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Toy Monster
An eye-popping, unauthorized expos? of the House of Barbie
From Boise to Beijing, Mattel's toys dominate the universe. Its no-fun-and-games marketing muscle reaches some 140 countries, and its iconic products have been a part of our culture for generations. Now, in this intriguing and entertaining expos?, New York Times bestselling author Jerry Oppenheimer places the world's largest toy company under a journalistic microscope, uncovering the dark side of toy land, and exploring Mattel's oddball corporate culture and eccentric, often bizarre, cast of characters.
Based on exclusive interviews and an exhaustive review of public and private records, Toy Monster exposes Mattel's take-no-prisoners, shark-infested corporate style. Throughout this scrupulously reported, unauthorized portrait, you'll discover how dangerous toys are actually nothing new to Mattel, and why its fearsomely litigious approach within the brutal toy business has helped their products dominate potential rivals such as Bratz.
Introduces you to the larger-than-life personalities that have shaped Mattel's eccentric world Offers an inside look- from an experienced author-at the scandals that have been a part of this iconic company Jerry Oppenheimer is also the author of Madoff with the Money, an in-depth look at Bernie Madoff the man and his billion dollar scam Engaging and accessible, Toy Monster shows you why today's toy business isn't always fun and games.
From Boise to Beijing, Mattel's toys dominate the universe. Its no-fun-and-games marketing muscle reaches some 140 countries, and its iconic products have been a part of our culture for generations. Now, in this intriguing and entertaining expos?, New York Times bestselling author Jerry Oppenheimer places the world's largest toy company under a journalistic microscope, uncovering the dark side of toy land, and exploring Mattel's oddball corporate culture and eccentric, often bizarre, cast of characters.
Based on exclusive interviews and an exhaustive review of public and private records, Toy Monster exposes Mattel's take-no-prisoners, shark-infested corporate style. Throughout this scrupulously reported, unauthorized portrait, you'll discover how dangerous toys are actually nothing new to Mattel, and why its fearsomely litigious approach within the brutal toy business has helped their products dominate potential rivals such as Bratz.
Introduces you to the larger-than-life personalities that have shaped Mattel's eccentric world Offers an inside look- from an experienced author-at the scandals that have been a part of this iconic company Jerry Oppenheimer is also the author of Madoff with the Money, an in-depth look at Bernie Madoff the man and his billion dollar scam Engaging and accessible, Toy Monster shows you why today's toy business isn't always fun and games.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2009
About the author
Jerry Oppenheimer
15 books86 followersJerry Oppenheimer is an author who has written several unauthorized biographies of public figures including Hillary and Bill Clinton, Anna Wintour, Rock Hudson, Martha Stewart, Barbara Walters, Ethel Kennedy, Jerry Seinfeld and the Hilton family.
Toy Monster: The Big Bad World of Mattel was published on Feb 3 2009 and his latest book (as of Aug 2, 2009), will be about Bernie Madoff, titled Madoff with the Money. Both published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
In addition to being a biographer he has also worked in several different capacities as a journalist, including as an investigative reporter and a producer of television news programs and documentaries.
Toy Monster: The Big Bad World of Mattel was published on Feb 3 2009 and his latest book (as of Aug 2, 2009), will be about Bernie Madoff, titled Madoff with the Money. Both published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
In addition to being a biographer he has also worked in several different capacities as a journalist, including as an investigative reporter and a producer of television news programs and documentaries.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
March 14, 2009
If you are interested in what Mattel is really like as a company and a place to work or if you are truly interested in how the toy business operates, do not bother reading this piece of high-priced trash.
I was an employee of Mattel for eight plus years in the late 70's to the mid 80's and was eventually laid off (a euphemism for being fired). I was in the wrong place at the wrong time but I still value the years I worked there and do not share Oppenheimer's opinions about what a cruel environment it was to work in.
I started out to mark every error and unsubstantiated allegation I saw in the book in light blue pencil but I was making so many marks, I was ruining the book. I also realized that if I was to point out all of Oppenheimer's mis-information in detail that my review would be longer then the book itself.
He spends the first hundred or so pages trashing Ruth Handler and describing, in awe-struck terms, the sexual prowess of Jack Ryan, a gifted inventor but not the "Father of Barbie" as Oppenheimer claims. That is unless Ryan has an illegitimate daughter somewhere named Barbie.
