Description

My Little Pony is a toy line and media franchise developed by American toy company Hasbro. The first toys were developed by Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger, and Steve D’Aguanno, and were produced in 1981. The ponies feature colourful bodies, manes and a unique symbol on one or both sides of their flanks. Such symbols are referred to in the three most recent incarnations as “cutie marks”. 

Following the original My Pretty Pony toy that was introduced in 1981, My Little Pony was launched in 1982 and the line became popular during the 1980s. The original toy line ran from 1982 to 1992 in the United States and to 1995 globally. The first incarnation’s popularity peaked in 1990, but the following year Hasbro decided to discontinue the toy line due to increased competition. One hundred fifty million ponies were sold in the 1980s.

The toy line was revived in 1997, but these toys proved unpopular and were discontinued in 1999. The brand saw a more popular revival in 2003 with toys that more closely resembled the original toy line, which sold approximately 100 million pony toys globally by 2010. Hasbro launched the fourth incarnation of the franchise in 2010, which started with the animated series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, which ended on October 12, 2019. Hasbro launched a fifth generation of toys and associated media starting September 24, 2021.

History

My Pretty Pony (1981)

My Pretty Pony is a pony figurine introduced by Hasbro in 1981 that was created by illustrator Bonnie Zacherle and sculptor Charles Muenchinger. My Pretty Pony is a ten-inch-tall hard plastic figurine that can wiggle its ears, swish its tail, and wink one eye. The original My Pretty Pony was followed by My Pretty Pony and Beautiful Baby, which came with an additional smaller “baby” pony figure. This was followed by pink and yellow versions of the original that have the now-hallmark symbol on the ponies’ backsides, which preceded the My Little Pony figurines.

1982–1992

After the relative lack of success of the My Pretty Pony toy line, Hasbro introduced six smaller and colourful versions of the toy in 1982, sold under the title My Little Pony. The toy line led to many more merchandise under the My Little Pony brand, which later became unofficially known as the “Generation One” or “G1” of My Little Pony among collectors. This incarnation ended in 1992 in the United States, but was marketed internationally until 1995.

1997–1999

The 1997 incarnation was marketed by Hasbro as “Friendship Garden” and designated “Generation 2” by collectors. They were manufactured in redesigned poses with jewel eyes and turning heads and are smaller, slimmer, and longer-legged than their 1982 counterparts. The line was not successful in the U.S. and was discontinued in 1999, although it continued overseas for several years. Since the second generation was more popular in Western Europe, Hasbro continued to produce and sell them in Western Europe after 1998. Most were Earth Ponies, but a few unicorns were made internationally. Although no Pegasus Ponies were made, some adults had clip-on wings. In the early 2000s, several unicorns with clip-on wings (called the Magic Unicorns) were made. Two baby ponies were introduced, and none of the baby ponies were sold in the United States.

In Europe, the main location was renamed Ponyland instead of Friendship Gardens, and were discontinued with the inception of the “G3” toyline in 2003. Many ponies released in the last years of the line are considered rare. A number of playsets were introduced, including a mansion and a castle.

Some “Generation Two” ponies were sold as detachable key chains, including Morning Glory, Sundance, Light Heart and Ivy. Each pony comes with a comb attached to her neck by a string. The back of the package says, “My Little Pony Logo and Pony Names are Trademarks of Hasbro Inc. Copyright 1998.” They were produced under license by Fun-4-All Corporation and made in China.

My Little Pony: Friendship Gardens (1998)

My Little Pony: Friendship Gardens is a virtual pet game developed by Artech Studios and published by Hasbro Interactive.

2003–2009

The third incarnation of My Little Pony, which is often unofficially referred to as “Generation Three” or “G3” by collectors, began in 2003. The revamped line of dolls was targeted to a younger audience than the previous lines. Before the generation’s end in 2009, there were at least two minor revamps.