The first Barbie Doll from 1959 is on display at the interactive exhibition “The World of Barbie” on June 28, 2023, at Santa Monica Place in Santa Monica, California.
Robyn Beck | Afp | Getty Images
A weapons engineer turned doll maker is the unlikely link in “Barbenheimer,” the affectionately dubbed duo from Warner Bros.′ “Barbie” and Universal’s “Oppenheimer.”
The unlikely back-to-back summer marquee titles opened Friday following weeks of frenzy over the differences between the two films — the whimsical and rosy world of “Barbie” versus “Oppenheimer,” the extraordinary story of the American physicist who ushered the world into the atomic age.
However, the Barbie doll comes from a weapons background.
Before designing the world’s most famous doll, Jack Ryan worked for the aerospace giant Raytheon and helped create the weapons that form the backbone of America’s missile defense.
Ryan, a Yale-educated engineer, helped create the Sparrow and Hawk missiles, which laid the groundwork for the Patriot missile system, one of the most advanced air defense weapons in America’s arsenal.
Following his work in the arms business, Ryan went to Mattelwhere he rose to vice president of research and design for the toy manufacturer.
On July 24, 1959, Ryan filed a US patent detailing his concept for what would later become the most famous toy doll. Ryan was granted a patent for “doll making” in November 1961. He is also credited with creating toys such as Chatty Cathy and the Hot Wheels collection.
The patent for the first Barbie produced from the collection of Sid and Alicia Belzberg.
James Leynse | Corbis Historical | Getty Images
Before his death in 1991 by age 65, Ryan had accumulated more than 1,000 patents on his designs.
Meanwhile, theaters are citing strong ticket sales for “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” and are adding additional shows to meet growing demand.
“Barbie” has already taken in $22.3 million at the domestic box office from Thursday night previews, on its way to at least $140 million for the entire weekend. “Oppenheimer” earned $10.5 million on Thursday, looking at $60 million for the weekend.
Read more: ‘Barbenheimer’ gets off to a off to a hot start with $32.8 million in combined sales on Thursday
Furthermore, the two films together are likely to generate more than $200 million in the coming days and are expected to lead to the highest grossing weekend of the year so far at the box office, with some analysts suggesting the weekend could reach $300 million with additional sales from “Mission Impossible,” “Sound of Freedom” and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Man.”
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.
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