Support for ‘Bald Barbie’ Swells on Facebook
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An internet movement urges Mattel to produce a bald version of its famously blond Barbie doll. (Facebook)
A Facebook movement to urge Mattel to produce a bald version of its famously blonde Barbie doll generated more than 10,000 “likes” in just a couple of hours, according to one of the administrators of the “Bald and Beautiful Barbie” page.
Beckie Sypin, a co-founder of the cause, told ABCNews.com that the hope is that a bald Barbie will help children with cancer and others who have lost their hair due to illness — such as alopecia and trichotillomania — cope with their conditions.
“We hope it gets the message out that being bald is beautiful and is no big deal. There’s no need to cover up,” she said.
Sypin’s own daughter is one of those children. The 12-year-old, named Kin Inich, lost her hair after chemotherapy.
Even though her daughter isn’t a huge Barbie fan, Sypin said she is excited about the idea.
“She said if they make one, she would totally get it,” Sypin said. “The first thing she said was if they make that doll, she would buy a bunch and take them to a children’s hospital and give them to children with cancer.”
Jane Bingham, Sypin’s friend and co-founder of the Facebook page, lost her hair while undergoing treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
“My daughter had some difficulty accepting me going from a long-haired blonde to a bald woman,” she wrote in a blog. A bald Barbie, she added, could be a great way for young girls to cope with hair loss that happens to them or to a loved one.
Nearly 60,000 people are fans of the page, created just three weeks ago, and that number is still climbing. Many commenters shared their support for the bald Barbie.
“I can only imagine what young children feel when they lose their hair,” wrote a cancer patient. “Let’s make this happen and teach them young that hair doesn’t make someone beautiful, it’s whats inside that truly matters!”
Sypin said the hope is that if the doll is made, proceeds from sales would go to a children’s cancer group.
The women also started a “Bald G.I. Joe Movement” Facebook page to help young boys dealing with baldness.
Hasbro, the company that makes G.I. Joe, told ABC News in a statement that it supports the movement “and the attention it is bringing to very worthwhile causes, including cancer research.”
Hasbro also said there will be two new action figures in this year’s product line that are bald, and while they weren’t designed to draw attention to childhood cancers, the company hopes the figures will provide comfort to children suffering from hair loss.
In an email to ABC News, Mattel didn’t say whether it would produce the bald Barbie or not, but expressed appreciation that Sypin and Bingham wanted Barbie to be the face of their campaign.
The company also said it receives hundreds of requests for different Barbies and are always exploring new options.
Both Hasbro and Mattel also stressed they regularly support numerous children’s charities.
Supporters of the bald Barbie also took to Mattel’s Facebook page, asking the company to mass produce the doll. Last year, Mattel made a one-of-a-kind bald Barbie for a 4-year-old cancer patient in New York, according to WCBS.
Sypin said the response she got from Mattel was a letter informing her the company does not accept ideas from outside sources.
But that rejection hasn’t stopped the movement’s momentum.
“We hope either Mattel does look at it and says okay, or that another company will pick up on the idea,” she said.
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It probably wouldn’t be profitable. I don’t think there is a big demand for bald Barbies and Mattel is in the business to make money. Perhpas if they added some interchangeable wigs it could be profitable as children could then change the doll’s hair color and style. I lay claim to this idea in the event Mattel actually does this :)
Posted by: iamcommonsense | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 10:13 am
Good idea! I agree, interchangeable wigs/scarves would be much more saleable and profitable and would still help children dealing with those issues, just as much, if not more, than a completely bald Barbie.
Posted by: JustinCase32 | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 10:38 am
Maybe Mattell should just step up and make the dolls to be given (not sold) to young cancer patients. It’s about time that American corporations begin to put the bottom line and fat bonuses to rest and help out the people that have provided them a pretty decent living over the years.
Posted by: ocmarsha | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 10:50 am
Why not? I like the idea. I’d buy one just to have it for my collection.
Posted by: carole | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 10:58 am
Whatever happened to preschoolers playing with Baby dolls? At least a Bald “Skipper” or other school-age child doll like American Girls. Why promote adult fashion dolls to three year olds?
