Baby Doll

Somewhere between the saccharine fields of the Cabbage Patch Kids and the murderous realm of Chucky (of "Child's Play" fame), Lindsay Brice's photographs of porcelain, molded plastic and wooden dolls can be found. Rosy-cheeked and freaky, Brice's little creatures refuse to sit still. Instead, they peep through keyholes, snoop under lace-covered beds, cower in doorways, sprawl in poppy fields and reign like potentates.

IFC announced a development slate of 11 projects on Wednesday, three pilots and eight scripts, and based on their descriptions, the channel appears to be going even more idiosyncratic in its projects. Among the projects possibly coming soon to the channel are an '80s-style soap opera animated entirely with baby dolls and a buddy comedy about a struggling comic-book illustrator befriending a vampire from the future, titled "Jetpackula. " PHOTOS: Hollywood Backlot moments The three pilots IFC has commissioned include "Timms Industrial Piping," the "Dynasty"-inspired series about the residents of Timms Valley, Wis., dealing with the disappearance of the founder and CEO of the town's biggest employer.

It's minutes till show time and Vivienne Mackinder is sweating over a couple of hairs. Quite literally. A tiny bead of perspiration gathers on her hairline as she sprays, tucks and yanks a model's swept-back style into submission. Two hairs that belong in a turned-under ponytail keep springing out like stiffly calcified spears. But Mackinder never loses her cool. She chats up her models, murmuring in a soothing British accent: "Simply chic, my darling."

Kelly Hildebrandt is about to marry the man of her dreams: Kelly Hildebrandt. Like many couples, the two lovebirds have a lot in common; they both love fishing, scuba diving and hunting. But they might never have met if they didn't have a first and last name in common. "If we introduce each other, [people] have to think about it for a second," said Kelly Katrina Hildebrandt, of Coral Springs, Fla. "They say, 'Wait, you guys have the same name?' " They met online last year after Kelly Katrina Hildebrandt, 20, a student at Palm Beach Community College majoring in education, searched for her own name on Facebook.

They're called baby dolls, but you won't find them hanging around the lingerie department. Sure, many of them look like negligees, with their filmy, see-through fabrics, low necklines and thigh-high skirts, but these baby dolls aren't pajamas. Baby doll is a generic term for dresses that have full, flowing silhouettes.

Guys forward, girls back. The fall dance of fashion calls it out: male back-to-school styles are mod; feminine outfits, retro. We fashion analysts can explain all of this in terms of social relativism and androgyny backlash--but, why labor with ideological theory? Just go out and get the look. For teen-agers and young women, you will need: the baby doll, the newsboy or the parochial schoolgirl. Sounds unlikely? That's the point--it gets you off guard.

ARE women beyond worrying about being "baby dolls"? If you look around this summer, the answer would seem to be yes. The baby-doll dress, with its demurely tented silhouette and playful, above-the-knee hem, is everywhere, cramming the racks from Barneys to H&M. And -- OK, we'll admit it -- they look adorable. So easy, so summery, you've probably already snapped one up.

In Susan King's survey piece about Tennessee Williams' plays ("Adapting Tennessee Williams," Calendar, April 27) and their various incarnations, while it is true, as reported, that Williams did indeed write the screenplay for the 1956 movie "Baby Doll," it may have also been worth mentioning that he adapted the screenplay from his own one-act play "27 Wagons Full of Cotton," which ran on Broadway as one part of a three-act production under the title...

Grunge. Deconstructivism. The monastic look. The waif look. For the past four years, designers have been ripping apart fashion from sleeves to hem, experimenting with new looks and ideas. And now they've put it all back together. This season, fashion is outrageous, sexy and glamorous, full of slick fabrics, tight miniskirts and dangerous stiletto heels. Spring's baby doll has become fall's vixen, intent on showing off legs, hips and breasts.

When a little girl cradles her new Cheerful Tearful doll, she had better be prepared for what comes next. It could be cries. It could be coos. The doll may laugh, wet its diapers or burp. Talking dolls are nothing new. But Cheerful Tearful's makers are hoping to cash in on renewed interest in girls' baby dolls by taking an age-old idea and giving it a high-tech twist.

