I can't believe what I just did

[Deb]

<sigh> I bought a Barbie doll today. I've never, ever bought a Barbie doll in my entire life and never thought that I would. I'm just not a Barbie kind of person, ya know. I was never a doll person even as a child and Barbies weren't of much interest to me.

And then I saw *her* today. In all her glory, wearing that famous green velvet dress that she made from window drapes that was sure to bring Mr. Butler to his knees with a proposal of marriage. Yes, it was Miss O'Hara herself.

Not just any Miss O'Hara..........this was Starlet and she was waiting at the top of the stairs for Rat in that famous classic, "Went With the Wind". (if you're starting to laugh already, you're giving away your age)

From one of the all time funniest pieces of comedy ever seen on television, it was Carol Burnett.

I was a kid when I first saw that sketch on the original show and still remember rolling on the floor laughing at "I saw it in the window and I just couldn't resist". It still just cracks me up every time I think about it. And that's why I bought a Barbie doll today.

Deb

[pin1056]

well i've never seen or even heard of 'went with the wind' but i sure do like that barbie doll

[Rhonda from the Bluegrass]

Wow, this is an amazing coincidence . . . I saw that exact old clip again just the other day. And, as it did many years ago, it had me rolling with laughter. Now that I know this doll is out there, I am wondering: do I have the willpower not to buy one myself? I am not a huge barbie fan either (although I do have some fantastic "barbies from around the world" and a couple of lovely Avon "Mrs. Albee" barbies), but gosh . . . this character really was a classic! Congrats on the great buy!

[Deb]

Rhonda, check at your local Big Lots. That's where I found her for about half the original price charged by Mattel.

I saw that exact old clip again just the other day. And, as it did many years ago, it had me rolling with laughter.

Search "Carol Burnett" on You Tube and you'll find all kinds of clips from her show, including "Went With the Wind". I firmly believe that next to Red Skelton, Carol Burnett was the funniest tv show ever.

The VERY, very, very best scene ever? Tim Conway and his story about siamese elephants joined at the trunk. I still can't watch it without laughing so hard that I have tears running down my cheeks. OMG, it's the funniest thing ever. Click

you want to see the short version. He actually held up that skit for over 5 minutes with his elephant stories.

**fsnork**

hehehehheheheheheheheheheheheheehe <gasp, snort> heheheheheheheheeheheeee

Deb

[lmgervais]

I remember the episode with the green curtain dress - it is a classic!

[havanaholly]

Ack! That had to be one of the BEST ever Carol Burnett sketches! DH doesn't know it yet, but he HAS to take me to Big Lots today!!! I succumbed & bought my very first Barbie when we spotted "USMC Master Sergeant Barbie" and whether it's thrift stores (Kwai Gon Jinn & Princess Leia; several from "Pocahontas" and a few others to remake, Jimmy Stewart in "It's a Wonderful Life" and James Dean from "Rebel Without a Cause") or resale/ discount stores (my beautiful African Barbies), or an antique mall (Rosie O'Donnell), I periodically have to buy one or two.

I also adore the Flava dolls. I really, really would like Dean to release at least one 1:6 kit...

[woodland_miniatures]

OMG, you've got me rolling on the floor remembering that sketch, and others with Tim Conway and Harvey Korman. Remember how hard Harvey had to work to not crack up over whatever Tim was up to? Yes, "Went With the Wind" was one of a kind! I'd seen that doll before and was rolling in the aisle with laughter in the store - probably got funny looks, but didn't care because it brought back such memories. Congratulations, Deb, for your first you got a GOOD one!

I also have a couple of Barbies around, undressed for fitting purposes. Sometimes I just HAVE to make an outfit for one or the other of them! And some years ago I had a positive passion for the Paradise Dolls patterns, really detailed reproductions of historical outfits (including "Miss Scarlett" from GWTW) - a link if you want to see some awesome patterns: www.paradisedolls.com I made up a bunch of them and never managed to keep any of them - they all went to friends and neighbors!

[havanaholly]

Thank you for that link, Mary! I'll head over there later for a long drool!

