Barbie for COVID-19

Manufacturers of the cult doll are now producing toys that honor researchers combating the pandemic. British scientist Sarah Gilbert has her own Barbie avatar — a doll with glasses and wearing a blue suit. She said, "My wish is that my doll will show children careers they may not be aware of, like a vaccinologist."

Peroxide blond, tiny waist, busty with long legs: On March 9, 1959, Mattel released the very first the Barbie doll. She began to move into children's playrooms worldwide.

Some girls love horses, others love to play with Barbie dolls. Their rooms became Barbie's world, with shelf after shelf turned into bedrooms and living rooms for Barbie, her boyfriend Ken and her younger siblings Tutti and Todd. Barbie was always fashionable, her wardrobe sewn, knitted and sometimes pasted on her lean plastic body.

Barbie and Ken were the dream team in many girls' rooms into the 1980s, and the perfect characters to play out elaborate love stories. The cheaper German-made rival doll, Petra, was no match for an original Barbie, who had legs that could bend and tiny accessories galore, from sexy bikinis to high heels, sunglasses and hand bags.

Also during the 1980s, the Barbie doll underwent an image makeover. Her maker Mattel started a career line that included astronaut, computer engineer, doctor teacher and architect-themed dolls. Ever the professional woman, the Barbie doll has had many dozens of careers — including president and vice-president.

Starting around the year 2000, Barbie wasn't made for the catwalk as much as modeled on an average, middle-class women. Barbie's clothes were not as glamorous anymore, they were practical. In 2016, Mattel started to market Barbie dolls in four body shapes: petite, tall, curvy, and original. Her original proportions had often been criticized for being anatomically impossible.

Who would have thought 60 years ago that in 2017, there would be a hijab-wearing Barbie doll? She was modeled on Ibitihaj Muhammad, a fencer on the US team at the 2016 Rio Olympics who wears a headscarf.

The Kenya Barbie was no modern big city girl from Nairobi; instead she was clad in traditional garb reminiscent of African cliches of untouched nature. She is part of the elaborate Barbie Dolls of the World Collector series.

The Frida Kahlo Barbie (middle) was a nice idea that ended up failing: The Mexican artist's great niece took Mattel to court for copyright infringement. The doll was removed from toy stores' shelves. She had been part of a historic line of Barbies that included aviator Amelia Earhart (left) and physicist Katherine Johnson (right).

The Barbie doll collection is sure to be a work in progress for a long time to come. Novelties in 2019 include a Barbie doll that uses a wheelchair and another with a prosthetic leg. The toymaker has understood that blond, blue-eyed and a wasp waist won't cut it with today's children.