Posted by: margaret | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 11:03 am
They should make a barbie with no hair I would by it and I’m 20. Why should we not have them bald is beautiful to. I almost shaved my head after
My mom got sick
Posted by: Noelle | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 11:04 am
Some may say the easy solution is to Just cut Barbies hair off. That’s a no go because it leaves nubs on the dolls head and well, in case you haven’t figured it out yet..when you go through Chemo..you aren’t left with knots and nubs on your head. You are BALD! I think it is a brilliant idea. And we should come out of the box and stop being so scared to discuss controversial matters with our children. Not everyone in the world is the same, so why make all the barbies the same? This doll has been an icon for so long…and why not give Barbie a new purpose..to teach, to give hope?
Posted by: Gail | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 11:04 am
Tattoo Barbie is seen as a baddie, even tho Barbie is touted a free thinking decide her destiny type of woman, and Bald Barbie is all the rave, go figure? We’ve become such followers of what the media decides is right for us rather than deciding that for ourselves. Why can’t there be both?
Posted by: bill | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 11:07 am
My beautiful daughter was only 3 years old when she died from cancer. Even at that age, she missed her hair. She would have LOVED a bald Barbie!
Posted by: janine | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 11:44 am
However why leave the eyebrows and eyelashes. Don’t most people lose those as well?
Posted by: Candice | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 11:58 am
I think it would be good PR for Mattel to go with the bald Barbie. Plus, eliminating the extra expense of the hair. Step up Mattel and join in the fight against childhood cancer.
Posted by: howdymo1 | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 12:02 pm
Mattel could sell wigs, hats, and head scarfs along with the bald Barbie. It’s a win-win. Also, most Barbies lose their hair within a year from the girl playing with the doll, so there is a new market there too!
Posted by: Greggw | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 12:44 pm
Aren’t the people pushing for this usually the same people complaining that Barbie is a bad role model because she’s supposed to be hot in addition to accomplished?
Posted by: SKW | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 12:51 pm
I as the mother of a child with cancer think that it is agreat idea for them to come out with a bald barbie. I’m sorry to say but I think ,people who have any kind of negative opinion are just plain uneducated. I think it just makes people feel uncomfortable to see a bald child, but guess what America this is really happening, kids are really getting cancer, this is very real to people like me and my cancer clan. So I really hope mattel goes through with it because I think it will help the girls going through cancer to feel alittle less different. And whoever thinks other wise maybe should go spend an afternoon in a pediatrics oncology clinic and see how you feel then. I bet you will see it from our point of view.
Posted by: Stephanie | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 1:53 pm
I haven’t read any comments so excuse me if I am repeating others. This bald Barbie is a neat idea however those big long eyelashes and brows would have to go too.
Posted by: Michelle | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 2:12 pm
There are already dolls out there with interchangeable wigs. My daughter received a Liv doll made by Spin Master Toy for Christmas. The hair is removeable and the doll is left with a painted on short hair style, not completely bald. They sell wigs and accessories for the doll separately. These dolls are about the size of Barbie, but they’re heads are a bit larger with quite beautiful expressions. I think these dolls would be a good alternative for young girls who have lost their hair and are beginning to have it grow back.
Posted by: Karen | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 2:12 pm
The people who would oppose of this are people who either haven’t had Chemo or don’t know what it’s like to love someone who is getting it.
To SKW-most of the people who are promoting this are the MOTHERS of little girls who are suffering from Cancer!!!
Do people even realize how disgusting Chemo feels??? I can’t even FATHOM going through it. And to warch a loved one go through the vomitting, the aches pains and a plethora of uncomfort!
I grew up with “hot” Barbie and support BOTH ideas!
Posted by: Kristine | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 2:27 pm
Mattel is a business , not a charity so I don’t see why they would have an obligation to do this.
Posted by: Liz | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 2:31 pm
Mattel should do this from a goodwill perspective, just like many companies do charity things for the good publicity. And they might be surprised at the sales they would make.
Posted by: Librarian53 | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 2:49 pm
Dolls may be Mattel’s business,but the little girls that they do go to is their business! That is their business and do have an obligation to them! They are for the little girls that have cancer and are on kemotherpy. It is to show as to how good they would look if they was to lose all their hair. Is it a good idea for Mattel to do this? I do say yes,it is,but what would be better if Mattel could donate money to the cause of helping these little girls that do have it,to protect their future in when they grow up,they can tell their daughters what a good thing they did.