What sets today apart from all other days, of course, is that it's Barbie's 50th birthday. And what a life she has lived. She has held successful careers as a pilot, pediatrician, flight attendant, astronaut, veterinarian, lifeguard, firefighter, cowgirl, teacher and, most important, teenage fashion model. She's appeared in many books and videos and controversies. Andy Warhol painted her portrait.

ARE women beyond worrying about being "baby dolls"? If you look around this summer, the answer would seem to be yes. The baby-doll dress, with its demurely tented silhouette and playful, above-the-knee hem, is everywhere, cramming the racks from Barneys to H&M. And -- OK, we'll admit it -- they look adorable. So easy, so summery, you've probably already snapped one up.

During Fashion Week, the tents at Bryant Park are a dizzying display of personal style. There's Kanye West sporting a tuxedo shirt, cummerbund and fur stole during the daytime, Vogue's fashion news director Sally Singer teetering around in studded platform gladiator sandals, and a whole raft of editors, stylists, buyers and hangers-on dressed to the nines.

Blue-eyed Baby Annabell is too real for Saudis. The life-size doll babbles, gurgles and giggles like a baby. She sucks on a pacifier and, after a meal, she burps, yawns and falls asleep. When awakened by a loud noise, she begins to cry. But the human characteristics that make Annabell a top seller in Saudi Arabia are part of the reason that she will soon be banished.

In Susan King's survey piece about Tennessee Williams' plays ("Adapting Tennessee Williams," Calendar, April 27) and their various incarnations, while it is true, as reported, that Williams did indeed write the screenplay for the 1956 movie "Baby Doll," it may have also been worth mentioning that he adapted the screenplay from his own one-act play "27 Wagons Full of Cotton," which ran on Broadway as one part of a three-act production under the title...

It's a ritual as familiar to me as baking holiday cookies, stringing lights along the eaves, shopping for the perfect Christmas tree. With two weeks to go until Christmas, I am cruising the aisles at my local Toys R Us, looking for the toys that Santa will bring. Reflexively, I wind through the rows--board games, baby dolls, Barbie gear. But when I emerge, my basket is empty. Magic Megan, Makeup Mindy, My Dream Baby . . . none of this looks familiar to me. I feel lost, bewildered, disoriented.

A mini-fuss is gestating in child development circles over the introduction of some new playthings. You'd think we'd be beyond shock in the toy department. Once you've broached canned ooze (thanks to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), what, precisely, is left? How about a new crop of toys that simulate pregnancy? This summer, Mattel will introduce My Bundle Baby, which allows little girls to pretend they are pregnant. It looks like a book bag, but is meant to be worn on the front of the body.

Kelly Hildebrandt is about to marry the man of her dreams: Kelly Hildebrandt. Like many couples, the two lovebirds have a lot in common; they both love fishing, scuba diving and hunting. But they might never have met if they didn't have a first and last name in common. "If we introduce each other, [people] have to think about it for a second," said Kelly Katrina Hildebrandt, of Coral Springs, Fla. "They say, 'Wait, you guys have the same name?' " They met online last year after Kelly Katrina Hildebrandt, 20, a student at Palm Beach Community College majoring in education, searched for her own name on Facebook.

A South Coast Plaza store says it tried to make the most of a bull market on stuffed bears, but nearly found itself with a riot Wednesday. When the Rainforest Cafe announced it was selling 500 rare Beanie Baby stuffed animals, 200 people camped out overnight to get first dibs. Up for grabs were the hard-to-find, Kelly green Erin Bear and the purple Princess Bear, named in honor of Princess Diana. A month ago, the Princess Bear sold there for $12.

Tennessee Williams must have had a hoot of a time with "Baby Doll," the 1956 erotic comedy he wrote for director Elia Kazan. The movie, based on two of Williams' short stories about Southern discomfort, "27 Wagons Full of Cotton" and "The Long Stay Cut Short," gave the playwright the opportunity to indulge one of his favorite vices--repressed sexuality in the hot and humid Dixie psyche.