The Human Times #7 | Living Dolls
Written By: Marianne Moro

     When one thinks of a hobby that involves collecting everyday items, coins, stamps, baseball cards and beer cans come to mind. Alas, not many of us consider that one of the largest collectible conventions in the country is geared for doll aficionados. That's right. Someone is responding to those Franklin Mint/Danbury Collections ads in the Sunday paper.

It's big business, as there are several magazines devoted to the collecting, care and purchase of dolls. But what kind of dolls? Barbie dolls? Chatty Cathy? Poseable Baywatch figures? Those are the most obvious examples.
There is a whole subculture of artists' dolls. The ladies (and gentlemen) who create these miniature masterpieces are indeed sculptors. So intense is the artistry that that one of the designers, a woman named from New York created a line of fairy dolls who looked awfully familiar, sort of like, no exactly like Tori Amos! Then there's the French artist whose dolls are so life-like it's more frightening than cute.

Many celebrities are into dolls, the most notable being Anne Rice, it's easy to envision a room in the Garden District manse with three-foot tall chiffon and velvet layered dolls with blonde ringlets. A perfect complement to Lestat.
The two most famous mass manufacturers of collector dolls are Seymour Mann and Madame Alexander. Madame Alexander are tiny Kewpie doll like creatures dressed like Lucille Ball, a biker chick, a cowgirl, W.C. Fields or  Dorothy and The Tin Man. While the clothing may be authentic, they all seem to share the same naively happy face.

Seymour Mann dolls are a trifle classier. Favoring models with names like Madame de Charpentier and Zoe, and fluffy taffeta gowns, but these dolls are mass-produced and on display at Macy's every Christmas. To get real artists' dolls, you have to go to the likes of Fayzah Spanos and her wide-eyed, pudgy faced creations with names like Oopsey Kitty who are just so happy they seem ready to burst.

On the other hand there are realistic baby dolls, with or without tears etched on their faces. For the aesthete, there are the glamorously anorexic dolls of Crees and Coe (an Anne Rice favorite.) Many of the pieces are indeed art, and wouldn't be out of place in a museum, while others are plain kitsch.
One of the highest rated shows on the Home Shopping Network is the Gallery of Dolls, with breathless descriptions of one of kind and limited edition collectibles for 50 (or 500) bucks plus shipping and handling.

Although even the toughest cookie has to admit collector dolls are adorable, elegant, or just well-crafted, there's a freaky underside to those sweet-faced little Angelique dollies and the blue - haired old ladies with life sized recreations of real children in their homes. Hey, did you hear the one about the 60 year old doll designer hawking her creations on HSN's Gallery of Dolls with her 30 year old boy toy beside her wearing Peter Pan tights. THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENED.

Apparently, many celebrities are designing dolls. Marie Osmond, Sheena Easton, and even Richard Simmons have ventured into the collectble doll business. I guess there is an option for fading stars besides infomercials. Is Erik Estrada next in line for a pitch on "Gallery of Dolls?"
                                              
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