Some dolls are not exactly ugly and yet you wouldn’t call them beautiful either. They’re kind of “in between” the range of beauty and ugliness. That’s how I would classify the Raggedy Ann and Andy series of dolls.
Their shocking red yarny hair and perpetual blissed out zombie stare always reminded me of Bozo the Clown. And we all know that clowns give me the willies…
Be that as it may, here is some background information on the Raggedies, along with a few personal stories from our readers.
Raggedy Ann Dolls
Raggedy Ann is truly a classic “All American” doll, with her simple old-fashioned look and trademark red yard hair. Ann and her brother Andy have been winning the hearts of children for more than eighty years. Rag dolls have been around for a long time, but it wasn’t until Johnny Gruelle, and artist and political cartoonist, drew a face on the worn fabric of an old rag doll found by his daughter in the attic and named it Raggedy Ann, that a legend was born. The very first Raggedy Ann dolls made in 1915 had brown hair and shoe button eyes, and were thought to have a heart made of candy to make her sweet to the core. During the midst of Ann’s popularity, Gruelle created Raggedy Andy, just as loveable, but more mischievous and adventurous than his sister. To this day, Ann and Andy have hearts on their chests that say “I Love You”.
Classic Raggedy Ann dolls and Raggedy Andy come in various sizes including Beanie Baby versions of the famous duo. Collectors and specialty online retailers offer a nice assortment of dolls with complete information including a special edition boxed set featuring the 12” version of Raggedy Ann and Andy complete with a certificate of authenticity. Also available from www.liveandlearn.com, is an extra large 38” version of the Raggedy Ann doll with special dancing straps on her feet, and traditional 16” and 30” dolls with modern button eyes. Lots of accessories are also available for the dolls including gift sets, play sets, picnic sets, fashion gift sets, travel cases, clothing paper dolls, finger puppets, and more are available from various retailers. You may also want to check out eBay for hard to find Raggedy Ann items and accessories.
Today, Raggedy Ann dolls are still manufactured in addition to special holiday versions, and the special edition version to celebrate Ann’s 85th birthday. If you’re a collector, this is certainly one doll you’ll want to get your hands on! For everything Raggedy Ann and Andy, there’s the Raggedy Ann & Andy Museum located in Arcola, Illinois, which opened to the public in May 1999. The museum features a large collection of rare memorabilia, news, history, upcoming events, and the biography of the doll’s creator Johnny Gruelle. Visit the museum online at www.raggedyann-museum.org for more information. Raggedy Ann dolls are truly legendary; they have touched the hearts of many, many children, as well as young-at-heart adults, and will continue to do so for many generations to come.
A Doll To Remember
When I was a little girl, one of my favorite toys was my Raggedy Ann doll. There were a lot of little girls my age that had one, and we all thought it was something special. I guess it was special to me because it was what my mom had given me to give me comfort. She worked nights and we often spent the night with our babysitter. My mom gave her to me so that I could cuddle her when I missed my mom, and that was something that I did quite often.
I don’t remember when I got the Raggedy Ann doll, but I must have been five or six years old. My brother always teased me about it, but I think he understood just as well what it meant to have it. He had an Incredible Hulk figure that he took with him when we went to the babysitters. That to him was what my Raggedy Ann doll was to me. It was a source of comfort. We always understood that my mom had to work, and we understood that being a single parent was hard. That didn’t mean we didn’t miss her though.
I don’t know what happened to my Raggedy Ann doll. I think it’s long gone, but I still remember it fondly. My mom didn’t have to work nights forever, and once she was remarried and we moved away my Raggedy Ann doll was stored at my grandmother’s house. I was too old for a doll by that point, and I would never admit that I missed having her around. It was good to have mom back though, and when she said something about storing her away, I was in agreement, even if my heart wasn’t in it.
My grandparents are now retired and they have moved, and no one seemed to know where our stored toys went. I suspect my Raggedy Ann doll was discovered by one of my younger cousins. If someone else got joy from her, I am happy to have given her up. Any toy can be a comfort to a child, but for me at that age, it was my Raggedy Ann doll. When I see one somewhere, I always get a warm feeling. She wasn’t anything extra special, but the meaning behind her was. Now that I have a daughter of my own, I get a warm feeling when I see her sleeping with her favorite stuffed dog. I remember how comforting it was, and I’m glad she has it.
Kids and Dolls
When I was in seventh grade I met a classmate that is my best friend to this day. Seventh grade is the time when the public elementary school and the parochial schools combine classes as the public junior high building. I had been in public elementary school and this other girl had been in the parochial school. In our home room classroom we happened to sit next to each other because we were both late in finding the classroom and they were the only two seats left. Of course they were in front of the room. We were given ten minutes at the end of the class period to visit with our classmates. Little did I know that thirty five years later this girl would still be my best friend.
We were inseparable from that first period of seventh grade through the remainder of high school and through college. We spent so much time together that our parents became good friends because they were constantly running us back and forth between each other’s home. My friend’s mom had the neatest job. She made raggedy Ann dolls. The dolls were every where in the friend’s house. Her mom had made raggedy ann dolls for my friend and her sister when they were young girls. A mother of another girl saw them and asked her to make her daughters raggedy ann dolls. Soon she was making raggedy andy also and her business was under way. She hand sewed the dolls and their clothing. She made them in a variety of sizes depending upon what the people ordered. When we were in ninth grade she made us raggedy Ann costumes for Halloween. They were great. We had a dance that years at school and everyone agreed that we had the best costumes of anyone.
This was close to the time when cabbage patch dolls first came on the market and people were buying them out as fast as they hit the stores. My friend’s mother was contacted to see if she could make one of these dolls. The grandmother was frantic because she promised her granddaughter one of the dolls, yet they were completely sold out in the area and the back order time was over three months. My friend’s mom said she would attempt to make one. It turned out great. Soon she was getting more orders for them than the raggedy ann dolls. Through the years she kept up with the trends and continued to work out of their home sewing different toys.
