Ladies, meet Oreo Fun Barbie. To quote Adam Sandler in that hilarious Saturday Night Live sketch – “Who were the ad wizards that came up with this one?” Learn more in Wikipedia’s exhaustive Barbie entry.
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I gotta say first that i’m glad i stumbled on to your site….I’s a wonderful read and i will def. be a frequent visitor. About today’s Blog entry, i had never even heard of Oreo Barbie..but i damn sure wouldn’t have bought it either.
i’m not sure what’s wrong with the oreo barbie…but i know something is wrong, dammit
i think i am just slow today.
I am so grateful I found this site!!!! Plus, I gotta support my 305 folks, so you are Family gurl! As far as Oreo Barbie- I would most definitely buy her cuz we the same complexion! However they could’ve been more subtle with the title… c’mon “oreo”?!?! That’s Damn near racist! What next “Saltine’s” Barbie??
Random thought: Remember the Kenya Dolls that came in different shades of skin color?!?! They should bring that back!
The first of Barbie’s black friends, “Colored Francie,” debuted in 1967, but racial tensions quickly caused this doll to be discontinued. The first African-American Barbie, “Black Barbie,” appeared thirteen years later.
“Colored Francie” ain’t that about a XXXXX!!!!
Julia please let me know if you have this one and please post a pic, I need to see her….
Need oxygen…cannot breeve!!! BWAHAHAHAHA!!!
Believe it or not, I COLLECT Black Barbies and I have never seen this one!! I SOOO have to find her now! I’ll let you know if I do.
Jersey…I don’t have her!!! She’s a hard one to find! The oldest one I have is a Beverly Johnson doll…although she is not Barbie. My oldest Barbie is actually the first African Barbie Mattel created for their Barbies of The World Collection. That’s when I started.
I wish I knew the Kenya dolls. I’ve never seen them! When I was little, I had like seven white Barbies and one black Barbie. But my black Barbie wasn’t even legit, she was from Venezuela and I want to say her name was Rosita. I remember giving her a terrible haircut when I was maybe eight years old, and never wanting to play with her after that. Ha!
In Mattel’s defense, they also made a white Oreo Fun Barbie, you can find more information here.
Thanks to all of you for reading and posting! I saw that doll and I just HAD to say something, even if I’m coming several years too late.
Update: I went over to EBAY to check out the selling price for Oreo Barbie. The starting bid is $19.99. I will bid on her and let you guys know if I win her. She is a must-have for my collection now!
Julia! I love that you’re BUYING the doll. Ha! I also discovered that there’s Jello Fun Barbie. Apparently Mattel was trying to create a playtime/after school snack dynamic which is so sad and laughable for so many reasons. The food-related issues there are worth a much longer examination than I have energy to do!
i actually did have a kenya doll! my mom bought one in my shade and everything! lol @ the hair care products that came with it!
Being unaware of the term “Oreo” and its racial reference isn’t something that I knew about myself and I am African-American. It was a mistake that was corrected by the company when they pulled the doll. Actually, I have both the white and black Oreo dolls in their boxes and that’s where they’ll stay until I auction them in about 15-20 years.
hi, i come from Kenya (EastAfrica) and I have never seen those Kenya dolls you are all talking about! I’ve checked in all the major toy stores in Nairobi and there are none, imagine that, an African city without African dolls!
I bought this Barbie at a Duane Reade on Atlantic Ave. in Bed Stuy, Brooklyn in 2002. Sadly I no longer have it. I think I paid $12 for it.
The best thing about the oreo doll is the fun you can have with it now in retrospect. Especially when you pair it with a white ken doll…nothing funnier!
