Its almost Christmas, and the Annalee holiday dolls are coming. Hundreds of them! Nope, wait a minute, make that thousands! Right now on eBay, there are over 15,000 listings for Annalees ubiquitous array of chortling Santas, jolly snowmen, mischievous mice, saucy squirrels, and assorted elves and reindeer. Annalee dolls are whimsical. Theyre cheery and colorful. Theyre also oh-so-flexible, which means you can plop them anywhere. Tuck a few on the Christmas tree branches. Wind a few more around the evergreen garlands. Wrap them around stair railings. Perch them on lampshades and shelves, dangle them from the mistletoe. But wherever you put them, get set for an instant jolt of holiday happiness. Annalee dolls. Christmas just isnt Christmas without them. The dolls were named for their designer, Barbara Annalee (Davis) Thorndike. Born in 1915, Annalee was a New Hampshire native who began creating fabric dolls as an outgrowth of her interest in puppetry. Although her initial handmade dolls were sold through local craft guilds, Annalees design dreams were put on a back burner following marriage to Charles Chip Thorndike. From their Meredith, N.H., home, the two operated Thorndikes Eggs and Auto Parts. In 1950, with the poultry farm failing, Annalee turned again to dollmaking. Her first design studio: a converted chicken coop. Like most bendable dolls, those by Annalee have painted faces and molded felt bodies over a wire frame. The dolls facial features are supposedly similar to those of Annalee herself. However, since the Annalee inventory includes not only humans, but also a variety of animals and imaginary folk, that tale might be just a mite tall. Originally, the interior wire frames were constructed by Chip Thorndike, with the fabric doll itself and its decoration the work of Annalee. Although most of the commercially available dolls are under 10 inches high, early models made specifically for store displays could reach 6 feet. For these, Chip Thorndike created appropriate props (such as skis for skiers), which helped give the towering figures greater stability. In addition to the store window displays, early Annalee dolls created for tourism promotion contributed to the companys growing national recognition. The renamed Annalee Mobilitee Dolls expanded in 1964 to a 34,000-foot Factory in the Woods, a 14-acre New Hampshire compound that eventually included, in addition to the doll factory, a gift shop, a covered footbridge, a playground, an antique car display, and the Annalee Doll Museum, its exterior modeled on Annalees own childhood home. After conquering Christmas, Annalee quickly cornered the market on other holiday celebrations. There are broom-riding Annalee Halloween witches, back-arching Annalee black cats, and egg-hiding Annalee Easter bunnies. And thats just for starters. A company highlight came in 1975, when Annalee dolls decorated the White House Christmas tree. Also during the 70s, Annalees signature Mouse for Every House dolls emerged. These mischievous rodents were depicted engaging in a variety of quaint activities, from popping out of popcorn boxes to cooking up Christmas candy. Although the construction element of the business moved overseas in the early 2000s, Annalees design and corporate offices remained in New Hampshire, and the popularity of her dolls continued unabated. Annalee dolls remain a bargain, primarily because so many of them were produced. Even vintage pieces from the 1970s can be found at less than $25. Of course, there are exceptions: an Annalee Halloween girl from the 1950s sold at auction in 1992 for over $6,000. There usually isnt any doubt about whether youre getting an authentic Annalee. In addition to their distinctive facial features, the dolls boast a key identifier: since 1986, each has been outfitted with an attached and dated cloth tag. What explains the appeal of an Annalee holiday doll? Well, as Annalee Thorndike herself once put it, Its the positive-ness of the face. Its the smile. If you smile, someones got to smile back. Luckily for us, Annalee smiles are always in season. Merry Christmas! Photo Associate: Hank Kuhlmann. Donald-Brian Johnson is the co-author of numerous Schiffer books on design and collectibles, including Postwar Pop, a collection of his columns. Please address inquiries (or holiday greetings) to: donaldbrian@msn.com.