Mattel 1971

MATTEL, INC.

Harold "Matt" Matson, Ruth Handler, and Elliot Handler founded Mattel as Mattel Creations in January 1945 in a garage. The company began selling picture frames, and later dollhouse furniture out of sediments from those frames. Matson sold his share and stake to the Handlers due to poor health the following year, i.e., in 1946, which Handler's wife, Ruth took over. In 1947, the company had its first hit toy, a ukulele called "Uke-A-Doodle".

The company was incorporated in 1948 in Hawthorne, California. In 1950, the Magic 8-Ball was invented by Albert C. Carter and Abe Bookman; the toy is now owned by Mattel. Mattel started advertising on TV when it became the first sponsor of the Mickey Mouse Club TV series. 1957 saw the release of the Fisher-Price Corn Popper and the Xylophone. Mattel ultimately acquired Fisher-Price on August 20, 1993. The Barbie doll debuted on March 9, 1959, going on to become the company's best-selling toy in history. In 1960, Mattel introduced Chatty Cathy, a talking doll that was voiced by June Foray and revolutionized the toy industry, leading to pull-string talking dolls and toys flooding the market throughout the 1960s and 1970s. In 1961, Mattel introduced the Ken doll. The company went public in 1960, and the New York Stock Exchange listed them in 1963. Mattel also acquired several like-minded companies during the 1960s.

The original Barbie Dreamhouse appeared in 1962 and was made with cardboard and paper. In 1965, the company built on its success with the Chatty Cathy doll to introduce the See 'n Say talking toy, spawning a line of products. That year also saw the release of Astronaut Barbie, the first of many space-themed Barbies. Barbie travelled to the moon 4 years before Neil Armstrong. In 1967, Mattel released Major Matt Mason, another toy astronaut.

On May 18, 1968, Hot Wheels was released to the market. Hot Wheels was invented by a team of Mattel inventors, which included a rocket scientist and a car designer. That year also saw another doll release, this time, Christie, Barbie's friend and the first Black doll, which in the following years and decades would spawn an endless line of Barbie-themed and branded family and friends. In 1969, Mattel changed their Mattel Creations and the "Mattel, Inc. – Toymakers" marketing brands to just Mattel and launched the iconic "red sun" logo with the Mattel wordmark in all capitals for better identity. In 1970, Hot Wheels forged a sponsorship agreement with Don “The Snake” Prudhomme and Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen. In addition to other marketing measures, the two racers’ cars, a yellow Barracuda and a red Duster were reproduced as Hot Wheels toys.

The card game Uno (now stylized as UNO) was invented by Merle Robbins that same year, i.e., 1970, and got acquired by Mattel more than 2½ decades later, i.e., in 1996.

Mattel purchased The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1971 for $40 million from the Feld family, whom Mattel kept as management. Mattel sold the circus corporation by December 1973, despite its profit contributions, as Mattel showed a $29.9 million loss in 1972.

In 1974, an investigation found Mattel guilty of issuing false and misleading financial reports, which lead to the banishing of Elliot and Ruth Handler from their own company.