Debbie the Elegant Doll

Name: Debbie the Elegant Doll

Made by and When: Diploma Distributors, Inc., 1960s

Material: Vinyl

Marks: (Head) Hong Kong; (Lower back of the bottle) NZ PROV PAT 149897

Height: 11 inches

Hair, Eyes, Mouth: Black-rooted bubble cut hairstyle, side-glancing painted brown eyes with rooted upper eyelashes, closed mouth with dark lip color

Clothes: Full-length white dress with snap closure in the back, faux pearl necklace; the dress may or may not be original to the doll. Dolls dressed as a bride were made.

Other: Debbie the Elegant Doll is a 1960s Barbie clone and novelty doll. The torso and leg area are a bottle that is shaped like a woman’s body. There are no legs. Designed to dispense lotion or dusting powder, according to another Debbie the Elegant Doll’s box, “this beauty bath doll originally [contained] 3 oz of the finest imported dusting powder.” The bottom of the bottle has a cap. Made in New Zealand, another doll’s box indicates Debbie the Elegant Doll was distributed throughout USA by Diploma Distributors Inc Pier 39 Foreign Trade Zone No 9 Honolulu Hawaii 96817. Black and white versions of Debbie the Elegant doll were made; however, Black versions are quite rare.

Gallery (Photos are courtesy of Lisa Sheets whose website link is on the Patrons page.)

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