Kewpie Doll: The Forgotten 1909 Toy That Shaped Global Character Branding and Collectible Culture
The Kewpie doll began as a drawing, not an object. In 1909, illustrator Rose O’Neill introduced small, round-bellied cherubs in a magazine cartoon, and within a few years those figures escaped the page and entered homes across the world. Today, when people search for “Kewpie doll,” they are usually looking for one of three things:…
