This little girl doll by IMCO is very similar to the second version of Ideal’s Posie doll, who was made from 1955-56.
Body Construction
She is 22″ tall with a stuffed vinyl head and hard plastic body. She is a pin-jointed, head turning walker, jointed at the neck, shoulders, hips and knees. She has curly, dark blonde rooted hair with bangs, and sleep eyes. Perhaps her most unusual feature is her soft vinyl molded eyelashes. She has holes in her belly for her crying mechanism.
Clothing
The dress she wears is pink and white checked taffeta, with an embossed white cotton collar trimmed in cotton lace, accented with a black satin ribbon bow. It closes in the back with factory donut snaps. It is likely her original one.
Markings
She is marked on the back of her head “IMCO” but has no other markings.
Actress and model Brooke Shields was produced as an 11.5″ fashion doll by LJN in the early 1980s. She is all vinyl, with wavy long brunette hair, gray painted eyes and Brooke’s famous bushy eyebrows. All dolls have a copyright date of 1982.
Basic Brooke Shields doll by LJN.
Photo courtesy of eBay seller king-auctions.
The basic doll wears a blue turtleneck sweater with white collar and cuffs, white leggings and blue boots. An alternate version was the same style but with pink sweater and gray leggings. She came with a plastic brush and star ring, posing stand and photo of Brooke. The box graphics on both versions are identical.
Suntan Brooke Shields doll by LJN.
Photo courtesy of eBay seller king-auctions.
Suntan Brooke Shields has a different face mold with a big smile. She comes in a yellow and white striped swimsuit with a beach bag and sunglasses.
Prom Party Brooke Shields also has the smiling face, and has extra long hair. She comes in a hot pink metallic gown and “pearl” necklace, with pink posing stand and heels, and a plastic floral bouquet.
Brooke had eight “Fun Time” fashions and eight “Designer Boutique” fashions sold separately.
Fun Time Fashions:
Riding Habit – red jacket with black collar and cuffs, 1st place ribbon, yellow top, khaki pants, riding hat, boots and crop
Cheerleader Costume – white sweater with “B” logo, royal blue and white skirt, white vinyl cowboy boots, blue and yellow pom-poms
Shorty Pajamas – white teddie with pink flowers, matching mob cap, pink bra and panties, pink high heeled sandals.
Jogging Suit – bright yellow hoodie with green trim, yellow pants, yellow wedgies, green gym bag
Blue Jeans & Shirt – jeans with red knit cuffs, red and white striped sweater, red cowboy boots, Walkman with headphones and strap
Camouflage Pants Suit – Khaki short-sleeved top, camo knickers, gold purse attached to belt, natural straw hat, aqua wedgies
Dotted Swiss Party Dress – white dotted swiss with pink underdress and lace trim, crownless hat of matching fabric, white nylons?, pink high heeled sandals
Beach Outfit – pink swimsuit, green skirt, black hat with attached blue scarf, purple heels
Fun Time fashion Jogging Suit for Brooke Shields doll by LJN.
Photo courtesy of eBay seller den268.
Designer Boutique Fashions:
Cowgirl Outfit – red skirt with blue belt, white western shirt with red trim, blue check bandanna, white cowboy hat with blue check band, white cowboy boots
Disco Outfit – blue jacket with gold lame short sleeves and attached shorts, gold lame bikini top, blue drawstring bag, blue high heeled sandals
Fur Jacket Walking Suit – white faux fur jacket, white skirt, white boots with cuff tops, hot pink scarf
Cocktail Gown – black sheath gown with pink ruffle down each side and across one shoulder, black high heeled sandals
Roller Skating Jump Suit – red long sleeved jump suit, gold belt, red socks, white roller skates with red wheels
Lace ‘n’ Satin Party Gown – long gown has pink satiny bodice white ruffle collar, sleeves and peplum, floral embroidered skirt; white wedgies
Wrap Around Coat and Hat Outfit – plush purple coat (looks more like a bathrobe), matching hat, white belt, white boots with cuff tops
Pants Suit – bronze metallic jacket with brown satin cuffs, brown satin pants, brown boots with cuff tops, brown hat
Designer Boutique fashion Pants Suit for Brooke Shields doll by LJN.
Photo courtesy of eBay seller den268.
There was also a carrying case with dressing room graphics inside.
LJN also produced a Brooke Shields Glamour Center styling head with curlers and other hair styling accessories.
McCall’s issued a sewing pattern specifically for the Brooke Shields doll.
I came across this ad for Plain Jane, the Magic Light doll, in the December 1945 issue of House Beautiful magazine. The ad text reads:
“One of a group of adorable ‘sleepy-time’ dolls that glow in the dark. Pleasantly help children overcome the fear of darkness. Make charming ornaments, too! Simply place doll before an electric bulb for a few seconds, extinguish all lights, and it will glow in brilliant colors. It never fails to work and will glow thousands of times. Harmless, of course.
‘Plain Jane’ – illustrated – is a 17 in., soft, sturdy doll, dressed in durable cotton clothing, which can be washed and ironed repeatedly. $3.75 Postpaid. Sorry…no C.O.D. A visit to our unique shop in Radio City…where hundreds of luminous articles are in display…will delight you!
Catalogue mailed on request.
Magic Light Shop, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, 20, N.Y.”
I Googled “Magic Light Doll” and came up with this 11″ doll named “Lumia”. She sold for $275 in 2007. Of course, if you came across one of these dolls without the tag or box, you probably wouldn’t know it glowed in the dark. Anybody ever seen one of these in person?
James D. Julia’s doll auctions are known for high end French and German antique dolls, and his upcoming auction on May 4 and 5 is no exception. But this time around there is a good selection of 20th century items that vintage collectors will want to bid on as well. Day One of the auction includes some wonderful dolls by Lenci, Kathe Kruse and Steiff in addition to the usual Brus, Jumeaux, Steiners and Kestners. There is a nice selection of early Disney items and some Schoenhut circus and safari figures. Bear collectors will find many lots by Steiff and other early makers to choose from. Great early toys and doll houses are abundant here, too.
Day Two will bring several lots of Steiff and other cloth dolls, many more Disney items, bisque and composition character dolls. Lots of tin toys, children’s books and vintage holiday decorations include items that would display well with your vintage doll collection. Much of the day will be given over to vintage advertising collectibles which will appeal to anyone who appreciates the graphic style of the early and mid 20th century.
If you can’t get to Maine this week for the auction, you can bid online or by phone. Photos courtesy of James D. Julia, Inc., Auctioneers, Fairfield, ME. www.jamesdjulia.com
I love to come across a doll I have never seen or heard of before. This interesting playset is Polly Pretend by Amsco. This unusual concept is that the doll is playing “dress up” with Mommy’s shoes, hat, jewelry, curlers, etc. – just like her little owner would. The shoes are a hoot!
Amsco is not a company I know too much about. The name is an acronym for American Metal Specialties Corp. and they mostly made doll furniture like beds and high chairs, as well as housekeeping toys. They trademarked the name Amsco in 1950 and their trademark expired in 1992. Polly Pretend appears to have been made in the late sixties or early seventies.
What interesting doll have you come across lately?
