie star (1977, 1988) * Ice skater (1990) * Lifeguard (1995, 2019) * Nurse (clothing pack 2021) * Olympic athlete (Venezuela-exclusive 1988) * Olympic figure skater (1997) * Olympic hockey player (clothing pack 1975) * Olympic skier (1975) * Olympic swimmer (1975) * Photographer (2000) * Pilot (clothing pack 1964, clothing pack 1973, 1990, 2014) * Pizza chef (clothing pack 2019) * Rapper (1992) * Referee (clothing pack 2019) * Reporter (clothing pack 1965, 2015) * Rock star (1987, 1989, clothing pack 1991) * Sailor (clothing pack 1963) * Saxophonist (clothing pack 2020) * Science teacher (clothing pack 2020) * Skier (clothing pack 1963) * Snowboarder (2012) * Soccer player (2019) * Soda fountain worker (clothing pack 1964, 2000) * Spy (2015) *

Starfleet Starfleet is a fictional organization in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. Within this fictional universe, Starfleet is a uniformed space force maintained by the United Federation of Planets ("the Federation") as the principal means for conduct ...

command officer (1996) * Tennis player (1979) *

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

pilot (clothing pack 1963, 1993) *

United States Air Force Thunderbirds The USAF Air Demonstration Squadron is the air demonstration squadron of the United States Air Force The Thunderbirds, as they are popularly known, are assigned to the 57th Wing, and are based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Created in 1953 ...

pilot (1994) * United States Army officer (clothing pack 1963, 1992) *

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

sergeant (1992) * Wildlife veterinarian (2020)

Criticism

Ken's body proportions have been described as unrealistic by scholarly studies (his chest is estimated to be about 27.5% too large for a representative human male). Unrealistic body proportions in Barbie dolls, including Ken's, have been connected to some

eating disorders An eating disorder is a mental disorder defined by abnormal eating behaviors that adversely affect a person's health, physical or mental health, mental health. These behaviors may include eating too much food or too little food. Types of eatin ...

in children. Another controversy has also centered around the visibility (or lack of it) of Ken's male genitalia.

Media/multimedia appearances

Ken has starred in various roles not disclosed by Mattel in the Barbie media franchise, including the ''Barbie'' films, '' Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse'', ''Barbie: Vlogger'', '' Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures'', ''Barbie's Dreamworld'', '' Barbie: It Takes Two'' and '' Barbie: A Touch of Magic''. Billy Flanigan appeared as Ken in "

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

’s Magical World of Barbie". René Dif appeared as Ken in the music video for Aqua's "

Barbie Girl "Barbie Girl" is a song by Danish-Norwegian dance-pop group Aqua. It was released in April 1997 by Universal and MCA as the third single from the group's debut studio album, ''Aquarium''. The song was written by band members Søren Rasted, Cl ...

". Ken appeared in the ''Toy Story'' films from

Pixar Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...

from ''

Toy Story 2 ''Toy Story 2'' is a 1999 American animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios, and the first sequel to Toy Story. It is the second installment in the Toy Story (franchise), ''Toy Story'' franchise and was directed by J ...

'' onward. In the third film, which he appeared in as one of the henchmen of the film's villain, Lots-O'-Huggin' Bear, he was voiced by

Michael Keaton Michael John Douglas (born September 5, 1951), known professionally as Michael Keaton, is an American actor. He has received numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for an Aca ...

. American rapper

Lil B Brandon Christopher McCartney (born August 17, 1989), known professionally as Lil B and Lil B The BasedGod, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of the Berkeley, California-based hip hop group the Pack in 2005, who signed wi ...

likely named his 2017 mixtape '' Black Ken'' after Ken, as the cover art for the mixtape depicts Lil B and some of his female friends as dolls in the same style as Barbie. Atlanta rapper Kenyatta Lee Frazier Jr., known professionally as

Ken Carson Kenyatta Lee Frazier Jr. (born April 11, 2000), known professionally as Ken Carson, is an American rapper and record producer from Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Carson initially gained attention for his SoundCloud releases and collab ...

