Description
Norfin Baby Boy Troll Doll is a rare jointed 12 inch tall anatomically correct doll . This darling DAM troll is a very different concept for the DAM Norfin line with blond rooted acrylic hair and joints at neckline, hips and shoulders. Doll came with a white t-shirt and a sticker on back of shirt “Made In Denmark” . Also has the original tag and plastic bag that was used to ship to retailers. This unique doll is part of my personal collection and has been stored since new when I represented this wonderful line of dolls from my love as a youth. Markings are on back are very light “Thomas Dam (C) 1977- #3301U on tag
History
Troll dolls were originally created in 1959 by Danish fisherman and woodcutter Thomas Dam. Dam could not afford a Christmas gift for his young daughter Lila and carved the doll from his imagination. Other children in the Danish town of Gjøl saw the doll and wanted one.[Dam’s company Dam Things began producing the dolls in plastic under the name Good Luck Trolls. It became popular in several European countries during the early 1960s, shortly before they were introduced in the United States. They became one of the United States’ biggest toy fads from the autumn of 1963 to 1965. The originals were of the highest quality, also called Dam dolls and featuring sheep wool hair and glass eyes. Their sudden popularity, along with an error in the copyright notice of Thomas Dam’s original product, resulted in cheaper imitations.
The Dam company never stopped its production of trolls in Denmark, where they were always a popular item. In the late 1980s, the Dam trolls started making another comeback in North America. E.F.S. Marketing Associates, Inc. was one of the few corporations granted permission to import and market the Thomas Dam trolls for resale in the United States. These Dam Trolls were marketed under the trade name of Norfin Trolls, with an “Adopt A Norfin Troll” logo on the tags.
During the period of popularity in the early to mid-1990s, several attempts were made to market the troll dolls to young boys. This included action figure lines such as The Original Battle Trolls from Hasbro, the Stone Protectors franchise, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Trolls. The popular Mighty Max line also had a series named Hairy Heads, also known as Dread Heads.
In 1994, the Dam copyright was restored by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act. The Uneeda Doll Company, a company that made millions of US dollars by manufacturing troll dolls in the U.S., challenged the restoration. The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the lower court’s preliminary injunction, enjoining Uneeda from manufacturing, distributing, or selling “Wish-nik” troll dolls.
In 2003, Toy Industry Association named troll dolls to its Century of Toys List, a list of the 100 most memorable and most creative toys of the 20th century.
In 2005, the troll brand was licensed to DIC Entertainment, and products such as fashion dolls and fashion accessories were sold under the Trollz name. The new Trollz campaign was not successful. In 2007, the Danish company filed a lawsuit against DIC Entertainment claiming that the company financially misrepresented its ability to create and market a modern troll doll toy campaign and destroyed the image and goodwill of the doll. – Wikipedia