Posted by: Gary Pillsbury | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 3:16 pm
Every one is entitled to their opinion, but this is a sensitive matter to those who CANCER affects, which should be all of us!!!…To make comments about it not being profitable and not working, or about interchangeable wigs like its a joke, is Pure IGNORANCE at its best…This BARBIE that would bare her bald head to the world in a statement of BEAUTY, is for all those little girls who are just as beautiful with no hair and should be able to play with a toy that they can relate to, in whatever way that is.. who are we to tell little girls how they should perceive Barbie to be, and that there cant be beautiful bald people who can do anything they aspire to be, Just like the many forms of Barbie and all her journeys she takes when played with… There can be dolls made to look like celebrities but not A BALD Barbie who should be a ROLE model…This Doll should be Made because the people asked for it, Little girls want it, and making money off of it should be the focus!!!!
Posted by: Megs | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 3:42 pm
Mattel makes barbies of all walks of life, veternarians, doctors, nurses, moms, dads, office workers, ect. Why not support the bravest of them all? The children who are fighting cancer. Why not give them a toy that shows them people they dont even know are supporting them in their battle and think they are beautiful. Barbies come in every color and have every color of hair as well, so we should all support this for the girls that have been dealt the terrible hand of cancer at such a young age. Some of the comments above disgust me. Yes they are a business but they are also human beings and cancer does not care if you belong to a business such as a mattel or not. It could happen to any of us or any of our children. I completely support this movement of the hairless princess or bald barbie either one. It does not have to be given as a charity gift, why not make a portion of the sales to go to cancer research to benefit everyone? What if it was your child? Wouldnt you want to be able to give them a barbie that gave them some sort of feeling of normalcy? Think about the bigger picture people.
Posted by: Maggie | January 12, 2012 January 12, 2012, 4:07 pm
I think it’d be a nice idea. As already mentioned: why not? It certainly couldn’t hurt, and it could really do a lot of good.
Posted by: Peter | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 9:29 am
Cancer is a horrible sickness and even though me nor my 5 year old daughter have experienced it, the bald and beautiful Barbie would help me show her that just because a friend in her class or even just a person walking down the street has no hair doesn’t mean they aren’t beautiful. In the children’s eyes Barbie is beautiful and maybe this could show them cancer in a different way. For the children who are actually fighting hair lose this could be a way to let them now they are still beautiful. Try to remember back when you were a kid Barbie was beautiful and every little girl wanted to be her. Adults would not be playing with the Barbie so I feel that it is up to the children who would be the ones playing with the dolls. Whether you agree or disagree with the making of the bald and beautiful Barbie we should think about the children and how it would make them feel.
Posted by: Robin | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 11:33 am
the only reason someone would comment something negative about this is just to argue! such a great idea!
Posted by: charleene | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 1:55 pm
Most people (not just kids or little girl) would not but this doll. They would be scared if they saw a bald barbie doll. As someone has rightly said Mattel is a business , not some charity. They could make the doll like a limited edition one but only give them to kids who have cancer. Most of you are not big buisness pople like the ones who run Mattel , so what you are saying is based soley on your personal opionions or experinces. You guy don’t know what it takes to run a big company , so don’t say Mattel should be doing this , cause there are many , many kids who do not have cancer and they have a responsiblity to them too. If you guys think this barbie will help kids with cancer see how “beautifu” they are , you are greatly mistaken. It’s a doll , and most girls know the diffrence between a real girl and a doll. I am curious about what would be put inside box with the doll , chemo bag ? hosptial clothes? I am not tryin to make fun but think about it , Are you kids ACTAULLY gonna play poor sick barbie in the hospital?
Posted by: robin taylor | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 2:17 pm
You gusy saying these”negative” comments are disgusting , bad , ingnorant are ignorant yourselves. I am trying to understang your point of view but understand others point of view too. Barbie makes so many dolls , they have made celebs ones like Liz Taylor and Aishwarya Rai , made doctors , nurses ,etc. Why have they made them? Because these are the kinds of dolls they can sell. If they make Barbies who has lost hir due to cancer , most people would be acatully disgusted by it. Mattel should only make it for the people who are asking for it , not put it on the markets. Understand from a corporation’s point of view before accsuing people of being ignorant and disgusting. Some families might need this doll to help them, but if these women running this campigan want this to happen to badly , why not pay Mattel to make a custom doll? They do make custom dolls if you pay them. These people are kinda demanding this doll be made , not asking which is wrong.