[Sherry]

I sure did like that show. Remember how she used to tweak her ear to say Hi to her mom? Who could not love someone like that, who was also sooo funny?

[havanaholly]

Now I'm wondering if Mattel ever did a "Rat" doll!

[Sherry]

Have you seen the new Disney princess dolls? Apparently my GD hasn't, because I know she'd be wanting them. But they are really pretty dolls with gorgeous costumes.

[KathieB]

Deb, she's wonderful and sure to bring a smile every time you look at her.

This reminds me of a Christmas years ago ... some friends met for breakfast every Friday morning and did a silly gift exchange with a spending limit of $2 and a theme. One year the theme was movies. One friend appropriated one of her daughter's Barbie dolls, glued a mini can of beans in one hand, and cut out the back of her skirt. The movie? "Gone with the Wind", of course!

[woodland_miniatures]

Oh, that is SO bad!!

[LLyn M.]

I did collect Barbies...funny, I hated them originally.Got my first at age 11 in 1961. I

do have some vintage Barbies,Skipper,Midge,Alan,Ken,etc and many vintage outfits.(Good ole E-bay)But the funniest one I ever saw was this exact Barbie with the

Curtain drapery dress!! I remember the Carol B. Show when she came wafting down the stairs.....we howled for days!!!!Thanks for another great laugh!!!

[Deb]

OMG, you've got me rolling on the floor remembering that sketch, and others with Tim Conway and Harvey Korman. Remember how hard Harvey had to work to not crack up over whatever Tim was up to?

Both Tim Conway and Harvey Corman ("It's Hedley....Hed-LEY!") are comic geniuses but when the two of them got together, magic happened. They brought out the best in each other. The Carol Burnett show was filmed in front of a studio audience and I always thought it would have been the ultimate in fun to see it live. I remember hearing the live show was at least twice as long as the tv show because they kept having to stop the cameras and let the cast regain control.

I

do have some vintage Barbies,Skipper,Midge,Alan,Ken,etc and many vintage outfits

Seeing the prices on those vintage Barbies makes me wish that I hadn't decapitated all mine as a child. LOL! This is the first I've ever bought for myself, but I had plenty of them as a child. For some reason, people just assumed that a Barbie doll was obligitory for little girls at that time. I had Skipper and Midge too, and for my 8th bday someone got me the first "Living Barbie" who had articulated wrists and ankles. Talking Barbies annoyed me because they never said anything interesting. :groucho: For some reason I never had any of the male dolls. I remember the only Barbie doll that I got to pick out for myself tho. It was my bday and Mother took me to the store, led me to the Barbie doll section and told me I could pick the one I wanted. I chose "Julia" because I thought she was a nicer person then the other dolls. I really wish that I still had her after seeing that they had brought her back a couple of years ago in the repro line.

My first Barbie was a brunette. I don't know much about Barbie history, but hadn't she been in production for a few years before they made her a blonde? I think mine came with a one piece swimsuit and high heels but I had a HUGE selection of clothes for her. My mother was a seamstress and while I didn't like Barbies, she sure did! At least she liked making clothes for them and I had some really unusual original designs in ball gowns. (Mom was crazy but she did have talent) I still find it weird that she dressed me like a puritan but my dolls got exotic and daring clothes. Talk about giving a kid some mixed signals!

The other current Barbie that I've actually considered buying is the Wicked Witch of the West. She may be green, but she's still a beautiful witch and I LOVE her outfit.

So for you Barbie fans, what did you find the most appealing about Barbies? Did you play with them and create lives and personalities for them or did you just collect them? Did they role play? Was it the doll or the clothes that you liked the most about them? I know you must have built houses for them! LOL In this group, that's a given. But what were you drawn to the most about them?

Deb

[woodland_miniatures]

Even as a child, for me it was the outfits for Barbie - a treat from my dad was to go to Fred Meyer's and shop for Barbie clothes. My mother was also a seamstress and so I also had a vast collection of beautiful, handmade outfits, wish I'd appreciated them more as a child. But believe me, when I came to be sewing them myself a few years ago, I had nothing but admiration for my mother. Those tiny set-in puffed sleeves, zippers, gathered skirts and all, are HARD!

