We all know that the first American woman in space was Sally Ride who flew aboard the space shuttle Challenger in 1983, but in the hearts and imaginations of millions of young girls around the world in 1965, the title belonged to another woman, well, she was only a doll, but Astronaut Barbie made girls believe that one day, they could actually fly into space themselves. 

That same year, the Hasbro toy company introduced their own astronaut – Astronaut GI Joe.  

This episode will take a look at the history of both Barbie and GI Joe in space and how Barbie is now a role model for inspiring girls to literally reach to the stars through STEM programs which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.  

It will also discuss how Astronaut GI Joe helped convince Werhner von Braun and NASA to develop the lunar rover that would be used on the Apollo moon missions. 

Show Notes:

Barbie’s Debut TV Commercial 1959 (Video)

A Brief History of Bild Lilli, The Doll Barbie Was Modeled After (Video)

1986 Astronaut Barbie Commercial (Video) 

A Great Barbie Commercial Inspiring Girls That They Can Do Anything, including STEM career (Video) 

The History of GI Joe (American Experience Webpage) 

Original 1964 GI Joe Commercial (Video)

A Collection of GI Joe Commercials Including Astronaut GI Joe at 3:36 into the Video (Video) 

The OTHER Mattel Astronaut: The Classic Major Matt Mason From (Video) 

The First Major Matt Mason Commercial (Video)