American Girl

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American Girl (formerly Pleasant Company), a subsidiary of Mattel, is a company that manufacturers dolls, books, and magazines for children and young girls.

The company's flagship line is a collection of historical 18-inch dolls that have books and accessories. The fictional heroines--who each start their series around the age of nine and turn ten in the middle--live during important times in America's past, providing "girl-sized" views of significant events that helped shape the United States.

In addition to the historical collection, the company also offers a wide range of contemporary 18-inch dolls and accessories, called Just Like You dolls, Girl of the Year dolls, as well as the Bitty Baby line and Bitty Twins line.

History

In 1983, educator, writer and entrepreneur, Pleasant T. Rowland was looking for dolls to give her nieces for Christmas. Rowland found that the only dolls on the market were baby dolls, such as the Cabbage Patch Kids, and teen/adult dolls, such as Barbie. She could not find dolls that were supposed to represent preteen girls. That shopping experience, coupled with a visit to Colonial Williamsburg, inspired her to create the American Girl line of historical dolls and books.

In 1986 the first catalogs were sent out. They contained the first three dolls in the line: Kirsten Larson, Samantha Parkington, and Molly McIntire. These catalogs featured only the first three stories of each character's eventual six-book series, as well as their pajamas, beds and trunks. These dolls established the original format of the collections. The first dolls were designed by Götz in Germany; older dolls have tags that say "Made in West Germany." In the 1990s production was moved to Hungary for a year and then to China.

During the years 1986 through 1998, the company expanded, adding three more historical characters (Felicity Merriman, Addy Walker, and Josefina Montoya), as well as a contemporary magazine American Girl, followed by a line of contemporary 18-inch 'American Girl of Today' dolls and the 'Bitty Baby' collection for younger girls.

In 1998 Mattel, Inc. acquired The Pleasant Company. This raised concerns by some consumers since the American Girl brand was seen as an alternative to Barbie. Rowland, however, spoke emphatically about the two brands being able to co-exist happily together, as they meet the various needs of girls at different times in their development.

As announced at the time of the acquisition, Rowland retired as president of American Girl in 2000. In 2004, the name of the company changed from Pleasant Company to American Girl, to better reflect how consumers were naturally identifying with the company.

Since then, there have been some dramatic changes to the company. The layout of the catalogs changed, shifting to a greater emphasis on using the commercial web site for sales, and greater emphasis on the Just Like You Collections. Items from the historical collections began to be retired, many times with no warning.

In 2000, Kit Kittredge was added to the historical line. Evidence of the company's new management became apparent, as the layout of the catalogs no longer featured individual doll poses and parchment background schemes. In addition, new products were added more frequently, particularly in the 'American Girl of Today' lines, which soon lost the 'of' in the title. To save space for these new additions, at least one historical character and her collection was removed from each catalog, most often Felicity, and pictured in an introduction to the line noting that she could be found at the official website. The company began a line of Limited Edition modern dolls, each of which is produced for only one year. An eighth historical doll, Kaya, was added in 2002.

In 2003 American Girl teamed up with the Red Om film studio and Julia Roberts to create the first American Girl movie. The first "Best Friends" doll, Nellie O'Malley, was added to the historical collection as a movie tie-in. This new product line would continue in 2005 with a redesigned Felicity collection, second "Best Friend" doll (Elizabeth Cole) and movie, "Felicity: An American Girl Adventure", and Molly's English friend Emily and the movie "Molly: An American Girl on the Home Front" in 2006.

In 2005, the name of the "American Girl Today" line was changed to "Just Like You."

In 2007, two "American Girl Boutiques", smaller versions of the AG Places, appeared in Dallas, Texas and Atlanta, Georgia.

A ninth non-"Best Friends" line historical doll will be released in the fall of 2007. According to upcoming books on Amazon.com her name will be Julie and she will have a six book set available in August 2007.

The American Girls Collection dolls

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Kirsten, one of the first three American Girls.

The American Girls Collection is a brand of dolls and other items catered to girls' interest. The American Girl line includes nine cloth-bodied dolls, each character representing a particular period and region of U.S. history and dressed in clothing representative of the time, place and social background of the character.

Although the books are written for the seven-to-twelve-year-old market, they cover child labor, child abuse, poverty, racism, slavery, animal abuse, and war, among other topics. The tone is gentle so as to appeal to a middle-class school-aged girl. In the back of every book is a "Looking Back" section that talks about the historical setting the characters live in, each tied into the theme of the book (the introductory book introduces the time in history, the birthday story talks about childhood and growing up, etc.)

