What Is Ken's Last Name?

Before we talk about Ken, it is equally important that we know and understand the other character that serves (quite frankly) as the reason for his existence. Apparently, this character needs no introduction since her name is closely associated with Ken himself – she is no other than Barbie!

Barbie was an instant hit in the doll market even on her first release during the late 1950s, and her popularity among kids and doll collectors has been going strong ever since. As such, she can be classified as an American icon that has found her way into the hearts of many children around the world – particularly with girls.

The Mattel toy company owns Barbie and her franchise. Ruth Handler, one of Mattel’s co-founders, came up with the idea of creating a 3D figure toy for girls so they could pretend-play their grown-up dreams. It all started when she observed her daughter playing with paper dolls for hours. She invented the “Barbie Doll” – a name after her daughter, Barbara. In March of 1959, the Barbie Doll made its debut in the New York Toy Fair.

What we really want to know here is Ken’s name, but since we are also discussing Barbie, maybe it’s just appropriate to mention what her full name is. It is Barbara Millicent Roberts.

How Ken Came About

On her early years, Barbie was the only doll with various accessories attached to her toy line. The Barbie brand spread like wildfire all over the globe, and its dolls and accessories gave Mattel millions of revenues. The Mattel company thought, “Why not give Barbie some friends… and maybe a boyfriend?”

They decided to introduce Barbie’s new boyfriend as someone she met while doing a TV commercial. Doing so made sense because Barbie became a hit due to her many TV commercials.

Kenneth Sean Carson (there you go, that’s his full name) was introduced to Barbie’s fans in 1961. In Brazil, however, his name was changed to Bob because Ken means “who” in Portuguese.

From 1961 to 1977, Ken had a straight, non-bendable arms and a head that could only turn left and right. In his first year of release, his hair was made of felt, which avid collectors would later call as “Ken’s flocked hair.” Eventually, the material was replaced with a plastic moulded hairstyle.

Just like Barbie, Ken was named after one of Ruth Handler’s children – Ken Handler. However, she made sure that the face was designed and moulded to look like her husband.

The story of Barbie and Ken has undergone breakups and getting back together over the years. Yet, the children – mostly little girls with whom Barbie has a large fanbase – did not follow all that “craziness.” They just love Barbie, Ken, and their friends.