1960s » Vintage Doll Collector

Uneeda’s Wee Three is one of the “family” sets of dolls produced during the 50s – 60s that allowed children to imagine scenarios of interaction between mother and children. Effanbee’s Most Happy Family is another set of this type.

Body Construction
The mother of the family is a 19″ doll, rigid vinyl with a softer vinyl head, jointed at neck, hips and shoulders. She may be jointed at the waist as well. All examples I have seen have platinum blonde hair. She has sleep eyes with brush lashes and red lips. She is joined by her all-vinyl toddler and baby.

Markings
Mom is marked “Uneeda / 2S” on the back of her neck. This is the same marking found on all the Dollikin dolls as well as other Uneeda glamour dolls and their Pink Haired Ballerina.

Clothing
She wears a sleeveless dress of dark red cotton, banded at the neckline with polka-dotted fabric. Her coat is of the same material, with polka dot collar and cuffs. She wears a matching hat and red plastic heels.
Her daughter wears a matching dress and bonnet, socks and shoes. Baby is attired in a fluffy white bunting and comes complete with a bottle.

Packaging
Wee Three’s box served as a display unit as well as packaging. It advertises the drink-and-wet capabilities of the children and extols the quality of the workmanship.

In the ’70s and ’80s Uneeda produced other sets using the Wee Three name but these include a little girl, toddler and baby, with no mother doll.

Once Barbie had a boyfriend (Ken), the next logical step was for her to acquire a best friend to share her secrets with (not to mention her clothes!). Midge debuted in 1963.

Vintage Barbie's best friend, Midge by Mattel

Redheaded Midge dolls wear a chartreuse & orange swimsuit. Blondes get two shades of blue; brunettes wear a hot pink top and red bottom.
Photo courtesy of Withington Auction, Inc.

The first version of Midge had the same straight leg body as Barbie, with a new head mold. She was available as a blonde, brunette or redhead, in a short flip hairdo with bangs, and blue eyes. Most dolls have a closed mouth smile and freckles; but some have no freckles, or a small white area painted between her lips to indicate teeth. Midge was sold in a two piece swimsuit with white open toe shoes. The color of the swimsuit varied according to the doll’s hair color. This first version of Midge was available from 1963 through ’66.

In 1964, Wig Wardrobe Midge was introduced. This set included a Midge head with a short, molded hairstyle, and three wigs for her to wear.

Photo courtesy of eBay seller your-favorite-doll.

In 1965, Barbie and Midge got a new bendable leg body. Bendable Leg Midge had a new, short pageboy hairstyle with an aqua ribbon headband, a one piece multicolor striped swimsuit, and aqua open toe shoes. She was again available in three different hair colors.

Mattel stopped using the Midge name for many years until re-introducing her with a new head mold in the late ’80s. The original Midge head mold continued to be used throughout the mod era for Barbie’s friend PJ. Mattel made a reproduction of the original Midge in 1997.

Learn More:
Collector’s Encyclopedia of Barbie Dolls and Collectibles by Sibyl DeWein & Joan Ashabraner More info from Amazon or Find it on eBay.	Barbie Fashion Vol. 1, 1959-67 by Sarah Sink Eames More info from Amazon or Find it on eBay.	Ultimate Barbie Doll Book by Marcie Melillo More info from Amazon or Find it on eBay.

Photo courtesy of Laura Meisner.

Miss Twist is a variation of Uneeda’s Dollikin doll, marketed to capitalize on the “Twist” dance craze of the early 1960s.

Body Construction & Markings
For general information on body construction and markings, see the Dollikin page. Miss Twist was sold with a black curly bob hairdo and heavy black eye paint.

Clothing
She wears an ivory satin dress with layers of fringe on the skirt and around the neckline–sort of a flapper effect, with a matching headband and drop pearl earrings. She is pictured above with one of the regular line Dollikins.

Packaging
There is a photo of Miss Twist in her box on Valerie Myers’ website

This boy doll is very similar to Pullan’s Bobby and Little Mister Bad Boy, which were made in the early 1960s. His original outfit suggests he was made as a companion for a bride doll.

Vinyl boy doll marked F in a circle

Body Construction
He is all vinyl, 20″ tall, jointed at the neck, shoulders and hips. He has detailed molded hair, painted light brown, and blue/green sleep eyes with brush lashes. Here’s a closeup of his face.

Markings
His only marking is a letter F in a circle on his lower back. He is the first doll I have ever seen with this marking.

Clothing
He wears a one piece outfit of white cotton sleeveless shirt, black cotton pants with stitched front crease and braid trim accenting the side seams, and black satin cummerbund. The outfit closes in the back with small factory snaps. See a back view. He would have had a jacket to match the pants originally. The shoes and socks he is wearing are probably similar to his original ones.

Uneeda made a few character dolls from comic strips and movies over the years, including a few tie-ins with Disney.

This all cloth Orphan Annie doll has a molded mask face with painted features. She came with white socks and black shoes, and likely dates to the 1920s. She was an exclusive for Walgreens stores.

Pollyanna was made in 10.5″ and 32″ versions, and possibly also a 17″ version. Dressed in red and white checked dress and pantalettes with straw hat. Tie in to the Walt Disney film of the same name starring Hayley Mills. 1960.

Other 32″ dolls include the Princess from Babes in Toyland, another Disney film tie-in, she has a similar face to Pollyanna but with a closed mouth and pink hair.

Popeye is the famous comic character with soft vinyl head and arms and cloth body, made in 8″ and 16″ versions. His hat and pipe are molded as one piece with his head. 1979. Olive Oyl and Swee’Pee dolls were made as well.

Uneeda Comix, a series of adult-oriented comic books published in the 1970s, are no relation to the Uneeda Doll Co.

Vintage Doll Collector

Wee Three dolls by Uneeda (circa 1960)

Barbie’s Best Friend, Midge by Mattel (1963-66)

Learn More:

Miss Twist doll by Uneeda – a Dollikin variation (1962)

Circle F Bridegroom Doll (circa 1961)

Pollyanna and other Character dolls by Uneeda