Short stories in small hardback books were published starting in 1999 that gave more insight into the characters, set either during or after the events of the six central books. Some of these were published in American Girl Magazine before being released as small hardcover books. Different "Looking Back" sections pertaining to the story were given (e.g., Addy's Summer Place talks about Cape Island in 1864; Kit's Home Run discusses baseball in 1934.) The last group of stories was published in 2003 and the company discontinued the single books in early 2006, before releasing a "Short Story Collection" for each character. Each book has five stories.

The first dolls in the American Girl/Historical line — Samantha, Kirsten, Molly — all share the same face mold. New face molds are noted with the individual dolls. Originally, the dolls were created with white muslin bodies. This was changed in 1991, in response to the low necklines of Felicity's gowns. Thus, earlier dolls are easily recognized and considered more collectible.

Each of the historical characters is given a historical year ending in 4, even though their stories roughly cover about two years each. The series more accurately spans a time from xxx4 to xxx6 (such as Felicity's covering 1774 to 1776); thus, two of the Best Friends books have different years on their books while being part of the same series. The "Best Friend" line of dolls - companions to the historical dolls - are set either during or after the events of her companion's series. Each of their books - one per doll - cover a different situation of the time that pertains to their story.

Kaya'aton'my, 1764

Kaya (pronounced KY-yah) is a Native American girl of the Nez Perce tribe. Kaya's full name is Kaya'aton'my, or "she who arranges rocks." Her story takes place in America's Northwest in 1764, before white settlers disturbed the Native American way of life in the west. She is the oldest doll chronologically, but is the most recently introduced historical doll.

Kaya was introduced in 2002, the same time that Felicity (temporarily) left the catalog. American Girl worked closely with the Nez Perce Native Americans to create Kaya. She is the only doll that does not smile with her mouth open, as baring one's teeth is considered offensive in Nez Perce people; no other doll shares her face mold. Her collection and books do not follow the trends set down by previous dolls, more accurately reflecting the history of life in the tribe. There are many Nez Perce words and phrases in her books, and a glossary in the back to define the words used. These words are spelled phonetically in the story to ease in pronunciation.

Felicity Merriman, 1774

Felicity Merriman was the first doll added to the American Girls Collection following the initial introduction of Kirsten, Samantha and Molly in 1986. Felicity is a colonial girl living in Williamsburg, Virginia who is stuck between Patriot and Loyalist viewpoints at the beginning of the American Revolution.

In 2002, American Girl started to take steps that pointed to the removal of Felicity from the American Girl catalogs. Felicity was taken out of new print catalogs. The last catalog to feature her included the note: "Attention Felicity fans! This is the last time you'll see Felicity in our catalog--from now on, she'll be featured exclusively at americangirl.com." In addition, about half of her existing product line was discontinued, including many accessories and outfits.

However, Felicity was re-launched in October 2005 with the release of her movie; many discontinued items were reintroduced, while other items were replaced with redesigned accessories. One such change is her so-called 'Meet dress.' Originally a rose print, it has been replaced with her former 'Traveling Gown'. The original Meet dress is now available separately while the Traveling Gown is now only available with the doll. Felicity's hair was originally a carrot-red, but has been changed to a more auburn shade. In connection to these changes, Felicity's books have been reillustrated.

Felicity: An American Girl Adventure was the second TV movie and aired on the WB on November 29 2005.

Elizabeth Cole, 1775

Elizabeth is Felicity's best friend, the daughter of a Loyalist family during the American Revolution. Her doll was introduced in Summer 2005. Her character is featured in the Felicity film.

Elizabeth had brown hair and brown eyes in the original illustrations. However, due to concerns that the dolls would resemble each other too much (also that the young actresses in the movie would look too much alike), she was created with blonde hair and blue eyes. The books have been reillustrated for the change.

She uses Josefina's face mold and is the only doll to have removable earrings. She has her own line of clothing and accessories that complement Felicity's line. Elizabeth has only one book called "Very Funny, Elizabeth" set in 1775; her Looking Back Section is about marriage. In contrast to Felicity, she is very shy.

