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The New "Historical" American Girl Doll Is From the 1980s, So Elder Millennials Are Officially Old

Photo credit: American Girl
Photo credit: American Girl

From Good Housekeeping

  • American Girl is releasing its first new historical doll in three years.

  • Courtney Moore is a gamer from 1986 whose accessories include a Care Bears sleeping bag and a Caboodle with hair accessories.

  • Kids who grew up in the '80s are having big feelings about the doll.


For fans of American Girl or the 1980s, the new, historical doll, Courtney Moore, is awesome to the max. Courtney is from the fictional town of Orange Valley, California, and, in true '80s-girl fashion, she loves going to the mall, playing arcade games — she wants to design one someday — and styling her hair in ultra-high curly ponytails.

It's Courtney's accessories, though, that are instantly familiar to anyone who grew up in the '80s. She has a see-through phone for her bedroom. Her room also has a Caboodles carrying kit to organize her scrunchies and her Lip Smackers. Her Care Bears PJs match her Care Bears sleeping bag, ready for sleepovers. There's tiny folders with a neon-colored dolphin and unicorn, mix tapes on cassette with hand-written liner notes, a fanny pack, slouchy socks — it all brings up a nostalgic feelings for '80s kids.

But it also has them wondering ... historical? It seems children of the the day-glo decade are having big feelings about the relics of their childhood bedrooms being treated like artifacts from a bygone era, the way Kirsten's quilt was used to exemplify the pioneer days.

Others feel an instant kinship to Courtney and feel the need to re-buy their own childhoods in miniaturized form.

Of course, others are having none of it and don't care about being labeled a historical relic.

Amid the bangle bracelets and PAC-MAN lunch box, one accessory stands out from the rest: Courtney has her own American Girl Doll. Molly, one of the first American Girl dolls, comes in a replica of a Pleasant Company box, with a mini Meet Molly book and a mini Pleasant Company catalogue. Meta!

One thing '80s gamers definitely didn't have growing up: a partnership with Girls Who Code. In honor of Courtney's dreams of becoming a game programmer, American Girl partnering with the organization to support its outreach to girls. When you check out your Courtney doll and accessories, you can also give a $,1 $5 or $10 donation, and American Girl is matching customer donations up to a maximum of $50,000. They're also providing a $5,000 scholarship to four Girls Who Code members. In the words of the 1980s: That's totally rad!

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