- For the in-series club the girls form, see here: Magic Attic Club
The Magic Attic Club is a line of 18" dolls designed and released with a soft launch in 1994, followed by a full launch in 1995. The line was owned by four different companies before it terminated by late 2004. Before the line terminated, they were the second most popular 18" doll line behind their competitor, American Girl.
Overview[]
The line focuses on four, and later five ten-year-old girls (with two short-lived characters) who live in the same neighborhood. They are given a golden key to access an attic in the home of an elderly neighbor, Ellie Goodwin, (who was replaced by Megan's aunt Maggie Carmody in the reboot). In the attic, a wardrobe and storage trunk are present (that contain various costumes) and a mirror. When the girls dress up in any costume they find and look at themselves in the full-length mirror, they are then magically transported to various locations -- real and fantastical, past and present -- and find themselves in an adventure relating to their outfit. The adventure imports a lesson or insight to the girl and, after she returns home via another reflective surface with newfound knowledge, she applies it to her life.
After their first adventure, the girls formed the "Magic Attic Club" which they share as a secret with Ellie, and promise to share all of their adventures with one another and write them down in their diaries.
Of the seven characters, five had books about their adventures, along with associated outfits and accessories that bring the adventures to life. One had planned unreleased books and no collection, and one was released as a doll but never included in any books or stories.
Doll Design[]
The dolls are 18.5" tall and referred to as "slim" or "slender" 18 inch dolls by collectors to distinguish them from the more "standard" 18" size with thicker torsos (such as American Girl). The dolls have fixed, inset acrylic eyes with painted lashes. Their hair has been Kanekalon (1994-1991), rooted saran (2003), and wigged saran (2004). They are all-vinyl and semi-strung with five points of articulation at the head, shoulders, and hips. Some of them have numbers on the back of their heads.
The 1994 dolls of Alison, Heather, and Megan had smaller eye sockets and ten lashes painted under each eye; the 1994 dolls and all subsequent dolls had larger eye sockets and five lashes painted under each eye.
Four distinct face molds were released:
- First Face Mold (shared by Alison, Heather, and Megan)
- Keisha's Face Mold
- Rose's Face Mold (shared with Chloe)
- 2003 New Megan Face Mold released by Marian
The 2003 dolls were additionally given molded navels.
The retail price for dolls (including outfit, hairbrush, child's key necklace, and included book) ranged between $54 and $74.
History of the Line[]
The line was initially conceptualized by Gretchen Springer and Jeff McKinnon of Georgetown Collection. "Our feeling is that Pleasant Company [manufacturer of American Girl] has really identified a whole new market and we are trying to fill a gap in that market," Springer is quoted as saying in a November 1995 Doll Reader article [1]. The intention was to fill the market for "modern girls" that American Girl couldn't fulfill at the time (as American Girl had yet to release their modern American Girl of Today line, which they did in 1995). Robert Tonner, a well-known doll artist, was hired to sculpt the dolls. Tonner, a former Fifth Avenue fashion designer, also created most of the costumes.
A soft launch in the fall of 1994 included starter outfits for dolls Alison McCann, Heather Hardin, and Megan Ryder, as well as three adventure collections and Bedroom Sets. Several authors were in line to write the "bible" or the original story, but in 1995 Sheri Cooper Sinykin ended up writing the released introductory book which added the character Keisha Vance; the full launch of the line was made in 1995.
In 1997, L.L. Knickerbocker Company, Inc. bought the Magic Attic Club doll brand. Gretchen Springer and Jeff McKinnon left the company at this time. The character Rose Hopkins was introduced in the fall along with her collection, three books of solo adventures for her, and a group adventure book introducing her, Trapped Beyond the Magic Attic.
In 1998, Knickerbocker experienced several financial difficulties. Sheri Cooper Sinykin has been quoted as stating the people working with Knickerbocker were not "full of excitement and enthusiasm" as the former company when it came to the brand. In 1999, Chapter 11 bankruptcy was filed, resulting in Knickerbocker pivoting away from individual adventures in favor of general items and accessories starting in 2000 (and not launching the planned character Jane).
In late 2001, the doll and character Chloe was released and was met with mixed reception. Robert Tonner had been working on an Asian sculpt, so many fans had assumed Chloe would be so and were disappointed to find out she wasn't. Chloe also had a more mature style of dress that didn't go over well with some parents. Due to the pivot away from adventures, she didn't receive any adventure stories or character collections.
In October 2001, Brian Blosil and actress Marie Osmond purchased all of Knickerbocker's assets and formed the brand Marian, LLC. In 2003, the collection went through a re-branding and reboot under Marian, including the retirement of the character Chloe and changing Rose from Cheyenne indigenous to Hispanic and renaming her Rosa Garcia. The stories were also changed dramatically with all older books being removed from continuity and the new book, The Adventure Begins, intended to start a new series of books. (One synopsis erroneously suggested the characters were 15 years old as opposed to the ten they were in the book.)
The rebranding was poorly received due to multiple reasons including Rose's change of ethnicity, the full reboot of the characters and line removing all past connections, quality and cost issues, a lack of individual adventures or items, and the inability to purchase via catalog and only in selected retail stores.
Eventually, Charisma Brands purchased the brand in February 2004 and attempted changes to restore things, along with small releases. They found little success and thus allowed the brand to cease production in late 2004.
Locating Products[]
Items have not been released under any company since 2004 when the line went defunct.
Most of the dolls and products can now be found via secondhand markets, such as websites like Ebay and Etsy. The majority of books are also available through secondhand book markets.