Born in Chicago in 1916 to a family of Ukrainian Jewish immigrants, Elliot Handler moved to Denver, Colorado, during his youth, where he met and later married Ruth Moskowicz in 1938. The couple relocated to Los Angeles, where they began exploring industrial design and toy making. In 1945, amid the post-war boom, he co-founded Mattel with his wife and their business partner Harold “Matt” Matson, combining the names “Matt” and “Elliot” to form the company’s title.

While Ruth took the spotlight for developing Barbie, Elliot played an important role in…