Madame Alexander: The HistoryThe Madame Alexander Doll Company had its humble beginnings in the ghettos of Brooklyn. Born of Russian emigre' parents, Beatrice Alexander grew up in an apartment over her father's doll shop and hospital. Her parents, as with other emigres of the times, were determined that Beatrice and her sisters would succeed in this land of opportunity. Beatrice saw the affluent lifestyles of her father's customers and was determined to better herself, to rise above what she'd been born into. This drive to succeed stayed with her all her life and led her to constantly push the limits of what she, and ultimately her doll company, could do.
When WW1 threatened to close her family's doll shop, Beatrice created a Red Cross Nurse doll made of cloth. She and her sisters produced the doll in her parent's kitchen. It was a big success. She then created a cloth baby doll, which also became popular. In 1923, with $1600 in hand, Beatrice started what became the Alexander Doll Company. She hired neighbors to help with cloth doll production. A studio in Manhattan became the new home of the company. Influenced by the Lenci Dolls of Italy, she began creating molded cloth doll faces. She was an admirer of the Lenci Dolls creator Elena Scavini and may have taken on the name "Madame" Alexander because of Elena Scavini's tendency to call herself "Madame Lenci". Beatrice liked the aura of nobility and elegance inherent in such a title and adopted "Madame" as her own. At that point in history, it was highly unusual to see a woman work outside the home, much less run a company. Beatrice was determined to be a responsible businesswoman and make a quality product. She was not going to be pushed around and taken advantage of simply by virtue of her gender. She set high standards for herself and others, winning the respect of shopowners and bankers she did business with. In the mid-1920s, Madame's husband Philip took over the day-to-day operations of the company. After moving to a space with a storefront and factory Madame began buying composition bodies, designing elaborate doll costumes and accessories for them. FAO Schwarz was one of Beatrice's first customers, placing an order for her cloth dolls in 1923. They remain one of the company's oldest customers. The Great Depression came along in 1929. Millions of unemployed people had to feed their families, dolls were a luxury. How was the company to survive? Once again, Madame created a cloth doll. Based on a favored child's story, Madame's Alice in Wonderland had raised felt features and her face was hand-painted in oils. In 1933 Paramount Pictures released an Alice in Wonderland movie starring several big Hollywood names. The Alice cloth doll was re-released also, providing the movie fans with a souvenir. Madame had begun a trend now very common: merchandise tied into movies.Little did she know how it would evolve over the years. 1933 also saw the release of a movie version of the Little Women. It was a huge hit, as were Madame's cloth dolls of the March family sisters. At the same time, the company produced in composition Disney's Three Pigs. Disney and the company are still business partners today. The mid-1930s also saw the birth of another doll phenomenon when Madame created a line of dolls based on the Dionne quintuplets. The babies were an international sensation, and Madame capitalized on that with dolls in a variety of mediums and sizes. Madame even based dolls on her own family. The Wendy Ann face was named after her granddaughter. The William face was named after grandson William Birnbaum. In 1936 Madame read Gone With The Wind and was fascinated. It took her very little time to create a doll based on Scarlett, long before an actress was cast to play her. There is an undeniable similiarity between doll and actress. Dolls from Gone With The Wind characters are still carried in the Alexander line. Madame's next obsession was with Britain's Princess Elizabeth. Her face mold was introduced in 1937, when the Princess was 11. The 1940s saw the creation of more dolls based on celebrities such as Sonja Henie. One of the first-ever walking dolls was introduced by the company. A line of elaborately costumed dolls began in 1946. The Portrait Series continues to be elaborate, and popular even today. Also in the 1940s Madame based a doll on Margaret O'Brien, a popular child actress of the time. What became known as the "Margaret" face was produced in a new medium-plastic. The 1950s, for the company and America both, were a time of growth and profit. The baby-boomer generation began, which meant there were many girls born who were in need of high quality, American-made dolls. It was during the '50s that Madame won four awards from the New York Fashion Academy for her devotion to quality, style and detail in her doll fashion designs. 1953 saw Princess Elizabeth crowned as Queen of England. Madame created a set of 36 dolls representative of the royals and others involved in the coronation. As always, Madame insisted on historical accuracy for the costumes, and did the research and design herself. The end result was so realistic that CBS used the dolls in their reenactment of the coronation ceremony. Alexanderkins made their appearance in the '50s. They are still produced today in the Storybook, International and Americana collections. Then, as now, they were produced in hard plastic. Cissy debuted in 1955. She wore high heels and had a jointed, curvaceous body (eat your heart out, Barbie-she was the first true fashion doll). Cissy continues to reflect fashion trends and good taste today. The 1960s saw a time of turbulence for both the company and America. War protests divided the country. Madame's husband died and then Madame had to depend on her son-in-law and grandson to help run the company. It was difficult to find a doll who would maintain its popularity through the changing times. Several were tried and discarded: Gidget, That Girl, and Brenda Starr came and went without being a hit. Even so, Madame was honored for her dolls during the 60s. The Smithsonian put two dolls on display, and the United Nations honored Madame for her International Dolls. The Madame Alexander Doll Club was founded. To celebrate the Bicentennial, the company introduced the First Ladies series. Their gowns were careful reproductions of the Inaugural gowns worn by each first lady. Six sets were created, none more recently than 1990. By the 1980s, the typical recipient of an Alexander doll was not a young girl being treated by her grandmother. Adult collectors were buying the dolls left and right, creating an unexpected scarcity. Wherever Madame made a personal appearance, pandemonium ensued. The introduction of the first store-exclusive doll in 1980 carried the company's popularity through that decade, as other stores then were able to procure their own exclusives. They were also made for special events. In 1988, Madame at the age of 93 sold the company to private investors. She'd been hopeful that her great-granddaughter would step in the run the company, but it just didn't happen. Madame retired to Florida and in 1990 passed away. The company lived on without her. The new owners produced porcelain dolls, and added dolls by German artist Hildegard Gunzel to the collection. American artist Robin Woods also designed a line of play dolls for the company. Unfortunately, however, in the long run the new owners were unable to maintain the success Madame had led the company to. In 1995 the company was sold again. Ten years later, the company is still doing well under the management brought in by the new owners in 1995. Quality baby dolls are made for little girls to play with, which was Madame's original vision for the company. Collectors of all ages are enjoying the large selection of dolls dressed in beautiful costumes. Many dolls are handed down through families, from mother to daughter, to granddaughter. In 1998 the company's 75th anniversary was the occasion of a reissue of some of the company's most popular dolls, the Dionne Quintuplets, along with some very glamorous Anniversary dolls. Madame's legacy lives on in the quality and beauty of the dolls produced under her name. The innovations she brought to the doll world will not be forgotten as long as there are dolls and people who love them. Sources and Resources:
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