doll: Happy Family: Midge and Barbie

Mattel released Midge Hadley Sherwood, Barbie����_��s wholesome best friend, in 1963. Early commercials marketed Midge as a ����_�marvelous teenage doll,����_�_ who was ����_�thrilled with Barbie����_��s career as a teenage model.����_�_ As with many other dolls of the era, Mattel released sophisticated dresses and ensembles for Barbie and Midge that schooled girls in the art of high fashion, dressing well, and purchasing more. In 2003, Mattel released the Happy Family line, which included Midge, her husband, their children, and the grandparents. Midge was visibly pregnant����_��the doll had a removable magnetic womb that held a baby. Mattel intended for the Happy Family line to satisfy a desire for nurturing play and role playing. This iteration received significant criticism from the public and Walmart pulled the entire family from the shelves.