European Dolls, Bears and Mickey Mouse

Steiff

Steiff is a German company that has been making stuffed toys since 1880. Most famously, the company was one of the first to create the teddy bear. Something characteristic about Steiff toys is a label with button in ear.

Steiff has been collaborating with the Disney company since the 1930s, releasing its first Mickey Mouse plush in 1931. They host a dedicated Disney page on their site, chronicling the collaboration. Beyond depicting Disney characters in plush form, they're also mentioned in the context of the Teddy Bear & Doll Convention in Walt Disney World.

One crossover not mentioned on that page is the Mickey Mouse they made for Donaldson.

Annette Himstedt

Who was Annette Himstedt?

Annette Himstedt didn’t grow up dreaming of dolls. In fact, as a child whose family fled from East Germany in the 1950s, she didn’t even own one. She preferred her teddy bear and books of fairy tales. Her path into the world of high-end collectables was more of a mid-life pivot than a lifelong calling.

Through working as a model in the fashion industry in her 20s, Himstedt discovered dolls and started working on making her own in 1974. According to an article in Doll Reader (August 2009), it all began with the simple pebble dolls shown below. By 1979 she brought a clay model she had sculpted to a porcelain factory, and with much trial and error got the process down. Her business took off by 1984, and she expanded to vinyl dolls.

It was in that same year than she traveled to Senegal on behalf of Unicef, where she photographed local children. A Senegalese girl named Fatou modelled for what became one of Annette's most highly regarded dolls. Since then Himstedt was fascinated with portraying children from a diverse range of countries.

In 1988 she opened her own porcelain factory in Paderborn, and by 2000 the production of the vinyl dolls was also moved to Paderborn.

Since she had a lot of American collectors, the weakening dollar and an unwillingness to increase American prices led to massive losses, with the financial crisis of 2008 being the final nail in the coffin.

A Disney Connection?

Maus & Mausie visit Walt Disney, the catalog of the Winzlinge states in the year 2000. Winzlinge, German for tiny people (littlings), were a series of collectable porcelain dolls. I've been told these were the subject of a lawsuit by Disney, but I haven't been able to find any information about that. Having held the catalog in my hands, I can at least say there's not a single line of legalese in there tying this properly to Disney. No copyright or trademark notices are present at all.