Josefina Montoya, 1824

Josefina (HO-suh-FEE-nuh) Montoya lives in the New Mexico area during Spanish control. She and her sisters must face a new way of life after the death of their mother, which happens before the events in the stories. Josefina's family speaks Spanish, and so there are many Spanish words and phrases in her books and a glossary in the back to define the words used in the story; the beginning of each of her books tells the reader how to pronounce her name. Her books have also been translated into Spanish.

Josefina was the last doll introduced before the Mattel takeover. Josefina was the second of three dolls to have a cultural panel to assist her creation, the first being Addy and the third being Kaya. The Josefina doll was the first to use her face mold; Nellie, Elizabeth, Marisol and a Just Like You doll share her face mold.

Kirsten Larson, 1854

Kirsten Larson is a Swedish immigrant who lives in the Minnesota Territory and faces the hardships of adjusting to life as a pioneer in a new and unfamiliar country.

Kirsten is one of the first three dolls produced by American Girl. Unlike many of the dolls, Kirsten's books have maintained their original illustrations (with the exception of the covers).

Addy Walker, 1864

Aduke "Addy" Walker is a fugitive slave who escapes with her mother from North Carolina to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania during the American Civil War, after her master split up her family by selling her older brother and father to another plantation owner.

Currently the historical line's only African-American, Addy was the fifth doll to be added to the collection. She was the first non-white doll to be added to the historical line and was the first doll to have earrings. A new mold was created for this doll to give Addy more ethnically appropriate features, but a few Addy dolls have the original mold and tend to fetch high prices on the secondary market. Addy has a best friend, named Sarah.

The Addy Walker books were written by Connie Porter and originally illustrated by Melodye Rosales and Bradford Brown, but were redrawn by Dahl Taylor.

Samantha Parkington, 1904

Samantha is a wealthy orphan being raised by her grandmother in 1904 Mount Bedford, New York. Samantha learns the realities of her Edwardian world - from her life of luxury to the prejudices and difficulties faced by women and the lower classes.

One of the original three dolls, Samantha is one of the more popular dolls. Her books were written by three different authors, most notably Valerie Tripp, and were the first of the books to be published.

The first American Girl TV movie was produced about Samantha. It was called Samantha: An American Girl Holiday and it debuted November 23 2004 on the WB.

Nellie O'Malley, 1906

Nellie is Samantha's best friend, and also a poor Irish-American girl who has worked in factories and as a servant. After losing her parents to a flu epidemic, Nellie and her two sisters Bridget and Jenny are adopted by Samantha's aunt and uncle. Although this is a spoiler for the books and was originally treated as such, the release of her doll had the catalog proudly proclaim that she and Samantha become sisters.

Nellie's character was introduced in Samantha's original books, and was the first of the 'Best Friends' dolls to be introduced.

Nellie starred in "Samantha: An American Girl Holiday" on Thanksgiving 2004 by Kelsey Lewis.

Nellie has her own line of clothing and accessories. Like the other Best Friends dolls, Nellie has only one book. Entitled "Nellie's Promise", it is set in 1906; her looking back section is about adoption.

Kit Kittredge, 1934

Kit Kittredge (fully named Margaret Kittredge) is growing up in the early years of the Great Depression in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her family struggles to adjust to the realities of the economy after Kit's father loses his job. Although referred to as 'Kit' in almost all books and promotional material, Kit's full name is Margaret Mildred Kittredge. It should be noted that although the year 1934 appears on the cover of the book, 'Meet Kit' is actually set in 1932. The Kit books were illustrated by Walter Rane.

Kit was the first doll to have short hair and freckles. She debuted in 2000 as the seventh American Girl historical doll. Her favorite Baseball team is the Cincinnati Reds. Kit has a best friend, named Ruthie.

Molly McIntire, 1944

Molly's story is set during World War II. Her father is off caring for wounded soldiers in England. Molly is left with her mother and three siblings in Jefferson, Illinois, where she helps her family and loved ones to stay cheery during the war.

Molly was one of the original three dolls offered. While the company sells eyeglasses separately that fit any 18" American Girl doll, Molly is the only doll to be sold with them. Molly's hair is dark brown and comes in two braids, and her eyes are gray.

Molly: An American Girl on the Home Front is the third TV movie in the series, the first to air on the Disney Channel on November 26 2006. Throughout most of the books, Molly has two equal best friends, named Linda and Susan, but she gains a third in her birthday story, Emily.

