Midge (Barbie)

Margaret "Midge" Hadley Sherwood is a doll character in the Barbie line of toys by Mattel that was first released in 1963. She was marketed as Barbie's best friend.

Although created at the same time as Skipper, Midge was re-introduced in 1988 as part of the play line, though two vintage reproduction dolls were made specifically for collectors in 1993 and 1998. These dolls were typically redheaded, freckled and blue-eyed.

Also in the period, Wedding Day Midge was sold, with the groom being Allan Sherwood, who had been marketed as Midge's boyfriend in the vintage years. The two had three children named Ryan, Nikki and Cassandra; they also had twins who were never introduced. This was known as the Happy Family line and, in the set, Midge was sold "pregnant" with Nikki as a newborn baby. The Happy Family product became the subject of controversy when some parents disliked the "pregnant" Midge toy because they believed that Midge was too young to have children.

In 2013, Mattel decided to revamp Midge's history, reintroducing her as a best friend of Barbie's, but unmarried, without children and with no connection to Allan.

When Barbie debuted, she was the subject of a lot of criticism, some of which claimed Barbie was too mature-looking for children. Midge was the first same-size friend of Barbie and was created to oppose these controversies. She had a fuller, gentler face mold, although her body proportions were the same as Barbie's and they both stood at 11+1⁄2 inches (290 mm) tall. This allowed the two dolls to be able to share clothes and accessories. Her head mold was stamped "1958", the same as Barbie's. When Midge arrived, the markings on the straight leg body mold they shared changed to include both her and Barbie. Midge had shoulder-length hair that flipped at the ends. Buyers had an option of buying a doll with one of three different hair colors: red, blonde, or brunette. Her face was usually brushed with freckles. The dolls that were sold without freckles had a longer hairstyle and are now hard to find. Depending on the doll's hair color, the color of her two-piece swimming suit varied. If Midge had red hair, her swimsuit was yellow and orange; for blond hair, it was in two shades of blue, and if she was brunette, it was pink and red. The first vintage Midge dolls had a value of $175 MIB (Mint In Box) in 2007.

For the first two years, she had "straight legs" that could not bend at the knee. A rare Midge with teeth was sold the first year and is now sought after by collectors. One year later, in 1964, the dolls that were sold had slightly longer hair. Midge's boyfriend Allan arrived as well. Early in 1965, Wigs Wardrobe Midge was sold, and consisted of a Midge head with short molded hair and three wigs. This was the Midge counterpart of the Fashion Queen Barbie. Since she came with only a head, another doll had to provide for the body. In 1965, Midge with bendable legs was introduced. She had shorter "bobbed" hair, like the American Girl Barbie, with a blue headband. Her swimsuit was different as well, and was now one-piece and striped.

There was also a Japanese exclusive Midge only offered in Japan in the years 1963 and 1964. These dolls were similar to a fashion queen in that they had molded hair, but a very different face mold and more of a bouffant-shaped head.

From her introduction until 1967, Midge was marketed as Barbie's original best friend, but no dolls were sold for about 20 years until 1988, when California Dream Midge was sold as part of a beach line, which used the "Steffie" mold. The same "Steffie" mold was used for Cool Times Midge in 1989. In 1990, she began to use the "Diva" mold for All Stars Midge and The Beat Midge. In 1991, she was married to Allan (now spelled "Alan"). Before and after the Wedding Day Midge doll was sold, many Midge play line dolls were produced. Before Wedding Day Midge, Midge dolls still had freckles, but up until Hawaii Midge was sold in 1999, the dolls lacked freckles. Most of the dolls were red-haired with blue or green eyes, but some dolls were brunette. The most commonly used head mold for Midge in this period was the "Diva" mold, stamped 1985.