The original Barbie, based on a German doll named Lilli, was sold as a collector’s item for adults only. When Mattel purchased patent rights to Lilli, the company instructed its designer to make her look less like a “German street walker.”

http://www.salon.com/life/feature/1997/11/26facts.html

http://www.salon.com/life/feature/1997/11/26harlot.html

from here:

http://randazza.wordpress.com/2009/10/30/mattel-finally-learns-how-to-chill/

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