you've come a long way, Barbie

I was on the launch team of the first Take Our Daughters to Work Day in 1993, conspiring with Nell Merlino and Ms. Foundation for Women to help girls see themselves (and be seen) in roles they may not have imagined. One role we never imagined back then is sponsorship from the makers of Barbie, who'd just been convinced to stop programming her to say "Math is tough!" You've come a long way, Barbie. From fashion model with "purse and gloves and hats and all the gadgets gals adore" to role-model for 125 careers, a transformation artfully portrayed in latest commercial cleverly aimed at Barbie gatekeepers--Moms. Here's a link. Now if only we could evolve those pinup proportions.

(Found this gem on Metal Potential)

vintage magazine

When was the last time a thing of beauty landed in your real-world mailbox? Mine is usually crammed unattractively with solicitations and bills I can't obliterate into paperlessness without risking late charges. But recently it was graced by Vintage Magazine.

Vintage is based on the short-lived but legendary Flair Magazine which wowed discerning readers from 1950-1951, featuring die-cut covers, fabulous foldouts and illustrations, and contributions from the likes of Salvador Dali and Tennessee Williams. The New York Times called it "one of the most extravagant and innovative magazines ever published."

Publisher Ivy Baer Sherman was introduced to Flair at a 2003 retrospective of the magazine and was inspired to create a publication equally extraordinary. Premiere issue of Vintage is a cool-hunter collectible printed on multiple card stocks and bound with red ribbon. Articles include illustrated letters from artist Judith Oksner to her parents when she was a student in Paris in the days before email; long lost recipes from a 60 year old collection; the story of record albums told on pages die-cut to resemble jackets for "45's"; and a fascinating take on the Barbie phenomenon by Adweek's ad critic (and arbiter of pop culture) Barbara Lippert who found out that the doll was modeled on German streetwalkers and originally marketed as a "teen grooming aid."

Sherman calls the bi-annual "a multi-textured foray through history and out into the present." I call it well worth $20. Premiere issue sold out. Subscribe to get on the list for le deuxieme, due this month.

marketing synergy: Mad Men goes Barbie

Brilliant marketing move for two companies: the newest line of Barbies will include men-Mad Men. According to the New York Times today, Betty and Don and Roger and Joan dolls will launch in July to help promote the start of Season 4.

Mattel will issue 7000-10,000 copies of each doll but you won't find them in toy stores, only in specialty stores and two websites: amctv.com and barbiecollector.com.

Of course, dolls come with period accessories like fedoras, pearls and padded bras. But no cigarettes, ashtrays or cocktail shakers. Ironic that Betty can smoke and drink while she's pregnant but not while she's Barbie.

social media turns anti-social for Advertising Week

Last week while New York resounded with fervent proclamations from ad agencies saying they are "going digital" (Grey's president: We're bringing in kids with mohawks and tattoos!) more than 200 social media practitioners gathered on the opposite coast for Adweek’s Social Media Strategies Conference in San Francisco. Michael Bissell and I were honored to be among presenters from Razorfish, Mattel, Facebook, Gap, Ogilvy, DDB and others on the forefront of new media. Keynoter MC Hammer (who tweets to show he's "not just parachute pants") proved surprisingly articulate and insightful on the subject.

Give me anyone in this audience and $15 million and I promise you I can make 'em hot. That's easy. But social media is disrupting this model--creating brands + buzz with little investment...Social media is to Hollywood what Napster was to music.

Other retweets throughout the day:

Trying to retract something from the internet is like attempting to remove pee from a pool. (Rohit Bhargava, Ogilvy)

The first social media manual was written in the 30s. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. (Brian Morrissey, Adweek)

You can't optimize traffic until you optimize content! (Paul Beck, Ogilvy)

Dunkin Dave from Dunkin Donuts is an actual person. Who knew? (MC Hammer)

Barbie's Ken is going to be 50 in 2011! [say it ain't so!] Cynthia Neiman, Mattel

If Facebook was a country, it would be the fourth largest in the world: 1. China, 2. India, 3. US, 4. Facebook. (Ian Schafer, Deep Focus)

from Ian Schafer's keynote presentation. Which can be seen in its excellent entirety here.