Posted by: Molly Schiler | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 2:32 pm
Not sure if this was mentioned or not, but You can make your own custom Barbie-like doll. I am a doll maker/ doll customizer. Volks/Dolfie and Obitsu make doll bodies and heads similar to barbie. I prefer Obitsu….you order the body that you want and the head that you want. You can get the heads unrooted (without hair). Since they also offer more child-like bodies along with the more mature bodies, these would be great for a young girl to relate to. some of the heads are closed eyed meaning that you would have to paint the eyes on like Barbies. Some of the heads have eye pockets and can hold plastic realistic eyes like the Liv dolls. Instead of trying to get mattel to make the “perfect” barbie for these young girls, why not customize your own…you can always find an artistic friend to help you paint her if you can not! the prices for these are comparable to Barbies and other fashion dolls.
Posted by: raspberrykin | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 2:34 pm
What’s next, a Herpies Barbie doll? How about Leprosy Barbie with patches of skin missing?
Posted by: FFS | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 2:58 pm
you go little one
i am with you 100%
Posted by: Helen Coleman | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 3:45 pm
Not only do I think this is a great idea, but I think they should come out with a line of wigs for the doll and the kids. I am a hairdresser who donates client’s hair, when it is long enough to locks of love. There needs to be an affordable line of childrens and adult wigs made available to these people affected my this ruthless disease. They need to be affordable as well. I would love to be a part of something like this. I have friends and family going through this and I have had a few that lost their battles. If you can bring a smile to their faces it makes a difference! :)
Posted by: Barbara | January 13, 2012 January 13, 2012, 5:46 pm
Like i said from the start everyone is entitled to their opinion, it its IGNORANCE when all you are talking about is matel being a business, and not even exploring the consumer side of it, or what these children and families go through, or the fact that this barbie shold come with a chemo bag!!!…I dont give two craps about the business side of it, and I only posted earlier in response to some peoples rude comments…To the two woman above who think no one will buy it because it will be scary, or whos gonna play sick with it~ They make bald baby dolls, and not one small child would be scared of that, but a bald Barbie is just too much??? ANd children play doctor all the time, so it would be different with this toy?? And this doll can be played with how ever anyone wants to play with it, like a regular barbie, not lying in a hospital bed…ITS a Statement that is trying to be made, and I think the point is being missed by some… Why should i have to special order a doll??? whats that saying to children who have cancer, or dont??? That this doll is not good enough because it is bald, and they wont sell it in the stores??? They should be given the option to make this doll, and whatever, make money off of it, but sell it in the stores, and if you choose to buy one do so, if you choose to not like it DONT buy one, but children are children and if taught why the Barbie is Bald and special wold probably play with it…And making comments about A Herpes doll, is a negative comment as well, so i guess that’s just ok to mock something serious as CANCER…
Posted by: Megs | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 8:11 am
it has to start some place …..you know there was a time when people like my son could not eat in some places but then one by one people start to say this is nt right …..start small change our world alittle at a time …..why not stand by it …I live a life of hope not just for me not just for my kids but for everyone,,,trust me I DO SEE A LOT OF NO ONE GIVES A CRAP….but then there are thoses momments at people or just a person says this could be better and they make it better and little girls do shave they’r own dolls head..but to walk it to a store and buy doll that made to be just like you ,really race should not be an issue unless a child is being taught that it is ….so maybe it start with one style who says it cant become more……
Posted by: Teresa | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 1:17 pm
To Meg , you cannot bully corportations/people into making this doll. It is sheer ingorance for a person to think Mattel shoud be doing tthis. It’s not showing kindess towards cancer paitents if Mattel is being bullied or pressured into it. Since when do we live in a world where people who have serious illnesses are enitled to whatever they want? And celebrities and big corportations should give into them? Apparently people like you think we live in a world where certain indivduals can do whatever they want and bully others by forcing or pressruing them to do this. If this doll fails , it’s Mattel who suffers , not these little girls. Is it really important to have a doll like this? Is it the end for them world if this doll does not get made? According to you it apparently is.
Posted by: ryan | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 2:08 pm
Who would buy this doll? It looks freaky and sickly( why is a sick Barbie smiling and wearing full makeup?).Babies are usaully bald or have little hair. Barbie looks like a woman in her 20′s or 30′ , so why are you comparing a baby doll with 20 or 30 year old Barbie? The comparassion is silly and doesn’t make any sense and neither do you. You just contradicted yourself when you said everyone is entiled to their opnion and then bashed all those negative comments. It’s pure ignorance when somone doesn’t want to see both sides of it but rather be one sided about the issue.
