This is a 1998 reproduction of the 1967 "Twist 'n Turn" Barbie. She was the first Barbie to have a moveable waist, hence the name "Twist 'n Turn". The original doll came in brunette, blond, and red hair. In many cases some of the original brunette doll's hair oxidized over time so these surviving dolls now appear to have red hair. The "Twist 'n Turn" doll ushered in what is known as the "Mod" era for Barbie. The change is face mold from the previous dolls was done to give Barbie a more "youthful" look in keeping with the young and mod British style that was present in the late 1960's.
This doll is dressed in a reproduction the original "Twist 'n Turn Smasheroo" Barbie outfit. It has a red striped dress, yellow faux fur coat and hat, yellow fishnet tights and red boots. Truly a "Go-go" outfit to reflect the attitude of the times.
Here's another photo of her taken this past winter. Woops! I forgot to put on her hat! But I guess that doesn't stop her from "Twist'n and Turn'n"!!!
The first Barbie I have memory of in my life is the "Twist 'n Turn". Actually, my Mom did not want me to have a Barbie when I was young. She thought Barbie was a bad influence because her chest was too big. The first doll in the Barbie family that I received when I was 4 years old was her little sister Skipper. I think shortly there after I received the TNT Barbie pictured above for my birthday along with a trunk full of Barbie clothes from my Grammy and Grampy. I don't think that made my Mom too happy. In fact, I don't remember the trunk and all the clothes too much after the night of my birthday. I think someone else gave me another other trunk and somehow Grammy and Grampy's trunk just "disappeared". Hmmmm...I'm sure there is a legitimate explanation, but there were lots of things that "disappeared" when I was asleep. I do know for a fact that my Mom got rid of all my stuffed animals while I was asleep one night because she thought I was allergic to them, so it is entirely possible that the trunk went in the same way.
Anyway, the doll I received was not the 1967 original TNT, but the 1969 version. This doll had a flip hairdo ala Marlo Thomas from "That Girl". To tell you the truth, I watched "That Girl" re-runs when I was young and can distinctly recall looking in the mirror one time and trying to fix my long straight hair to look like "That Girl". However, when I received this doll, the brochure in the package had photos of a TNT with long straight hair. I can remember playing with my doll at my Nonna's house one night and trying desperately for hours to straighten her hair. I had NO LUCK! As you can see in the photo above, after more than 30 years this doll STILL retains her curl. She lost most of her face makeup though, and I had to repaint it on. Oh well....I think she still looks great!
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