Mattel

Mattel, Inc. a toy manufacturing company. In 2008, it ranked 413 on the Fortune 500. The products and brands it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Monster High dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, WWE Toys and, in the early 1980s, video game systems. The company's name is derived from Harold "Matt" Matson and Elliot Handler, who founded the company in 1945. Handler's wife, Ruth Handler, later became president, and she is credited with establishing the Barbie product line for the company in 1959. After the release of the Barbie doll, Mattel revolutionized the toy industry with its talking dolls and toys. Major successes in the 1960s with the talking Chatty Cathy doll in 1960 and See 'N Say toys in 1965 moved Mattel to its position as the number one toymaker in America. Mattel closed its last factory in the United States of America, originally part of the Fisher-Price division, in 2002, outsourcing production to China, the beginning of a chain of events that led to a scandal involving lead contamination. On Friday, September 3, 2010, a small-scale "Flash Crash" appears to have occurred in Mattel shares which plunged 22% in pre-market trade for no apparent reason, only to recover shortly thereafter.
==History==
In late 2009, Mattel signed a deal to make WWE toys starting in 2010. The deal has proven to be successful for WWE, garnering nearly $52 million in toy and related merchandise sales in 2010, compared to $44.7 million the previous year.
==Sponsored events==
==External links==
*Mattel
*Vintage Mattel toys
*Mattel Toys Pictures of many toys at Figure-archive.net
*Matchbox Collectors Forum - The place to discuss anything about the Matchbox brand from inception in 1953 to today
*Matchbox Catalogue - A comprehensive catalogue of all Matchbox diecast
Category:Toys
Category:Toy manufacturers
Category:Wrestling sponsors