Posted by: taylor armadragon | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 2:19 pm
For those saying people wouldn’t buy it. You also are not a big business. I know if they make one of these bald barbies I will be buying one, in fact my entire family will be purchasing at least one per household so that’s 5 sold right there including myself, If they want more then one that’s even more sold. Also you say people will be afraid of it? The rising number on the facebook page says they won’t be. you don’t know how people will react to this doll at all. You just make assumptions about how you -think- people will react.
I also don’t see them pressuring or bullying Mattel either. I see a bunch of people expressing a want for a product, the company is the one not providing the product which is a loss of revenue. Dolls are used all the time to help people cope with things. They provide a great deal of relief to people and can often make them feel like they aren’t alone, because someone -MADE- that doll…means there are more out there like you buying this doll. With little kids it’s “Hey see Bald barbie isn’t any less pretty then the other Barbies, and it -will- change their views of real people. Everything influences children don’t assume they don’t.
As for the custom Barbie idea, I have yet to see that thing come off of ‘temporarily out of stock’ and even if it wasn’t temp out, It’s likely not that custom. You can probably pick a hair color, and some clothes but that’s about it. There’s likely nothing truly custom about the ‘custom’ barbies.
Posted by: Seiena | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 4:29 pm
Like someone has rightly said we now live in a society where we demand things of others when it’s not our place to . Why are we making a HUGE issue out of this? It’s a doll. Next thing you know these children with cancer will be asking for others to pay for their college tution too. No one should be forced to do these charity things. It’s not charity if you are being forced to help them. All of you should be ashamed of yourselves. If y’all feel so strongly about why don’t you pitch in your cash and pay them personally to make the doll? It’s expensive but do it if you think it’s a worthwhile cause . Anything for the children right? And no , it’s not only hair it’s the enitre doll. I have a freind who got a custom doll made for her , it’s a doll who was made to look like her. So anything is possible.
Posted by: Michelle Sawyer | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 5:08 pm
An ill barbie doll? No that’s terrible. I would never buy an cancer-stricken doll.
Posted by: georgie henry | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 5:10 pm
The support could be awesome for girls suffering from loss due to chemo. If part of the retail price went to St. Jude’s, Mattel would not only come out looking like they have compassion – look at the tax break they could get. They’re not going to lose anything no matter which way you look at it. You know the collector’s are going to grab them off the shelf before the kids suffering from this horrible disease ever get a chance to see that they are on there!
Posted by: LANelson | January 14, 2012 January 14, 2012, 9:18 pm
It was a great idea and it’s really a big support for those people suffering from cancer. Being bald is not ugly. But being beautiful is when we’re able to help other people by simply buying and patronizing this stuff not only for our own good but especially for the cancer patients.
Posted by: Maria Corazon | January 17, 2012 January 17, 2012, 11:08 pm
It was a great idea and it really helps a lot for those cancer patients. I think it’s empathizing the condition of cancer patients. It;s not easy to be bald but what’s good on this barbie product was that it simply states that being beautiful doesn’t reflect on physical aspects. But on what’s in inside.
Posted by: Maria Corazon | January 17, 2012 January 17, 2012, 11:28 pm
I think making a bald Barbie. Would be a great thing for children who suffer from different issues. Such as cancer, alopecia areata. Etc. whatever causes one to lose there hair. It would give one self esteem. To see Barbie as being bald and still beautiful.
Posted by: Melissa | January 18, 2012 January 18, 2012, 9:55 am
My daughter was 15 when she was diagnosed with AML Leukemia. In one year she endured over 6 rounds of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. Her hair was half way down her back when she was first diagnosed and the first thing she said when the doctor told us they would have to start chemotherapy to help save her life was “am I going to lose my hair”? She was out of the playing with Barbie stage but I think a doll with no hair is a wonderful idea. I think even though Andrea was out of the doll stage but she would have loved to have a doll just to look at for her to see she was not the only one going through this. Losing her hair was devastating to her. Andrea lost her battle with cancer 5 days before her 16th birthday in 1994. I think the bald Barbie would be such an inspiration to the children going through this horrible experience no matter what age.
Posted by: Debbie | January 28, 2012 January 28, 2012, 11:37 am