Many of his major sources are suspect in that they were fired by Mattel and in some cases spent years suing the Company for improper termination, which cases they all lost.
He totally skips over the Ray Wagner, Glenn Hastings and John Ammerman years except in passing comments showing how callous they were. He never discusses how Mattel came back from the dead when the Electronics Division went bust and Glenn Hastings convinced the bankers that Mattel Toy Company was a viable business giving Art Spears, the Chairman, the time he needed to bring in new investors.
On the other hand, he spends almost a third of the book on Jill Barad someone who was President for less than five years.
A lot of his accusations are by implication and insinuation, hardly good journalism but then this book isn't journalism but a mostly unsubstantiated attack on Mattel.
I can't imagine why anyone who wasn't personally acquainted with the people in the book would want to plow through Oppenheimer's turgid and tired prose. His constant refrain of "more about that later" and his whining about people who would not talk to him while implying they had something to hide grew very tiresome.
Has Mattel and its leaders screwed up from time to time? Of course. But as I watch major financial institutions and automobile companies crash taking the entire U.S. economy with them, I wonder why Oppenheimer is spending his time on a relatively small company that manufactures playthings.
The answer, I suspect, is because of the fact that toys, particularly Barbie, resonate culturally. After all, what this author is interested in is selling books, not presenting a balanced picture of the good and the bad in the organization. He is in a word, salacious, rather than reasonable or objective because that will sell his product.
I think it's instructive that the only positive blurbs on the dust cover are from C. David Heymann and Kitty Kelley, two other authors who would rather tear down than be objective.
If you do want to read this book, save your money and wait a short time until you will be able to buy it at a much reduced price out of the remainder bins at your neighborhood bookstore.
I was an employee of Mattel for eight plus years in the late 70's to the mid 80's and was eventually laid off (a euphemism for being fired). I was in the wrong place at the wrong time but I still value the years I worked there and do not share Oppenheimer's opinions about what a cruel environment it was to work in.
I started out to mark every error and unsubstantiated allegation I saw in the book in light blue pencil but I was making so many marks, I was ruining the book. I also realized that if I was to point out all of Oppenheimer's mis-information in detail that my review would be longer then the book itself.
He spends the first hundred or so pages trashing Ruth Handler and describing, in awe-struck terms, the sexual prowess of Jack Ryan, a gifted inventor but not the "Father of Barbie" as Oppenheimer claims. That is unless Ryan has an illegitimate daughter somewhere named Barbie.
Many of his major sources are suspect in that they were fired by Mattel and in some cases spent years suing the Company for improper termination, which cases they all lost.
He totally skips over the Ray Wagner, Glenn Hastings and John Ammerman years except in passing comments showing how callous they were. He never discusses how Mattel came back from the dead when the Electronics Division went bust and Glenn Hastings convinced the bankers that Mattel Toy Company was a viable business giving Art Spears, the Chairman, the time he needed to bring in new investors.
On the other hand, he spends almost a third of the book on Jill Barad someone who was President for less than five years.
A lot of his accusations are by implication and insinuation, hardly good journalism but then this book isn't journalism but a mostly unsubstantiated attack on Mattel.
I can't imagine why anyone who wasn't personally acquainted with the people in the book would want to plow through Oppenheimer's turgid and tired prose. His constant refrain of "more about that later" and his whining about people who would not talk to him while implying they had something to hide grew very tiresome.
Has Mattel and its leaders screwed up from time to time? Of course. But as I watch major financial institutions and automobile companies crash taking the entire U.S. economy with them, I wonder why Oppenheimer is spending his time on a relatively small company that manufactures playthings.
The answer, I suspect, is because of the fact that toys, particularly Barbie, resonate culturally. After all, what this author is interested in is selling books, not presenting a balanced picture of the good and the bad in the organization. He is in a word, salacious, rather than reasonable or objective because that will sell his product.
I think it's instructive that the only positive blurbs on the dust cover are from C. David Heymann and Kitty Kelley, two other authors who would rather tear down than be objective.
If you do want to read this book, save your money and wait a short time until you will be able to buy it at a much reduced price out of the remainder bins at your neighborhood bookstore.
