Barbie’s Birthday Bash

Barbie has been celebrating her 40th over the weekend at the American International Toy Fair in New York--the annual event at which she debuted to a lukewarm reception 40 years ago. At a birthday party Sunday night at the Waldorf-Astoria, Mattel was to mark the milestone by launching a yearlong “Ambassadors of Dreams” program in cooperation with Girls Incorporated to inspire girls to “reach for the stars.” The ambassador-mentors are Ruth Handler; Muriel Siebert, the first woman to have a seat on the New York Stock Exchange; talk show host Rosie O’Donnell; Amy Moore, president of People magazine; marine biologist Sylvia Earlie; athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee; technology entrepreneur Katrina Garnett; fashion designer Vera Wang; and entertainment executive Geraldine Laybourne.