, got his name from the doll as he wanted to "live better than him". In 2019,

Pete Davidson Peter Michael Davidson (born November 16, 1993) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He began his career in the early 2010s with minor guest roles on ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'', ''Friends of the People'', ''Guy Code'', and ''Wild 'n O ...

and

Julia Fox Julia Fox (born February 2, 1990) is an Italian and American actress, model, and media personality. Her debut performance was in the 2019 film ''Uncut Gems'', for which she was nominated for the Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Ac ...

were a part of a photo shoot in ''

Paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...

'' magazine, where Davidson posed as Ken and Fox posed as Barbie. The photo shoot was created for the 'Break the Internet' series of the magazine, which was made popular by

Kim Kardashian Kimberly Noel Kardashian (born October 21, 1980) is an American media personality, socialite, and businesswoman. She first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after the celebrity sex tape ...

's popular "Champagne Incident" portrait. Various iterations of Ken appear in the 2023 live-action ''Barbie'' film, with the lead Ken (referred to as "Beach Ken") played by Canadian actor

Ryan Gosling Ryan Thomas Gosling ( ; born November 12, 1980) is a Canadian actor. His work includes both independent films and major studio features, and his accolades include a Golden Globe Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Awards, a ...

, and others by diverse actors such as

Simu Liu Simu Liu ( ; ; born 19 April 1989) is a Canadian actor. He rose to prominence by starring as Shang-Chi in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film ''Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings'' (2021). Liu was born in Harbin and raised in Ontario. ...

Kingsley Ben-Adir Kingsley Ben-Adir (born 20 November 1986) is a British actor. His credits include playing pathologist Marcus Summer in ITV's ''Vera'' (2014–2018), private detective Karim Washington on Netflix's '' The OA'' (2019), Colonel Ben Younger in the ...

Ncuti Gatwa Mizero Ncuti Gatwa ( ; born 15 October 1992) is a Rwandan-Scottish actor. After a screen Breakthrough role, breakthrough portraying Eric Effiong in Sex Education (TV series), ''Sex Education'' (2019–2023), he rose to further prominence as the ...

, Scott Evans and

John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American actor and professional wrestler. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE , where he is the current WWE Championship, Undisputed WWE Champion in his record 14th reign, which is ...

. Gosling received widespread critical acclaim and various accolades for his performance, including a nomination for the

Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 9th Academy Awards to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in ...

. Songs inspired by Ken's character in the movie's soundtrack album include " Man I Am" by

Sam Smith Samuel Frederick Smith (born 19 May 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. In 2012, they rose to prominence when they featured on Disclosure (band), Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch (song), Latch", which peaked at number eleven on ...

and " I'm Just Ken" by Gosling and the other Ken actors; the latter received nominations for the

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

and

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Original Song, along with the

Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media The Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media (including its previous names) is the Grammy Awards awarded to songs written for films, television, video games or other visual media. Alan Menken has won five awards (out of nine nominati ...

Names

Ken is named after

’s son Kenneth. In the 1960s

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

books, the character's

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

is given as Carson. Barbie and Ken's surnames were taken from the name of Mattel's ad agency Carson/Roberts. Ken's

middle name In various cultures, a middle name is a portion of a personal name that is written between a person's given name and surname. A middle name is often abbreviated and is then called middle initial or just initial. A person may be given a middle ...

is Sean.

Bibliography

*"Barbie and Ken: History". Olsen, Eric. ''Blog Critics Magazine'', 15 February 2004. 15 February 2004. *"How do Barbie and Ken Measure Up?" Linda Berg-Cross, ''Psychotherapy Letter'', April 1996, Volume 8, Issue 4, Page 3. *History from Mattel Inc. 2001

References

External links

Keeping Ken
{{Barbie * 1960s toys Barbie characters Doll brands Fictional models Male characters in advertising Mascots introduced in 1961 Products introduced in 1961 Toy mascots Fictional characters introduced in 1961