My Very Dear Companion: Sherry

As I celebrate my 27th Birthday this week, it is finally time for me to post about my most prized possession, my dolly girl, Sherry. She happens to share my share my exact birthday, as I received her on January 26th 1985. Apparently she was made in 1984 but I guess she really wasn't born until she was given to me as a gift from my mothers friend on the day of my birth.

Since that very day Sherry has accompanied me on endless trips to Grandma and Grandpa's, to birthday parties, show and tell, basketball games, even on a road trip to Montana, she finally came with me to college in Bemidji and St. Cloud, today she lives in the big city, sleeping quietly in "the doll room" on Pecks Woods Turn most nights.

She is my very most favorite possession and she is the one thing I would grab if my house was on fire and I could only pick one item. I plan to someday give her to my daughter if I am able to have one. Last year, I was able to score another 1984 Vintage Betsy Wetsy in mint condition on EBay! I was so excited! Now I have one for my collection, and of course the original, to be played with by the children!

Sherry is made by IDEAL in 1984, her actually name is Betsy Wetsy...And she is actually pretty important in history. Betsy Wetsy was one of the first major dolls to be produced in black versions. My estimated value is $75.00 for Betsy in Mint Condition and somewhere between $40-50 for my Sherry.

Betsy Wetsy was one of the most popular drink and wet dolls of the Baby Boom era, originally issued by the Ideal Toy Company of New York in 1935. Named for the daughter of Abraham Katz, the head of the company, the doll's special feature was urinating after a fluid was poured into her open mouth. The doll was made in several sizes in the 1940s and saw a spike in popularity in the 1950s. Betsy Wetsy was produced with either molded hair, wigs, brown, blond, or red plugged hair. A layette, baby bottle, a plastic bath tub, and other accessories were available.
Effanbee had previously manufactured a similar doll, "Dy-Dee," and a patent infringement suit resulted. The judge ruled that drinking and urinating are natural movements and cannot be patented.
A made-in-China version was issued in the late 1980s by Ideal to boost sales, but the doll never reached the success of the original.
In 2003, the Toy Industry Association named Betsy Wetsy to its Century of Toys List, a roll call commemorating the 100 most memorable and most creative toys of the 20th century.

                                                         My Baby Sherry!

                                             My Mint Condition Betsy Wetsy

                                                            Both Babies