Ken Carson

Kenneth Sean "Ken" Carson is a fashion doll introduced by American toy company Mattel in 1961 as the counterpart of Barbie, who had been introduced two years earlier. Similar to Barbie, Ken is from Willows, Wisconsin and has a fashionable line of clothing and accessories (although he made his debut wearing only a swimsuit). In the Barbie mythos, Ken met Barbie on the set of a TV commercial and is her boyfriend, per promotional box inscriptions from his debut until 2018. Currently, he is perceived as one of Barbie's main friends. Since his debut, Ken has held over 40 occupations, the latest being "beach" (standing in the sand and surveying the waves), as depicted in the 2023 Barbie film. History Ken was introduced as a male counterpart of Barbie by American toy company Mattel in 1961. He was named after Kenneth Handler, son of Barbie creator/inventor Ruth Handler, just as Barbie was named after her daughter. Ken Handler died in 1994 of a brain tumor.