February 1, 2011
I was looking forward to this book as an expose of the inner workings of a massive toy company, and the fight over who really created "Barbie". Instead, I got a book in which the author's bias is terribly clear: he hates Ruth Handler and worships Jack Ryan. The bias shows up in the language used to describe the various players: someone that the author likes simply "tells" a story, while someone that he doesn't like is "boasting" when he details his resume. And boy, does the author hate Ruth Handler and Jill Barad, uppity females that they were.
Also, if Jack Ryan had been referred to as "the Father of Barbie" instead of by his name ONE MORE TIME I was going to throw the book out the window. It became a joke: The Father of Barbie went outside. The Father of Barbie sat down to dinner. The Father of Barbie answered the phone. It was late, so the Father of Barbie went to bed.
The book is also sloppy and repetitive: we're told more than once that Demi Moore MAY have based her portrayal of a businesswoman on Jill Barad! Wow! That's fascinating! Of course, there's no documentation for the reality of this, other than the fact that Moore toured Mattel once. But this writer doesn't seem to feel the need to actually back up any of his claims: this is just one example of his use of gossip, maybes and perhapses.
Almost unreadable; too bad. I'd love to read a serious book on the subject rather than this gossipy mess.
Also, if Jack Ryan had been referred to as "the Father of Barbie" instead of by his name ONE MORE TIME I was going to throw the book out the window. It became a joke: The Father of Barbie went outside. The Father of Barbie sat down to dinner. The Father of Barbie answered the phone. It was late, so the Father of Barbie went to bed.
The book is also sloppy and repetitive: we're told more than once that Demi Moore MAY have based her portrayal of a businesswoman on Jill Barad! Wow! That's fascinating! Of course, there's no documentation for the reality of this, other than the fact that Moore toured Mattel once. But this writer doesn't seem to feel the need to actually back up any of his claims: this is just one example of his use of gossip, maybes and perhapses.
Almost unreadable; too bad. I'd love to read a serious book on the subject rather than this gossipy mess.
July 17, 2015
Toy Monster is a great expose into the creation, demise, resurrection, and contemporary struggles that Mattel has experienced.
Less about Barbie than you might imagine, this book covers a broad range of topics, focusing on the innovative Jack Ryan and his experience with Mattel, and following the brand through the decades, warts and all.
There’s not a significant amount of time spent talking about the Handlers, and I feel that there is a big story there that’s waiting to be told. How did Barbie and Ken live with their toy monikers? There was a slight reference to a struggle with the images, but not enough to really get into the topic.
I enjoyed the marketing and business analysis chapters of the book – don’t worry, they aren’t too deep and they are explained in such a way that they are interesting not just numbers based. Who knew He-Man was just a marketing ploy to sell those ugly toys? I don’t know why anyone ever purchased those!
The discussions around the CEO’s of Mattel were really interesting, especially from the feminism standpoint. Both Handler and Barad used their femininity as a blessing and as a curse in their decision making processes at Mattel, and it’s interesting to read about how they perceived their struggles, as well as the community opinions on their performance as highly paid CEO’s.
There’s a few chapters at the end covering the importation of faulty goods and the Bratz Saga, but they both ended rather abruptly. I guess the book came out in the middle of litigation, but without the resolution, you’re reading something that just ends without an ending. Would have been better keeping those out.
April 28, 2009
This author wrote a completely one sided story with no facts to support it. Just because he repeats "Father of Barbie" ten million times does not make it true!
May 29, 2016
One of my very first work experiences has been as a temporary at Mattel, in Europe. It wasn't bad, even if I were a little more than an intern and I knew there were no chance of staying. We were already in 2001, in the last part of the book and in the less glamorous part of the Mattel history.
And I still cherish the Barbie I got for Christmas, a limited edition in a red gown, as a company present. Unfortunately now that I read this book I will look upon my doll my doll with different, more skeptical eyes, because the toy is quite a bully, and a not-so-good example of girl power.
First of all, the mother of Barbie is a father, a Californian playboy who modeled the doll on his playmates. Ruth Handler is indeed the founder of Mattel but not of the doll, although her tenacity in changing the corporate history paid off and now the only name we remember is hers.
