Barbie was launched in 1959, and we all know how that went. Part of what made her so successful for her creators, Mattel, was the razor-razorblade approach to marketing. This approach, usually misattributed to Gillette, is the practice of selling an item at low cost in order to sell further related goods. The first Barbie doll retailed at $3. This doesn’t sound like a bargain when you consider this would be around $30 today, but relative to other toys at the time it was well priced — Mr Potato Head was $1 and you had to supply the potato!

Barbie came dressed just in a swimsuit, so children would of course want another outfit for her and these were sold separately at $1-$5. Children who owned one Barbie could potentially be customers who would buy the latest fashions for her for years.

Other toy companies wanted to replicate the success of Barbie, and the big question was would this approach work for boys’ toys too?

Somebody working on the answer to this question was Stanley Weston, a Manhattan licensing agent. It’s believed that he had already been considering the potential of a television tie-in toy inspired by the show The Lieutenant, a drama about the US Marine Corps, when Elliott Handler of Mattel discussed the razor-razorblade marketing strategy with him. Weston had the idea for a 12” military doll that would have uniforms, weapons and other accessories to go along with it.

The origin of this idea is controversial though, as it’s not entirely attributed to Weston. It was often reported that the idea became more fully formed for him after he spoke to toy designer Lawrence Reiner at a toy fair. Weston and his family maintain that he was the person who thought the toy should be military themed, but have acknowledged that Reiner was the person to suggest that the doll should be articulated and poseable.

Reiner’s family see his role as bigger than that, and state that he had suggested a military doll to his employer, Ideal, but was rejected. Reiner then presented the idea to Weston, and was a silent partner when he approached Hasbro. Reiner wrote a letter to himself on 12th April 1963, detailing what he’d discussed with Weston:

“A 10-inch boy doll to be dressed in combat outfit. This doll to have movable arms and hands in order to hold a rifle and/or other combat weapons.”

Whatever the level of involvement of each man, the idea of a doll for boys at this time was unthinkable. When Weston approached the chief executive officer of Hasbro, Merrill Hassenfeld, he was promptly turned down. Habsro were not in the doll business, especially not for boys.

Don Levine, the company’s head of research and development, saw potential in the idea. When Hassenfeld went on holiday Levine spent two weeks creating models of Weston’s character, complete with miniature uniforms. With the prototype finished Levine showed the concept to Hassenfeld, who now loved the idea. Weston was offered $50,000 and 1% royalties, or a flat fee of $100,000. He took the latter.

There was still some nervousness at Hasbro, about a doll for boys, particularly as it would be an expensive endeavour to produce all of the many accessories to go along with him. Bankruptcy was a possibility if the idea didn’t succeed. It was very important that this toy was never referred to as a doll. He was articulated, a ‘moveable fighting man.’ He was an ‘action figure.’

An entirely new concept in toys, the action figure, had been born.

It bears noting that although Hasbro’s toy is ostensibly the first action figure, there are oddities in toy history. Notably, Swiss company Bucherer & Cie released a range of articulated dolls in the 1920s, many made for export, with up to two thirds of production ending up in the USA. The patented metal ball jointed bodies ranged in height from 6” to 9.5” and came with composition heads. A whole range of more than 150 characters were produced, from famous characters such as Charlie Chaplin and Amelia Earhart to generic figures such as cowboys and farmhands. However, they were still very much dolls, with the 1927 catalogue advertising them as ‘the wonderful acrobatic doll.’ The firm produced these high quality toys up until 1931. Today they are barely remembered. What would be the fate of Hasbro’s new toy?

Bucherer et Cie figure (from Bamfords Auctioneers

Decisions were made about how the action figure could be made to appeal to boys, to be different to a doll. Barbie’s boyfriend, Ken, was made of smooth plastic. The action figure would require a lot of rivets for the points of articulation, and these would stay exposed, giving it an entirely different look. He’d have a scar on his face, not only because it made him tough, but to prevent knock offs detracting from the brand. It’s not possible to trademark the human form, but it is possible to trademark a distinct human form. Most importantly, he’d need a name. Inspiration was taken from the Robert Mitchum film, The Story of GI Joe. Levine believed GI Joe was the perfect ‘everyman’ title.

GI Joe was released in 1964 and 16 million units were sold by the end of the year. Hasbro had done it.

How razors and Barbie made way for the invention of action figures

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