Ahem, I also decapitated more than one Barbie - what IS it with that? :groucho:

[LLyn M.]

My first Barbie came as a set...a brunette Barbie with umpteen outfits.I was 10/11 that

Christmas and was kind of getting bored with dolls. I usually kept Barbie nude, and shut up in my closet.She looked sneaky to me with her heavily made up-side glancing eyes.I

thought she looked like Mata Hari..my imagination. I gave her to a little friend of my younger sisters when they were playing Barbies one day(I was 16) and Mary didn't have a doll. To my horror I saw her sticking out of the trash a few days later with only one arm and leg...Mary's wild brothers got her!! I was 41 when my only niece was born and

I became a Barbie fanatic..bought all the repros and went hunting for the real ones.I told

Kaitlyn she would someday get all my dolls.Both she and my sister rolled their eyes!! LOL!

Anyhow a nice wander down Memory Lane.Great topic!! :groucho:

[Deb]

Ahem, I also decapitated more than one Barbie - what IS it with that?

I dunno but it seems to be a common issue. Personally, I have a theory that its due to some latent hostility. There are a couple of things about Barbies that lead to major disappointments. Disappointment #1: I expected to grow up and have the human equivilent of Barbie's two inch bust and half inch waistline. Disappointment #2: Real boys didn't grow up and turn into Ken.

I usually kept Barbie nude, and shut up in my closet.

My mother (the aforementioned crazy person) was so inhibited that not even the dolls were allowed to be nude in our house. She told me that if she ever found my Barbies naked, she'd throw them in the trash and I'd get grounded. Mother and I had several moral disputes over Barbie. She caught me dancing my Barbies around one day (Skipper and Barbie were learning to ballroom dance) and she was horrified. She told me, "It's against our religion to dance!". I thought about it for a minute and solemnly replied, "My dolls are Methodist". <cackle> She saw no humor in that but it still cracks me up.

Deb

[Wolfie]

When I saw "Went with the Wind" I went to the bathroom many times in my jeans! LOL I also remember Dinah Shore playing Melanie and having Ms. Starlet slam the door in her face! And Rat? Oh how dasterdly he was! Oh I wish I had a video of that show!

[havanaholly]

Barbies came along after my time, and I resisted them until I found her in full USMC Master Sergeant's uniform (DS#1 was an active duty Marine at the time; his daddy was also a Marine).

[prariegurl]

Deb,

I have her, too! I haven't had a Barbie since I was a child, but I had to have this one! My friend knew I was looking for one and picked it up for my at the 50th anniversary convention in Washington about a month ago. She keeps me company in the office! I love her!

[justmesue]

I know the clip. Age showing. Congrats on the doll.

[what2craftnow]

OMG!!! Too funny! What a great find Deb! The Carol Burnett Show was absolutely the funniest show ever..Tim Conway's old man used to just crack me up <well, they ALL cracked me up, but I think the old man skits were my fav's>, and Mr. Tudball and Mrs. Wiggins...

I have searched high and low for a video of the skit where Tim Conway <as the old man,'course> has his head sticking thru a large painting of a barn - his head is sticking out the 2nd story barn door with smoke coming out and he's yelling "Fire, Fire..the barn's on ..FIRE"" :groucho:

Oh, how I miss that show....

[miniwendy]

LOL! That's one of the best Barbies I've ever seen!!

[tcmorrison]

I remember the Carol Burnett show being on TV, not old enough to appreciate it at the time. She is funny though and so is Tim Conway. I've seen bits and pieces over the years.

As for Barbies, DD#1 has almost 20 of them. She's getting too old for them (12) and DD#2 isn't quite old enough, though she thinks she is (4). I think I had the inexpensive versions when I was a kid. Not much money there, for several reasons, including there being 4 kids, though Mom and Dad both worked hard. And I'm sure that I decapitated the ones I did have.

Holly, GL doing a playscale house would be interesting. How about it, Dean?