Oppenheimer took us from the garage where the magic started, to the rise and the (mild) fall of the toy giant, from the dangerous Polly Pocket to the disappearance of the Bratz dolls.
To me few of these notions are new, but I never read them together and I have to say that it's an impressive chronology. And I'm not impressed in a good way, not at all.
And I still cherish the Barbie I got for Christmas, a limited edition in a red gown, as a company present. Unfortunately now that I read this book I will look upon my doll my doll with different, more skeptical eyes, because the toy is quite a bully, and a not-so-good example of girl power.
First of all, the mother of Barbie is a father, a Californian playboy who modeled the doll on his playmates. Ruth Handler is indeed the founder of Mattel but not of the doll, although her tenacity in changing the corporate history paid off and now the only name we remember is hers.
Oppenheimer took us from the garage where the magic started, to the rise and the (mild) fall of the toy giant, from the dangerous Polly Pocket to the disappearance of the Bratz dolls.
To me few of these notions are new, but I never read them together and I have to say that it's an impressive chronology. And I'm not impressed in a good way, not at all.
April 22, 2009
I really enjoyed reading this book. What an eye opener! I learned so much about the makings of Barbie and her creators in the first 20 pages than I ever thought I would ever know. I love that this book didn't feel like it held back any and didn't really feel like an expose. It did however cover everything including the massive toy recall of 2007 and the lawsuit with the Bratz dolls.
June 4, 2009
Mattel was my family for many years. Interested to see what comes out. (And, what doesn't...)
June 7, 2009
Skip the first 100 pages about Ruth Handler and Jack Ryan. The only exciting stuff is in 2007/2008. As stated by someone else, not enough facts and week bibliography.
July 7, 2009
The book was about as deep and insightful as a copy of "US Weekly" :(
July 12, 2009
I could not get through this book. I only read one chapter and all of that was focused on the escapades of the creator of Barbie, one Jack character. Definitely not worth your time.
January 23, 2016
Mattel, the world's largest toy company, has had its share of problems and scandals over the 6 decades it has been in business. Beginning with the feud between co-presidents Jack Ryan and Ruth Handler over who really came up with the Barbie doll, up to the latest fiasco involving massive recalls of millions of toys due to high-lead paint content and the even more deadly tiny magnets that were swallowed by children. Barbie was the genius invention of Mattel and the largest selling fashion doll in the world ---- until what the author calls that "slutty, freaky-looking, upstart" doll line, Bratz, appeared in 2001 and Barbie suddenly found herself replaced in the hearts of little girls everywhere. Barbie may have the last laugh on the Bratz Pack as Mattel sued Bratz parent company MGA citing copyright infringement and stating that the designer, who had previously worked for Mattel, came up with the idea for the dolls while working for them. Mattel won the lawsuit but MGA seems to still be the production company. Through Congressional hearings, misappropriation of funds, Consumer Product Safety censures and grass-roots boycotts by concerned parents, Mattel remains the largest toy manufacturer world-wide.
For the most part I enjoyed this eye-opening account of Mattel's inner workings although, at times, the book seemed like a vicious 'trash and bash' to me. I would think that over 60 years Mattel must have done something good and not be all about profits, but that may just be me being naive. It also makes one wonder about the integrity of other large companies and what skeletons may be lurking in the closets of their own Barbie dream houses.
For the most part I enjoyed this eye-opening account of Mattel's inner workings although, at times, the book seemed like a vicious 'trash and bash' to me. I would think that over 60 years Mattel must have done something good and not be all about profits, but that may just be me being naive. It also makes one wonder about the integrity of other large companies and what skeletons may be lurking in the closets of their own Barbie dream houses.
December 17, 2009
A fairly quick read, thanks in part to its gossipy tone. While the book is divided into three sections, the chronology within each section tends to be scattered. The book might have been better if it focused more on the early days with flamboyant Jack Ryan and his nemesis, the Handler couple. The section on the recent scandals of Mattel products having lead-based paint or ingestible pieces reads more like the daily news, and while it exposes corporate shenanigans, you really can't call anything in this book terribly shocking. More of a bummer, really.
August 16, 2021
One of my family members was in the toy business, so that was my main reason for reading this book. He knew many of the people discussed in the story, so it was quite intriguing. The writing style was a little annoying at times (repeated descriptions and nicknames of people) but all in all it was a quick read.