Well, Mattel origianlly made the doll in both skin colours to please everyone. (I am not being racist. This was standard procedure. Please do not take that the wrong way as I am not trying to offend ANYBODY.) Now I admit the marketing was bad on this one…but if you can see where Mattel was originally coming from and trying to do…These dolls are highly sought after..
okay so I have free time and I am just reading this 2 years later ( sad but true)
Kenya wasn’t a africa doll just for afro American s ( as it became popular to name your child something ” African”
I remember that “Kenya’s hair looks great magic lotion makes it straight making Kenya look pretty makes me feel pretty too.”
she came with pretty curls until yyou put magic lotion on it and it was straight…. forever….. they could have warned me, mais non! I was so upset. I had the doll but not the one in my color they ran out my doll was a caremel color.
I also had no idea that oreo was not a widley used term. the things you learn when you read.
Soo… I am too am just stumbling across this. I was looking for something to send my cousins and I thought about the Kenya and Baby Kiana dolls that we got as children in our skin shades (we are buttermilk, milk chocolate, and dark chocolate). I wish I could locate my dolls today, sigh…
I just stumbled on this site, and I have one of these dolls – new in box, since 1997, when I bought it at the checkout counter at my local grocery store. How Mattel couldn’t have know the controversy they would create with a black version of this doll is beyond me! I knew it the second I saw it, and bought it to collect. That’s why it’s still in the box! If anyone seriously wants it, let me know. It truly is a collector’s item. Mattel recalled all units once they figured out their idiocy! Very few left in the world, especially still in the box, never opened. Serious inquiries only though…
I also have this doll. I am an African-American and I bought it because I thought it was cute. The “oreo” concept escaped me when I purchased it. I bought three dolls. One for my daughter, one for my niece and one for myself. I still have mine in the box. I will not part with her, unless there is someone out there who seriously would like to purchase it from me.
Get over it. It is not like it was called “Nigger Barbie”
Yea like number 23 said. I mean come on it was made in both black and white version. So white people could be pissed off because they’re calling them Oreo’s too. Right? So when did it become bad to call anyone an Oreo?
I had one of these dolls until my house burned. They are getting harder to find.
Hey! I am the inventor of Kenya, the doll from TYCO and UNEEDA. Tell me why you love her!
Black on the outside, white on the inside? I’ve been accused of that. By both black and white.
oreo barbie!!!!!!?????? that is not barbie at all but waet happind to mieg
Kenya dolls have been discontinued a while ago. My dad is the vice vice president kinda person for the company and they are coming out with a the same doll but more expanded in Jan/Feb.
I saw a street vendor in Downtown L.A. with unopened boxes of the Oreo Barbie on display last year. I snapped a photo however I didn’t have cash to purchase one. I think he was asking only $10.
When will the new Kenya doll be coming out. I would really like to buy some. Is there somewhere that I can go to get news about this?
I was a child born in 81 and I ALWAYS wanted a Kenya doll!!! I thought it was the most awesome thing to have a doll that actually looked like you (well almost)! Unfortunately I never did get one but I find them I will!! I now have two young daughters and is increasingly becoming harder to find African American (black) dolls that come in a range of colors and that are actual pretty! Most of the time you ha e to choose from a white blonde, a brunette or Hispanic doll if you want a lighter skinned doll or the Africa. American/ black doll (if available) and they are usually never as “pretty” as the other choices. With 2 daughters with obviously different skin tones, I try to teach them that “everyone” is beautiful….not just the long yellow haired dolls as my 5 year old likes to refer to them. But it is becoming a hard task when you cannot go into a store anywhere and find a doll that resembles you! The Kenya dollar were perfect for that! Celebrating you!!! I loved it and wish they were still around!
Hey I want to buy three kenya dolls for my nieces. I don’t want the new Barbie like dolls. I want the classic. Where can I buy?I want my niece to have all three shades. U can email me info. It is a must that I get them for her this Xmas….
Oh my gosh! I actually have this barbie. Got it sometime in the 90’s when I was younger. It’s NRFB.
It’s a joke saying that she’s black on the outside and white on the inside 🙁
I was wondering if you ever considered changing the page layout of your blog?
Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe
you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it better.
Youve got an awful lot of text for only having 1 or 2 images.
Maybe you could space it out better?
http://www.kenyasworld.com/