An exhibition of Barbie dolls is held at the pret-a-porter Paris Fair in Paris, France, March 7, 2009. [Zhang Yuwei/Xinhua]

A Barbie fan Mccalla Argon said, "Growing up she was anything you wanted to be. Growing up, that was so neat to see her in so many different things. She wasn't just pretty. She is smart and stuff so it makes me think I can do anything too. Just like Barbie did."

A Barbie fan Hillary said, "I just think she's fun. She's a good toy for kids. There are so many different kinds of Barbies. Every type of girl you were, you could always find the Barbie that matched you."

Barbie hit toy stores in 1959 as a miniature teenage fashion model, wedged into a zebra-striped bathing suit, with her strawberry blond hair tied up in a pony tail and her eyes painted with sapphire blue shadow.

Over the years, Barbie has tried to ditch the blond model stereotype. She's been reinvented as a modern career woman, and has held more than 75 jobs in addition to being an Olympic athlete, an astronaut and a U.S. presidential candidate.