Such A
Doll
omewhere in the world,
there's a Suzzy Goosie pic-
ture frame to match
Dorinda Balanecki's
Suzzy Goosie piano.
Her Barbie collection just
won't be complete until she finds
it.
For the third straight year,
Balanecki, an Orion Township
resident, will chair the Barbie
Grants-A-Wish Collectors Con-
vention. And, as always, she'll be
keeping an eye out for that frame,
a product of the defunct, Michi-
gan-based Suzzy Goosie compa-
ny that designed Barbie doll
accessories.
Other than that, Balanecki's
collection sounds pretty complete.
She owns more than 500 of the
leggy plastic bombshells plus ac-
coutrements, an interest that be-
gan in her childhood and became
all-consuming about eight years
ago.
"It's more addicting than any
drug I've ever heard of," she ad-
mits.
Balanecki received her first
Barbie at the age of 5: a 1964
"Swirl Ponytail" brunette wear-
ing a red tank bathing suit. She
fell in love.
"Barbie did everything I did,"
Balanecki says. "If I took a bath,
she took a bath; if we were trav-
eling, she had her suitcase. She
was an extension of myself, a
good friend."
S
Above: Those Barbies are so retro-active.
•
As Balanecki's taste in toys in-
evitably matured, the Barbies
were relegated to dank closet cor-
ners, only to be rediscovered
when Balanecki bought her own
home and began unpacking long-
sealed boxes. Her interest was
immediately rekindled. "It
brought back all these childhood
memories," she says. "I was
hooked."
She's not the only one. The
Barbie subculture consists of an
international network of clubs
like the Great Lakes Chapter of
the Barbie Doll Collectors Club,
of which Balanecki is president.
Her group boasts 73 members
and there are three or four other
chapters in Michigan alone.
Left: Dorinda Balanecki owns more than
500 Barbies.
Like most collector communi-
ties, Barbie hobbyists have es-
tablished a hierarchy for
sought-after items. For instance,
contrary to popular taste,
brunette Barbies carry more ca-
chet among collectors than do
blondes: "They're just a little
more stylish," Balanecki confides.
The Barbies that consumers
most often see on store shelves,
and which run from $6 to $35,
have little bearing on what the
Balaneckis of the world covet.
The collector lines, for which
prices begin at $60, include Bar-
bies from the "Great Eras Col-
lection" (Egyptian and Victorian
Barbies, for instance) and de-
signer dolls wearing fashions cre-
ated by Donna Karan, Calvin
Klein and Nicole Miller. Barbi-
es made of porcelain, and those
dressed by designers Bob Mack-
ie, Christian Dior and Escada,
make up the high-end market
and can sell for as much as
$1,600 for discontinued dolls.
Balanecki says she "has a lit-
tle bit of everything" in her col-
lection. She can't name a favorite
style Barbie, but she is partial to
the Steiffe head mold. As opposed
to the Superstar Barbie head
mold in which Barbie shows
some teeth, the Steiffe "has her
lips more together," explains Bal-
anecki. "It looks like she's saying
`ew.'"
Lots of people have been say-
ing `ew' about Barbie as of late,
especially women who feel the
doll's goddess-like proportions
compound the unhealthy atti-
tudes young girls have toward
their own bodies. For those crit-
ics, Balanecki has a few choice
words: "Get over it," she snaps.
"It's only a doll."
—Liz Stevens
fit The Barbie Grants-A-Wish
Collectors Convention will in-
clude more than 60 dealers
from as far away as France.
Proceeds benefit the Rainbow
Connection, a nonprofit orga-
nization that grants wishes to
children with chronic or life-
threatening illnesses. 10 a.m.-
4 p.m. Sunday, March 31, at
the Marriott Hotel, 17100
Laurel Park Drive, Livonia.
Admission is $3. (810) 783-
9777.
This Week's Best Bets
94
Sisters Rosensweig
Victor Borge
Robert Grossman
Riffs
Fred Penner
Wendy Wasserstein's award-
winning comedy explores the
modern-day Jewish-American
experience. Closing weekend.
St. Dunstan's Guild of Cran-
brook. 400 Lone Pine Road,
Bloomfield Hills. $10 general
admission. (810) 644-0527.
Pianist-comedian-conductor
Borge combines his many
talents during an evening
with the Detroit Symphony
at Orchestra Hall.
Tickets are $15-$38.
(313) 833-3700.
Recently seen and heard
performing his own
compositions in the Attic
Theatre's Twelfth Night,
Grossman comes to 7th House
for an evening of song. Free.
7 N. Saginaw (in Habatat
Galleries), Pontiac.
335-3540.
Local playwright Bill Harris
brings to the stage his story of
four old-time Detroiters who
spend their time reminiscing
about their pasts. Tickets are
$15-$25. Attic Theatre, Trapper's
Alley, Detroit. (313) 963-9339.
The Canadian singer,
musician and premier
children's entertainer spends
an afternoon at Orchestra
Hall. Tickets are $7-$17.
Fri. & Sat., 8 p.m.
Fri .-Sat.,
Sat. 8:30 p.m.
Sun., 3 p.m.
Sat., 8 p.m.
Fri., 8 p.m.
Sat., 4 p.m. & 8 p.m.
Sun., 2 & 6 p.m.
Sat., 1 1 :30 a.m.
& 2 p.m.