Barbie Retains Her Throne: Hasbro Inc., the...

Barbie Retains Her Throne: Hasbro Inc., the world’s largest toy and game maker, has once again failed to topple Barbie from her throne as queen of the fashion doll industry. The Pawtucket, R.I.-based company has dumped Maxie, a high school prom queen doll it introduced to the market in 1988, because of disappointing sales. It was Hasbro’s second failed attempt in the last five years to capture a profitable chunk of the fashion doll market. “Basically, what happened is that in a child’s mind Maxie became a line extension to Barbie, and I am told that Torrance-based Mattel (makers of Barbie) even considered a patent infringement suit,” said Paul Valentine, toy industry analyst for Standard & Poor’s Corp. of New York. Hasbro officials could not be reached for comment.