Emily Bennett, 1944

Emily Bennett is an English girl who is unexpectedly sent to America to stay with the McIntires for two weeks in the story "Happy Birthday, Molly!". She is sent off with the promise to be a brave soldier for England. At first Molly thinks of Emily as snobby and prim, but slowly their bond begins to strengthen as they share their love for the English princesses and other girlish pursuits. Technically, she is not a "best friend" (Molly's best friends are Susan and Linda) and is advertised by American Girl as Molly's English friend instead.

She is the third doll in the "Best Friends" collection and was released September 5 2006 along with her collection. Emily and Molly are the stars of the third movie, which premiered Fall 2006.

Her book, "Brave Emily," is set during Molly's series in 1944. The "Looking Back" section covers children of the war, who were sent outside of Europe.

Julie Albright, 1974

Julie Albright is a young girl growing up in San Francisco in 1974, during a time of radical changes and ideas in America. She will be the first doll to have divorced parents.

Julie is the new historical doll scheduled to be released September 10, 2007. Her books, written by Megan McDonald, Robert Hunt, and Susan McAliley are available for pre-order on Amazon.com. American Girl has recently announced the arrival of Julie at [www.pleasantco.com] by displaying her six book series. She is the second doll to have her series have a break from the traditional titling pattern (Kaya was the first, as her tribe's history did not fit to the traditional pattern).

Ivy Ling, 1974

Ivy Ling is a Chinese American girl who also lives in San Francisco in 1974. She has a book titled "Good Luck, Ivy" written by Lisa Yee. She will debut with Julie, thus being the first "best friend" to be released with her friend at the same time. Ivy will appear in doll form with sideline products according to this article: http://publishersweekly.com/index.asp?layout=talkbackCommentsFull&talk_back_header_id=6446419&articleid=CA6451996

Just Like You dolls

Formerly known as the "American Girl of Today" and "American Girl Today" line, this style of doll was introduced in 1995. In December 2005, the name of the line was changed to the current name.

The "Just Like You" line of dolls has twenty-eight options (three have been retired), each with a unique combination of face mold, skin, hair and eye color. Many of the dolls use the original mold used for the American Girl/Historical line; some use the molds designed for Addy and Josefina, and one doll has a unique East Asian face. (There are currently no Just Like You dolls with Kaya's face mold.) This allows the owner to choose a combination that best resembles herself; dolls are not uniquely customized by the company. The doll comes dressed in a modern outfit that changes about every two years and currently includes a book with a music CD that promotes self-confidence. Previously, instead of the book and CD, the doll came with a blank book made to resemble the Meet stories and a booklet of writing tips. Many modern accessories are available for these dolls, from ever-changing clothing to beds to furniture and even wheelchairs. The dolls are the same size and style as the historical line. Many collectors use these dolls to create their own historical dolls and characters. American Girl has in the last couple of years released two new Just Like You dolls each fall.

Beginning in 2001, American Girl introduced limited edition Girl of Today dolls, which feature smaller, specific collections and individual storybooks, similar to the historical doll's "Meet" book. Although each collection is specific to the doll's character, each features accessories based on the book's plotline, and each doll has an animal companion. Each of these dolls was only available for a year after being released. The line is now known as the Girls of the Year.

Girl of the Year dolls

2001-2002: Lindsey Bergman

Lindsey is a ten-year-old Jewish girl who is eager to help. But sometimes, her help creates more problems than solutions. Lindsey had light skin, short, curly brown hair, blue eyes, and freckles. Lindsey is always getting into trouble, and always finds a way to fix the problem but eventually, she gets into trouble again.

Lindsey was the first of the "Girls of the Year" series. She used the "original" face mold.

2003-2004: Kailey Hopkins

Kailey Hopkins lives near tide pools in California, where she swims and surfs. When a developer threatens to destroy the tide pools by constructing a large mall complex, she protests with her friend. The Kailey doll has blond, sun-streaked hair, brown eyes, and was made with the "classic" face mold. Kailey's hair was arranged in two mini braids in the front. Her 'Meet' outfit consisted of a blue sundress, straw sandals, and blue underwear. She carried a tweed bag with a frisbee inside. Also available in Kailey's line were: a bikini and wetsuit, her dog, Sandy, a boogie board, a snorkel set and a camera set.

2005: Marisol Luna

Marisol is a dancer from Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood. Introduced during the Christmas season of 2004, Marisol was retired December 2005. Her collection sold out in early December, 2005. Marisol uses Josefina's face mold, has wavy brown hair, brown eyes, and is Hispanic.

