A Hair-Raising Concept: The Ideal Company's Crissy Doll and Her Friends

The Ideal Company was founded in 1902 by Morris Mitchom and A. Cohn. Its claim to fame was that it coined the name "Teddy Bear." Mitchom asked Theodore Roosevelt's permission to name Ideal's stuffed bear after the president, and the rest is history. However, that is not the only legacy that Ideal left us. Ideal created the first ."drink and wet" doll, as well as "Giggles," a doll that giggled long before Tickle Me Elmo was ever invented. One of Ideal's most beautiful and long-lasting creations was the Beautiful Crissy doll in 1969. She was a very hip preteen who very developed a very loyal following. And Crissy had a unique feature unlike any other doll to date.

Crissy's Cousin Cinnamon, kindly submitted by TheEnchantress.

The Crissy doll had beautiful, auburn tresses that grew every time someone touched a button on her stomach or tugged the ponytail. To make Crissy's hair "shorter" so that you could grow her hair again, you had to turn a knob on her back to make the hair retract. Earlier dolls are more likely to have a flower knob. The later dolls are more likely to have smooth, round knobs. After 1969, it seemed arbitrary which dolls would have a flower knob or a smooth knob. Baby Crissy and very late-issue Crissy and Velvet dolls operate a little differently.

Crissy was an elegant, 18-inch doll, beautifully sculpted by Neil Estern, who created the Patty Playpal line, and most of the Crissy family line. There were also black Crissy dolls, which today, are very sought-after. The Crissy dolls had great, contemporary outfits that reflected the fashion trends of the 1970s. The number one Crissy came with an orange minidress with a lace overlay. She even had orange underwear! Crissy dolls came in a great cardboard box that had a hand-drawn profile of Crissy and had an orange yarn handle. With subsequent issues, the box would change, individualizing every issue.

Crissy was so popular that Ideal quickly released other dolls who could grow hair. Ideal also gave Crissy friends, such as Kerry, Tressy, and Brandi. The dolls each had different skin tones and hair colors. Ideal further personalized the dolls, giving each one a different facial expression.

As Crissy grew older, she did more than just grow hair. She could talk, look around, have her hair curled, and even twist and turn. She became a part of the Sears catalog, another American icon. Sears would sell exclusive outfits for the dolls that were only available through the catalog.

Kerry was one of Crissy's first friends. She was introduced in 1971. She was blonde, with green eyes and a dimple on her chin. She was dressed in green, but she was able to fit into all of Crissy's clothes.

Tressy was introduced in the 1970 Sears catalog, although she was previously created by the American Character Company, which was acquired by Ideal. Tressy's name was resurrected for the doll that was exclusively sold by Sears.

Brandi was introduced in 1972. She was a beach girl, with platinum blonde hair and tanned skin. She wore swimsuits and clogs.

Ideal also created smaller dolls that were 15 inches tall. The first one was Velvet, a blond with pigtails, who was marketed as Crissy's cousin. Then there were Mia, Cricket, Dina, and Tara. All the dolls shared the same bodies as Velvet, but each head was sculpted to give each doll individual personalities. Then Ideal made an even smaller doll, Cinnamon, who was only 12 inches tall. She was known as Velvet's little sister.

Baby Crissy was introduced in 1973. She was a life-sized doll that was 24 inches tall. She was supposed to be a nine-month-old baby, and was targeted for younger children. Even though she was an infant, she could grow extremely long hair. The only Baby Crissy who could not grow hair was one from the mid-1980s, who was a completely different doll than the original Baby Crissy. The doll just used the Baby Crissy name. Baby Crissy was always barefoot, so you'll never find one with shoes.

In 1977, Ideal produced a 16-inch action figure for boys with a sensor that detected light and motion. Although the premise sounds very promising today, perhaps Electroman was ahead of his time. He was about as popular as the Edsel. Ideal was left with a large inventory of Electroman suits which it liquidated by putting them on Magic Hair Crissy. Since Electroman was two inches shorter and much more muscular, the suits were not a good fit. At least Ideal deserves some credit for being creative!

Ideal decided to reissue Crissy and Velvet in 1982, but for some reason, both dolls were made from the Velvet mold. Thus, there is a 15-inch blonde Velvet wearing a white dress with a pink sash, an auburn-haired "Beautiful Crissy" in a white dress, and a 15-inch "Country Fashions Crissy" wearing a long pink skirt, white blouse, and straw hat. All wore white T-strap shoes. The Crissy family came to an end in the '80s, a mere shadow of its former self to be forgotten over the years. But today, as collector interest begins to grow, these lovely, well-made dolls are gaining popularity once again, and getting the attention they deserve.