![]() ![]() Hasbro heavily marketed these dolls throughout the 80's, with a 13-episode television series being produced in 1988, and a balloon for the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade being created during that era. Around the same time, a "Baby" Raggedy Ann was produced with printed eyes and a flatter body, with matching baby clothes to boot. These dolls are notable for being the first of its kind to be machine washable, as previous dolls did not tend to fare well in the washing machine due to the high concentration of stuffing and would "explode" under pressure. The bright red yarn hair of Knickerbocker's second design was also kept. However, the doll's black safety eyes are slightly bigger, the eyebrows are thinner and shifted downwards, and the eyelashes are less prominent. Their first design was almost identical to that of Knickerbocker's from the 60's, featuring a large nose, wide smile, and the signature dots between the eyes and nose. Potato Head fame, and they've maintained their control over the dolls for the past four decades. In 1983, the rights to the Raggedy Ann dolls were bought by children's toy behemoth Hasbro of My Little Pony and Mr. A commercial produced during this time period also features an animated version of this doll, voiced by actress Didi Conn, who also voiced Raggedy Ann in the aforementioned 1977 movie. A variant of this design produced to coincide with the 1977 Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure film also exists, with alternate fabric for Ann and Andy's clothes to match their designs in the movie. Beyond the face, the doll's hair is now a much brighter value of red, and the body itself is longer than the previous design. The two dots between the eyes and nose are also much smaller. ![]() Additionally, the eyes are smaller, with the black safety eyes taking up most of the white in the eyes, and the eyebrows are thinner and less angular. ![]() In many ways, these dolls more closely resemble Johnny Gruelle's illustrations in the 20's books, with a longer face, a longer nose, and a softer, curved smile with no blush. Dolls in this style were available in a wide range of sizes, from 4" to nearly 5 feet.Ī new design of the Knickerbocker Raggedy Ann dolls began production in the 1970s. The dolls also sported paper tags, some featuring heart designs, while others featured a photo of Raggedy Ann framed in a traditional picture frame. Later dolls would remove the "Joy of a Toy" tagline. Dolls from this era have a tag sewn to their apron with Knickerbocker's "Joy of a Toy" tagline printed on it, along with the name of the doll and the address to Knickerbocker's headquarters in Middlesex, New Jersey. These dolls feature a design similar to that of Georgene's early dolls, with a large nose, crimson red yarn, a wide smile, angular eyebrows, and two prominent dots on between the eyes and nose, with the iconic "I Love You" heart printed onto their chest. Undoubtedly the most well known of the Raggedy Ann dolls thus far, the first variant of Knickerbocker's Raggedy Ann dolls began production in 1963, the year Georgene Novelties' license to the character expired. ![]()
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