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Mattel's Barbie turns 40
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March 9, 1999: 12:28 p.m. ET
No slowing down for Mattel's well-known doll with almost $2B in sales
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New York (CNNfn) - Mattel Inc. calls her everything from a successful business woman to a member of a rock band to a World Cup soccer player.
She, of course, is Barbie, and after decades of various incarnations, she turned 40 on Tuesday.
While Barbie certainly has changed with the times, the doll who boasts sales of nearly $2 billion a year for Mattel (MAT), shows few signs of slowing her ever-evolving pace. Barbie, created in 1959 during the Eisenhower administration, now comes with Barbie software, allowing girls to "personalize" their dolls.
Looking ahead, Mattel will release a Butterfly Art Barbie, with a butterfly tattoo on her stomach.
While Barbie's makers have been criticized by those who say her image is unattainable for most girls, those fears didn't appear evident Tuesday morning when a Barbie model rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
Mattel shares were up 1/4 to 24-1/4 in early afternoon trading. 
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Mattel
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