Marisol's story was initially protested by members of the real-life Pilsen neighbourhood, who disliked its portrayal as an unsafe place to raise children.

2006: Jess Akiko McConnell

Jess, along with her parents, goes to Belize to explore Mayan ruins. Introduced in December 2005, following the early sell-out of Marisol's collection, Jess has a unique face. She had brown eyes and black hair. This is the first specifically bi-racial doll introduced by the company (her father is Irish-American and her mother is Japanese-American). She is also the first L.E. doll to be given a middle name.

2007: Nicki Fleming

Nicki Fleming is an animal lover who volunteers to train a service dog. Nicki will also have a second book, which continues her story as she faces the problems of dealing with being in the middle of a fight between her two best friends, and letting Sprocket, the service dog, go. Her doll uses the 'classic' face mold and has long, curly medium blonde hair, blue eyes, and freckles. She is the first girl of the year to have two books, "Nicki" and "Thanks to Nicki". On January 15 2007 Rachael Ray gave Nicki dolls to each of the audience members.

Bitty Baby and Bitty Twins dolls

Bitty Baby, a baby doll, comes in several different styles (African American, Asian American, Blond white, Brunette white, and Hispanic). She is 15 inches tall. She comes wearing a sleeper and with her own Bitty Bear (a small, 5 inch tall teddy bear).

This collection was originally introduced in 1990 as 'Our New Baby,' with a complete line of very realistic accessories for the doll as well as matching ones for real infants. However, this collection underwent a drastic change and was re-aimed at the toddler set, with the accessories becoming less realistic. In addition, the clothing line was revamped to be sized for toddlers and preschool aged girls.

Also part of this line are the "Bitty Twins", a set of boy/girl toddler dolls that come as a pair in either blond or brunette. They feature synthetic hair, unlike the molded hair of the Bitty Baby line. Originally the Bitty twins were marketed as babies that came in sleepers like Bitty Baby, and only came in blond (brunettes were released later). They have since been aged up to roughly pre-school age; the girls were given longer hair to reflect this. The outfits have changed to reflect the twins' aging, including potty training with underpants. The twins now can be combined to have matching or divergent hair colors and be same sex or different sex twins, allowing for ten combinations.

American Girl Place

American Girl Places are stores where American Girl dolls, clothes and accessories can be purchased up directly instead of through a catalog. Each store has, in addition to displays for each historical doll and a large Girl of Today section, a café (with planned meals), a doll hair salon, a drop off Doll Hospital, and a theater. The theater has thus far presented three different shows: the first musical, The American Girl's Revue, a second musical called Circle of Friends, and a show for younger children called Bitty Bear's Matinee: The Family Tree. The first store debuted in Chicago, followed by the New York store. The most recent store opened in Los Angeles in 2006.

There will be American Girl Boutiques and Bistros opening in two locations in the United States. These boutiques will be smaller, and will lack the theater. While many locations have been speculated, only two were confirmed in a January 17 2007 press release in which the Mattel stated that American Girl Boutique & Bistros will open in Dallas at the Galleria Mall and in North Point Mall in Alpharetta, Georgia (north of Atlanta) some time in mid to late 2007. There are rumors that other stores will be opened in the future.

Retired product lines

Hopscotch Hill collection

Based on the book series by Valerie Tripp, this was a set of four dolls in first grade. Unlike other dolls manufactured by American Girl, the dolls had hard plastic bodies and multiple joints. The first dolls to be introduced were Hallie, Skylar, and Logan. They were then joined by Gwen. Delany, Lindy, and Conner were characters featured in books but not produced as dolls.

American Girl Mini Rooms

American Girl Mini Rooms, usually carrying the logo of A*G Mini·s, were small collections meant to be set up as miniature rooms and locations released in October 2000. The basics consisted of a light box, a clear shield for the front, a drawer to store small parts in, and ways of connecting room together. None of these were meant for dolls to play in, but merely as creative room decoration. Each set had wallpapers, furniture, lights, and other small details to make the room look "real."

The major sets were the Blue Room, Purple Room, Horse Stable Set, Lil's Diner, Groovy Room, Loft Apartment, Rooftop Patio, Petite Boutique, Paddock, and Cabana. Lil' Pets were small pets to display in the room, and Lil Extras were add-ons that weren't part of any specific set. The first three had second releases with various changes.

When the line was first released, it was tremendously popular and the American Girl warehouse quickly emptied. Rooms were seen on eBay selling for as much as $2000.

The line ended a few years later. One speculation for the ending of the line is that a lot of the electric wiring was defective, either causing electrical shorts or failing to light and thus meaning a return. Also, many of the sets were small and elaborate, and more targeted towards older children. Also, sets were expensive for the size and lack of playability--a complete room was 178 dollars, much more than a doll, and the decor sets were about 20 dollars. According to former employees, the line was discontinued following the purchase of Pleasant Company (American Girl) by Mattel due to the high cost of manufacturing.

Girls of Many Lands dolls

Premiering in 2002, this set of eight dolls and books was aimed at twelve-year-old and older girls. The dolls were each from a different, pivotal time in history, and were a large departure for the company, as only one of the dolls was American (Native Alaskan). The others were from France, England, China, India, Ethiopia, Turkey, and Ireland. They were also far more detailed and designed more for display, rather than play. The books were written by authors who shared the same heritage as the characters in their books. The books are as follows:

• Isabel Campion: England, 1592, featured in Isabel: Taking Wing by Annie Dalton
• Cecilé Revel: France, 1711, featured in Cecilé: Gates of Gold by Mary Casanova
• Leyla: Turkey, 1720, featured in Leyla: The Black Tulip by Alev Lytle Croutier
• Saba: Ethiopia, 1846, featured in Saba: Under the Hyena's Foot by Jane Kurtz
• Minuk: Alaska, 1892, featured in Minuk: Ashes in the Pathway by Kirkpatrick Hill
• Spring Pearl Chou: China, 1857, featured in Spring Pearl: The Last Flower by Laurence Yep
• Kathleen Murphy: Ireland, 1937, featured in Kathleen: The Celtic Knot by Siobhan Parkinson
• Neela Sen : India, 1939, featured in Neela: Victory Song by Chitra Bannerjee Divakaruni

Angelina Ballerina dolls

American Girl produced a line of dolls for Angelina Ballerina, stories based on the life of a fictional mouse girl, Angelina Mousling. The line was similar in scope to one of the Historical Collection dolls, incorporating a large number of accessories and playsets, a Best Friend doll in the way of Angelina's companion Alice Nimbletoes, and a cousin to Angelina named Henry Mouseling. The line was produced from 2001 until 2004, when the toy rights were transferred to the Target Corporation.

Miss American Girl Bear

A teddybear named Miss AG Bear, and several doll-style outfits, were available through the American Girl catalogues from 1994 through 1996.

Movies

Samantha: An American Girl Holiday (2004)

• IMDB Profile

Samantha was the first American Girl movie to be broadcast on The WB, on November 23 2004. During the movie, animated commercials for Tide, a brand of laundry detergent, were broadcast. One of the commercials included a scene where a girl received a Samantha doll for Christmas. The movie was broadcast again on November 25 (Thanksgiving Day U.S.). It drew six million viewers. The movie starred:

• AnnaSophia Robb as Samantha Parkington
• Kelsey Lewis as Nellie O'Malley
• Mia Farrow as Grandmary
• Jordan Bridges as Uncle Gard
• Rebecca Mader as Cornelia
• The movie went to VHS and DVD quickly in time for Christmas 2004.
• The movie was nominated for the Young Artist Award in the category of Best Family Television Movie or Special (2006).
• AnnaSophia Robb was nominated for the Young Artist Award in the category of Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special - Leading Young Actress (2005).
• Olivia Ballantyne won the Young Artist Award in the category of Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special - Supporting Young Actress (2005).

Felicity: An American Girl Adventure (2005)

• IMDB profile

• Shailene Woodley as Felicity Merriman
• Katie Henney as Elizabeth Cole
• John Schneider as Edward Merriman
• Marcia Gay Harden as Martha Merriman
• Kevin Zegers as Ben Davidson
• Eulala Scheel as Nan Merriman
• The movie went to VHS and DVD quickly in time for Christmas 2005.
• The movie was nominated for the Young Artist Award in the category of Best Family Television Movie or Special (2006).
• Shailene Woodley was nominated for the Young Artist Award in the category of Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special (Comedy or Drama) - Leading Young Actress (2006).

Molly: An American Girl on the Home Front (2006)

IMDB profile

Was aired on Disney Channel on Sunday, November 26 2006.