February 11, 2013
I guess three stars is a bit generous, since I started reading it two years ago and haven't bothered to re-borrow it from the library so I can finish it. I don't think I'll be doing that, and I made it through most of the book, so I'll consider it read. It's basically a gossip column in book form--interesting but devoid of useful information.
July 13, 2012
Finished. And I need a bath. I feel unclean.
This is the worst sort of biased, sensationalistic reportage. The author clearly wrote only about what titillated him, focusing his "history" of Mattel on a couple of extreme personalities that were at the company decades apart from each other. His little stories are salacious, one-sided, and lack balance. I will not read another book by him.
This is the worst sort of biased, sensationalistic reportage. The author clearly wrote only about what titillated him, focusing his "history" of Mattel on a couple of extreme personalities that were at the company decades apart from each other. His little stories are salacious, one-sided, and lack balance. I will not read another book by him.
Want to Read
January 9, 2009I attribute my piqued interest in this to two factors:
1) My nerdy journalism side who still likes to read these kinds of books
and
2) The 30-plus Barbies I obsessed over in my collection as a child.
1) My nerdy journalism side who still likes to read these kinds of books
and
2) The 30-plus Barbies I obsessed over in my collection as a child.
November 20, 2011
I wish this one was a little quicker read. I found it to be a bit slow in parts.
However-My favorite part was the notion that the owners of Mattel created a car with a 360 seat in order to be able to show off the lady parts of young girls. Awesome Thought!
However-My favorite part was the notion that the owners of Mattel created a car with a 360 seat in order to be able to show off the lady parts of young girls. Awesome Thought!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 20, 2009
Oppenheimer's prose was so abysmal that I pretty much spent the entire book making fun of it. I will never read another book by him. But Mattel's history is dirty and entertaining and so I made it to the end of the book.
July 2, 2011
A salacious if not insightful look into the greedy foibles of three Mattel CEOs from the sex-obsessed Jack Ryan (a Mr., Zsa Zsa Gabor) to the narcissistic and incompetent Jill Barad to current CEO and Bratz-slayer Robert A. Eckert.
July 28, 2011
Really easy, interesting, angering read. Mattel really is not the family friendly company they've had us believe. Also the recent 2.3 million dollar fine for the lead paint seems like a joke if this book is true.
Read
January 8, 2009Oppenheimer writes about the seamy side of everything, and I love it.
Read
April 2, 2009This starts off very unusually.....
October 5, 2011
I listened to this audiobook immediately after it was released. There were no reviews and I had no idea what to expect. I have to say, I learned a lot. I thought this book was really fascinating.
December 12, 2013
Great read and inside look into the completely effed-up life of Jack Ryan!
February 17, 2015
I found this book riveting. It paints Mattel as a fairly evil company with a handful of runway bestselling products and an army of aggressive lawyers.
October 4, 2017
As a 10 year old boy in the early 70's, I thought Mattel could do no wrong. It would take another 45 years to learn the back story and just how corrupt that company is.
December 1, 2024
The non-fiction book “Toy Monster: The Big, Bad World of Mattel” by Jerry Oppenheimer tells the peculiar story of the world-renowned brand, Mattel, as well as the biography of Jack Ryan or the “Father of Barbie”. It seems that almost the entire world has played with or at least heard of Barbie dolls, but most don’t know the mad, disturbing story behind them. Mattel's stashed skeletons are pulled out of the closet as their merciless corporation style and dirty secrets are revealed as well as the true intentions of the people involved with the Mattel crisis. I’m not a huge fan of non-fiction, but this book was genuinely interesting and made me more curious about the lore of larger corporations. One thing that I liked was that although I didn’t have any previous knowledge of Jack Ryan or any of the other large figures in the book, I could easily understand their character and visualize them because of the author's attention to detail and writing style. My favorite quote is "The toy industry was not for the faint of heart. It was a warzone where only the strongest survived." Overall, this was a good read considering I don’t typically read non-fiction books, it kept me intrigued the whole way through. I would probably give this book a 5/5 because I never got bored of the book and found the stories inside very interesting. I would recommend this book to readers who are interested in getting into non-fiction books or enjoy lore, especially from large companies we love and trust today.
