Doll

A doll is a model of a human being, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have traditionally been used in magic and religious rituals throughout the world, and traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and wood are found in the Americas, Asia, Africa and Europe. The earliest documented dolls go back to the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece and Rome. The use of dolls as toys was documented in Greece around 100 AD. They have been made as crude, rudimentary playthings as well as elaborate art. Modern doll manufacturing has its roots in Germany, going back to the 15th century. With industrialization and new materials such as porcelain and plastic, dolls were increasingly mass-produced. During the 20th century dolls became increasingly popular as collectibles.

History, types and materials

Early history and traditional dolls

The earliest dolls were made from available materials such as clay, stone, wood, bone, ivory, leather, wax, etc. Archaeological evidence places dolls as foremost candidate for oldest known toy. Wooden paddle dolls have been found in Egyptian tombs dating to as early as 21st century BC. Dolls with movable limbs and removable clothing date back to at least 200 BC. Greek dolls were made of clay and articulated at the hips and shoulders. There are stories from ancient Greece around 100 AD that show that dolls were used by little girls as playthings. In Rome dolls were made of clay, wood or ivory. Dolls have been found in the graves of Roman children. Like children today, the younger members of Roman civilization would have dressed their dolls according to the latest fashions. When Greek and Roman girls got married they would dedicate their doll to a goddess.Rag dolls are traditionally home-made from spare scraps of cloth material. Roman rag dolls have been found dating back to 300 BC.

Miraculous Ladybug

Miraculous Ladybug or Miraculous, is a Korean-French CGI action/adventure animated series, co-produced by Zagtoon, Method Animation, Toei Animation, and SAMG Animation, partnering with companies worldwide, including SK Broadband in South Korea and De Agostini in Italy. It is distributed by PGS Entertainment, with Bandai serving as the chief partner for toy production.

The series first premiered in South Korea on 1 September 2015 on EBS under the title Lady Bug (Hangul: 레이디 버그). In France, it debuted on 19 October on TF1. In the United States, the series debuted on Nickelodeon on 6 December as Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir. The Korean re-debut on Disney Channel was on 7 December.

Plot

Set in modern-day Paris, the series focuses on teenage junior high school student Marinette Dupain-Cheng and her classmate and crush Adrien Agreste. When evil arises, Marinette becomes her secret superhero persona Ladybug, while Adrien becomes his secret superhero persona Cat Noir. Oblivious to each other's true identities, the two work together to protect Paris from the mysterious villain Hawk Moth, who covets and attempts to steal their powers by using his akuma, butterflies made of black energy, to influence and transform normal humans into supervillains.

My Little Pony

My Little Pony is an entertainment franchise developed by Hasbro which is marketed primarily to girls. It started as a line of plastic pony toys developed by Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger and Steve D'Aguanno which have been produced since 1983. The ponies feature colorful bodies, manes and a unique symbol on one or both sides of their flanks. These are referred to in the two most recent incarnations as "cutie marks." My Little Pony has been revamped at least four times with new and more modern looks to appeal to a new market.

Following the original My Pretty Pony toy, introduced in 1981, My Little Pony was launched in 1983 and the line became popular during the 1980s. The original toy line ran from 1983 to 1995 (1992 in the US), and inspired animated specials, an animated feature-length film, and four animated television series.

The brand's sales increased many times over with the introduction of the fourth incarnation of the franchise, which started with the success of the 2010 animated television series. The brand grossed one billion USD in retail sales in 2014 and 650 million USD in retail sales in 2013.

American Girl

American Girl is an American line of 18-inch (46 cm) dolls released in 1986 by Pleasant Company. The dolls portray eight- to eleven-year-old girls of a variety of ethnicities. They are sold with accompanying books told from the viewpoint of the girls. Originally the stories focused on various periods of American history, but were expanded in 1995 to include characters and stories from contemporary life. Aside from the original American girl dolls, the buyer also has the option to purchase dolls that look like them. The options for the line of Truly Me dolls range from eye color, eye shape, skin color, hair texture, and hair length. A variety of related clothing and accessories is also available. .

Pleasant Company was founded in 1986 by Pleasant Rowland, and its products were originally purchasable by mail order only. In 1998, Pleasant Company became a subsidiary of Mattel. The company has been awarded the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award eight times.

Dolls and accessories

The Historical Characters line of 18-inch dolls were initially the main focus of Pleasant Company. This product line aims to teach aspects of American history through a six-book series from the perspective of a girl living in that time period. Although the books are written for an eight plus target audience, they endeavor to cover significant topics such as child labor, child abuse, poverty, racism, slavery, animal abuse and war in manners appropriate for the understanding and sensibilities of their young audience.

Surprise

Surprise may refer to:

Science and mathematics

Places

Entertainment

Music

Albums