The first two movies were broadcast on The WB; Molly's aired on Disney Channel, due the merger of UPN with The WB and both sides felt that the movie's content would not fit with the goals of the new network.

• Maya Ritter as Molly McIntire
• Tory Green as Emily Bennett
• Josette Halpert as Alison Hargate
• Hannah Fleming as Susan
• Samantha Wilson as Linda
• David Baker as Dr. James McIntire
• Molly Ringwald as Helen McIntire
• Genevieve Farrell as Jill McIntire
• Andrew Chalmers as Ricky McIntire

• Joyce Chopra was nominated for the DGA Award in the category of Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Children's Programs (2007).

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl Mystery (2008)

Recently, updated details on the Kit movie were posted on Variety's website, among others. It will be produced by Julia Roberts, released by Picturehouse, and written by Ann Peacock. It was originally scheduled to air in theaters in Fall 2007. However, there were some production difficulties that made this impossible. Abigail Breslin has been chosen to play Kit, and filming is scheduled to begin June 4 2007. The American Girl website showed information about four girls who landed parts to be Kit's friends. Their names are Jordan (12 years old), Erin (8 years old), Elisabeth (9 years old), and Brieanne (10 years old). The movie will be released July 2 2008.

Awards

The company has earned many awards, most notably the Oppenheimer Toy Award, eight times.

Criticism

The company has been criticized on several fronts.

• The pricing of the American Girl products has been a consistent issue. Dolls themselves cost $87 American dollars, and most outfits cost around $26, with furniture sometimes costing over $100.
• A number of complaints from longtime fans and parents have been about Mattel's management of the product line. In particular, there has been criticism about retirement of many quality items, and about replacements or new products deemed to be of lesser quality.

Recently, the company has been making several retirements to historical collections, most notably to Josefina's, Kirsten's, and Addy's collections.

Girls, Inc.

In August 2005, one of the products offered by American Girl was the "I Can" band. The company web site stated that "American Girl will give 70 cents for every dollar of “I CAN” band sales, plus a $50,000 donation, to Girls, Inc., a national organization dedicated to inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, and bold". The relationship to Girls, Inc. has been criticized by some conservative activists who allege that Girls, Inc. promotes abortion rights and acceptance of homosexual orientation. American Girl states that these donations are earmarked to support the work of Girls, Inc. in the areas of intellectual development, leadership, and sports programs. American Girl has since severed ties with Girls, Inc.

Marisol

In 2005 residents of Pilsen, a neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois, claimed the book Marisol portrayed their neighborhood as unsafe, because in a passage Marisol's mother explains that they are moving to the suburb of Des Plaines because Pilsen is "dangerous" and "there is no place to play." The Latin-American community decided to protest the book and doll.

Stephanie Spanos, senior public relations associate for American Girl, responded: “We feel that this brief passage has been taken out of context in the book...In the story you’ll see that Marisol’s parents want to have a house and a yard, and a place for her to play. As well as [those], there are some other reasons, too, that they are talking about moving".

De-emphasis on educational aspects

Some fans of American Girl feel that the company has lost the more educational focus of the characters and accompanying books. For example, the name of the modern doll line has changed from "American Girl of Today" (which emphasized girls of the current era being part of history too) to "Just Like You." Originally the dolls came with six books and a writing kit to encourage the owner to write stories about the character (in the same pattern as the Historical characters). In subsequent years the dolls came with one book and a writing kit, which was later replaced by a "fill-in-the-blanks" scrapbook. As of 2007, the dolls come with a single book with a CD of music and are advertised as being stand-ins for the child herself.

This may have something to do with the re-invention of the line following the acquisition by Mattel.

Labor issues

The American Girl Place store in New York City has recently been the center of a labor dispute with Actors Equity Association (AEA). The American Girl Theater runs 2 shows: a 1 hour 15 minute musical theater production with child actors performing the roles of the historical girl characters and adult actors performing supporting roles, and a shorter musical theater show for younger audiences in which adult actors portray the stuffed animal "Bitty" characters. On August 3 2006, 14 of the 18 adult actors at the store went on strike.

Sources

• Official American Girl web site
• American Girl Playthings: Documented American Girl collecting resource for most American Girl related products
• Guide to American Girl doll collecting

External links

• Official American Girl web site
• Society of American Girl Collectors

News

• Archived article about the uniqueness of the American Girls Doll.
• Kit's Movie Headed For Theatres