March 11, 2025
Different and Interesting
I have to say I've never before read a book about toys. But these are not just ANY toys, no! THESE are toys designed and created by mega toy company, Mattel! If you have children, then chances are excellent you have Mattel toys in your home at one time or another. Their products are after all, iconic. What little girl hasn't gone to bed on Christmas Eve dreaming of Barbie under the Christmas tree? And for the young boys in the family? Hot Wheels were sure to be packed on Santa's sleigh!
This book goes back to the beginning when the company hadn't even been formed yet. We learn of the founders of Mattel, and the "mother" and "father" of Barbie. We learn about the designers and creative minds who became executives of the company and interesting descriptions of their lives and personalities, their "quirks" if you will. And we watch as Mattel begins their rise to fame and fortune -- even as it endures growing pains, conflicts both internally and with other competitors, legal battles both initiated against them and brought BY them etc.
Very well written book, interesting and doesn't "beat" any one topic or product into the ground which helps the reader stay focused. Edited with care and seems well researched.
I have to say I've never before read a book about toys. But these are not just ANY toys, no! THESE are toys designed and created by mega toy company, Mattel! If you have children, then chances are excellent you have Mattel toys in your home at one time or another. Their products are after all, iconic. What little girl hasn't gone to bed on Christmas Eve dreaming of Barbie under the Christmas tree? And for the young boys in the family? Hot Wheels were sure to be packed on Santa's sleigh!
This book goes back to the beginning when the company hadn't even been formed yet. We learn of the founders of Mattel, and the "mother" and "father" of Barbie. We learn about the designers and creative minds who became executives of the company and interesting descriptions of their lives and personalities, their "quirks" if you will. And we watch as Mattel begins their rise to fame and fortune -- even as it endures growing pains, conflicts both internally and with other competitors, legal battles both initiated against them and brought BY them etc.
Very well written book, interesting and doesn't "beat" any one topic or product into the ground which helps the reader stay focused. Edited with care and seems well researched.
April 24, 2020
I thoroughly enjoyed this expose slash biography of Mattel and honestly never really expected that the behind the scenes stories of Jack "The Father of Barbie" Ryan and Ruth "The Mother of Barbie" Handler to be so interesting. There's undeniably a soap opera angle to the whole write-up as opposed to a dry, straight faced facts biography (as I was expecting) but I don't think that is to the book's detriment as other reviewers seem to suggest however, what I did find to be disappointing is the books abrupt ending.
The book ends with the Bratz (MGA) vs. Mattel dispute but only goes up to covering the end 2008, where a judge had told MGA to stop selling Bratz but permitted retailers to continue to ship Bratz products, but allowed retailers to continue to sell through the end of 2009. The end.
Yet as anyone who followed the story will know that MGA would eventually go on to win the case (and a $310 million payout from Mattel) in 2012. It's not a good book when you have to go and read the ending on Wikipedia.
The book ends with the Bratz (MGA) vs. Mattel dispute but only goes up to covering the end 2008, where a judge had told MGA to stop selling Bratz but permitted retailers to continue to ship Bratz products, but allowed retailers to continue to sell through the end of 2009. The end.
Yet as anyone who followed the story will know that MGA would eventually go on to win the case (and a $310 million payout from Mattel) in 2012. It's not a good book when you have to go and read the ending on Wikipedia.
January 10, 2024
3.5
Agarre este libro originalmente para ver lo de barbie principalmente, su principal aportación nueva fue que el la primera vez que me toca que hablen de John W. Ryan como parte de la historia del origen de la muñeca y como termino opacado por Ruth Handle.
En general se me hizo un buen libro, el mejor de los que me echado de la creación de barbie ya que la información no parece sacada de wikipedia. Las historias de los otros juguetes de Mattel fue interesante a pesar de que no me importaban originalmente.
Agarre este libro originalmente para ver lo de barbie principalmente, su principal aportación nueva fue que el la primera vez que me toca que hablen de John W. Ryan como parte de la historia del origen de la muñeca y como termino opacado por Ruth Handle.
En general se me hizo un buen libro, el mejor de los que me echado de la creación de barbie ya que la información no parece sacada de wikipedia. Las historias de los otros juguetes de Mattel fue interesante a pesar de que no me importaban originalmente.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews