In the 1980s, the original run of Strawberry Shortcake was a global phenomenon. Toys and other merchandise of the charming greeting card character were marketed around the world, licensed by American Greetings to many companies worldwide. In many countries, products were fairly similar to, or at least recognizable as coming from the same inspiration as, the versions seen commonly in American markets.
In Brazil, a Sáo Paulo-based company called Estrela received the license to tap the demand for "Pink Gold" (an industry catch-phrase for the international Strawberry Shortcake craze) dolls and toys. Estrela's offerings, the Moranguinho ("Little Strawberry" in Portuguese) toy line, began in 1982, and started out as fairly close approximations of dolls available in other countries, but quickly showed signs of not being too concerned about adhering to the source material.
All in all, more than 60 dolls, most of them unique in style and often also in scent, were released by Estrela during this original generation, lasting nearly twice as long as the US 1980s Strawberry Shortcake iteration. But it didn't end there. In the early 2000s, during Strawbery Shortcake's second re-launch by the Bandai company, Estrela returned to the fore. They produced a whole new line of character-accurate Moranguinho dolls for the new generation, but in the Kenner-sized scale of the original 1980s toys. This run lasted well through the Bandai era, and into the Playmates Toys' "World of Friends" wave.
Starting in 2020, 12 of these exclusive characters were reproduced by the French company Altaya along with reproductions of the US dolls, one Argentinian doll, and a few unique characters. Distributed as a monthly subscription in France and Belgium, the overall series contained 50 issues and paired each doll with an exclusive magazine and greeting card. Other branches of the same company, under the name Planeta de Agostini, have distributed the series in Spain (complete), Brazil (ongoing), and Argentina (ongoing). A collector might therefore find these dolls and magazines on eBay and other resale sites in three different languages!
Series 1[]
Part 1 (1982)[]
The initial release included the following four dolls.
Moranguinho ("Little Strawberry")[]
- Direct counterpart to Strawberry Shortcake
Limãozinho ("Little Lemon")[]
- A doll which looked very much like Huckleberry Pie, but huckleberries are unknown in Brazil. Estrela altered this character and Blueberry Muffin to make them relevant to the Brazilian climate.
Uvinha ("Little Grape")[]
- Resembles Blueberry Muffin, changed for the Brazilian market as with Huckleberry Pie.
Laranjinha ("Little Orange")[]
- She was a totally new original character. Her costume vaguely resembled that of Orange Blossom but the doll was fair-skinned, with reddish brown or sometimes curly bright orange hair.
Part 2 (1983)[]
Three additional characters were added to the series.
Maçãzinha ("Little Apple")[]
- The American apple-scented doll, Apple Dumplin', was a smaller-sized baby. Estrela did not feature any baby-sized characters in their line. They did produce versions of the larger "blow-kiss" baby dolls, and the differently scaled "drink and wet" babies, but Macazinha was the same size as her friend Moranguinho.
Goiabinha ("Little Guava")[]
- Goiabinha was the first doll in the Brazilian line to feature a fruit and fragrance which was not echoed in the United States market. She would by no means be the last.
Cafezinho ("Little Coffee")[]
- Cafezinho is a masculine name, but it is unknown if that was intended. While this doll has the same facial template as Huckleberry Pie/Limãozinho, so do Cerejinha and Pesseguinho, both female characters.
Part 3 (1984)[]
Moranguinho was re-released in a new outfit, similar to the Kenner Party Pleaser doll. Three more characters were also introduced.
Moranguinho (Second Edition)[]
Cerejinha ("Little Cherry")[]
- As with Maçãzinha, Cerejinha is not baby-sized like the US Cherry Cuddler, although her hat and dress are very similar.
Pesseguinho ("Little Peach")[]
- A different character than the US Peach Blush, introduced by Kenner in the Party Pleaser line. Both dolls are dated 1984, so it is unclear which came first.
Mentazinha ("Little Mint")[]
- One of the dolls reproduced by Altaya, named "Sorbet à la Menthe" (Mint Sorbet) in French. Her Spanish name is "Tarta de Menta", following the same naming convention as most of the Spanish reproductions.
"Knot of Ribbon" Series (1985)[]
These dolls all featured ribbons in their hair. Estrela released reproductions of the first four dolls in this series in 2017, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the company.
Moranguinho[]
Uvinha ("Little Grape")[]
Laranjinha ("Little Orange")[]
Maçãzinha II ("Little Apple"/"Apple Star")[]
- One of the dolls reproduced by Altaya, named "Tarte aux Pommes" in French and "Tarta de Manzana" in Spanish.
- A possible translation name is Apple Star, since the Amazon reproduction relisting calls her this. There is also a South American fruit called Star Apple.
- Both tarte and tarta can be translated to pie, tart, or cake in English, and these translations can apply to just about any of the reproduction dolls, so some call her Apple Pie.
Pesseguinho ("Little Peach")[]
Bananinha ("Little Banana")[]
- As with Pesseguinho, Estrela produced this doll in the same year Kenner introduced their own Banana Twirl character in the Berrykin line.
Noivinha ("Little Bride")[]
- The first in a sub-series of dolls in wedding dresses. It is unknown whether or not all of the bridal dolls were scented.
- One of the dolls reproduced by Altaya, nameed "Petite Fiancée" in French and "Novia" in Spanish.
"New Wave" Series 3 (1986)[]
The "New Wave" line was released in 1986, when Strawberry Shortcake was no longer being produced by Kenner. The line featured dolls with lots of hair, a trend which would continue in future Estrela lines.
Moranguinho[]
Maçãzinha ("Little Apple")[]
Cafezinho ("Little Coffee/ Coffee Eclair")[]
- This is the only dark-skinned doll produced by Estrela.
- She is evidently a different character than the Cafezinho released in 1983. While the earlier version used the Huckleberry Pie/Limãozinho facial template, this version used the Strawberry Shortcake/Moranguinho face, with brown eyes.
- She is also one of the dolls reproduced by Altaya, named "Tarta de Café" in Spanish and "Éclair au Café" (Coffee Éclair) in French. Her illustration has a noticably lighter complexion than the actual doll.
Cerejinha ("Little Cherry")[]
- One of the dolls reproduced by Altaya, named is "Tarte aux Cerise" in French and "Tarta de Cereza" in Spanish.
- "Cherry Tart" or "Cherry Pie" are some possible translation names.
Abacaxizinho ("Little Pineapple")[]
- Another doll that has been reproduced by Altaya, named "Tarte à l'ananas" in French and "Tarta de Piña" in Spanish.
- Nearly 40 years later, there still has never been a pineapple-scented Strawberry Shortcake doll in America.
- "Pineapple Tart" or "Pineapple Pie" are some possible translation names.
Cocadinha ("Little Coconut")[]
- Yet another doll reproduced by Altaya, named "Tarte à la Noix de Coco" in French and "Tarta de Coco" in Spanish.
- "Coconut Tart" or "Coconut Pie" are some possible translation names.
Rosinha ("Little Rose")[]
- Named "Tarte à la Rose" in French and "Tarta de Rosa" in Spanish for the Altaya reproduction.
- Brazil and Argentina were unique in having floral-scented dolls alongside fruit and other food-related scents.
Violetinha ("Little Violet")[]
- Named "Tarte à la Violette" in French and "Tarta de Violeta" in Spanish for the reproduction.
Noivinha ("Little Bride")[]
"Fruit and Floral" Series 4 (1987)[]
This series featured enormous hair, enormous hair-bows (often two to a girl in this case), and another interesting sampling of fragrances that America missed out on after passing on the Strawberry Shortcake craze during the second half of the 1980s. The floral scents expanded on Rosinha and Violetinha from the previous series. These releases are reflected in the more limited series of dolls released in Argentina under the name Frutillitas.
Moranguinho[]
Melanciazinha ("Little Watermelon")[]
- Reproduced by Altaya as "Tarte à la Pastèque" (French) and "Tarta de Sandía" (Spanish)
Amorinha ("Little Blackberry")[]
Cajuzinho ("Little Cashew")[]
- The cashew nut grows in tandem with the cashew apple, an accessory fruit.
Amorzinho-perfeito ("Little Pansy")[]
Margaradinha ("Little Daisy")[]
Hortensiazinha ("Little Hortensia")[]
Cravinho ("Little Carnation")[]
- Although cravinho often translates to (little) clove, the root "cravo" can refer to the carnation. Given the floral theme of the series, as well as the emblem on her dress & the illustration on her box, she is likely meant to be carnation themed. The corresponding Argentinian doll is given the Spanish name for carnation: "Clavelina".
Noivinha ("Little Bride")[]
- This one has pink or silvery-blonde hair, and is referred to as the "Rose Bride".
"Party" Series 5 (1988)[]
The "Party" Series in 1988 just took things up several notches. Huge curly clouds of beautiful hair, coupled with floor-length ruffly party gowns made for Estrela's most ornate wave of dolls of all. Moranguinho's friends in this series seemed to be all-new, although many of them revisited past fruit themes and accompanying fragrances.
Moranguinho[]
- She is at the absolute height of her glamour, with ringlet curls in both a bouffant and pigtails.
Sorvetinho de Limão ("Lemon/Lime Sorbet")[]
- Her French Altaya name is "Tarte au citron", rather than Sorbet au citron. Her Spanish name, "Sorbete de Limón", keeps the sorbet theme.
- While her name is often translated as "Lemon Sorbet", her color scheme (and, at least in the case of her reproduction doll, her scent) is more reminiscent of a lime. "Limão" can mean both lemon and lime.
Sorvetinho de Uva ("Grape Sorbet")[]
Sorvetinho de Framboesa ("Raspberry Sorbet")[]
Sorvetinho de Maracuja ("Passion Fruit Sorbet")[]
- Her French Altaya name, as shown on the illustration, is "Sorbet passion", and her Spanish name is "Sorbete de Maracuyá".
Quindinzinho ("Little Quindim")[]
- Based on Quindim, a coconut egg custard.
Balinha ("Candy")[]
- Her hair looks like cotton candy and her box features jelly beans.
- "Jelly Bean" or "Little Candy" are possible translation names.
"Jelly" Series 6 (1989)[]
In 1989, the Jelly Series was released. These dolls were fairly similar to last year's Party Series, but their hairstyles weren't quite as "over-the-top" as their predecessors. They each came with a butterfly-shaped barrette with an added lock of hair to look like a hair streak. The name was given because most of the dolls' names translate to "[Fruit] Jelly", but "butterfly series" would be more fitting.
Gelatina Moranguinho ("Little Strawberry Jelly")[]
- This is the first time the lead character is not simply named "Little Strawberry".
Gelatina Uvinha ("Little Grape Jelly")[]
Gelatina Laranjinha ("Little Orange Jelly")[]
Gelatina Limãozinho ("Little Lemon/Lime Jelly")[]
Gelatina Abacaxizinho ("Little Pineapple Jelly")[]
Chocolatinho ("Little Chocolate")[]
- Her dress features an illustration of brigadeiro, a traditional Brazilian chocolate dessert.
Rose[]
- This character no longer has the diminutive suffix "-ihna".
- Probably the same character as "Little Rose"
Noivinha ("Little Bride")[]
"Typical Clothing" Series 7 (1991)[]
The Trajes Tipicos ("Typical Clothing") wave of 1991 seems to echo the US collection of "Around-The-World" foreign characters that Strawberry Shortcake had befriended seven years earlier, only again, through an extra-opulent Estrela filter. Interestingly, only one country (the Netherlands) was duplicated between the two wildly divergent locale itineraries of all-new friends, who lack individual names and don't correspond to any known characters. Each doll came with a picture postcard of their homeland to color. It is not evident from these doll's packagings what their fragrances were.
Terra da Moranguinho[]
- Moranguinho, the only named character in this wave, represented "Strawberryland".
Brasil (Brazil), of course![]
Italia (Italy)[]
Russia[]
Espanha (Spain)[]
Holanda (Netherlands)[]
- Interestingly, this doll was produced with two similar but different outfits.
"Rainbow Ribbon" Series 8 (1991)[]
There are six dolls in this series. They featured a rainbow ribbon hair clip with an emblem on it to represent each of the dolls. The hair pin was designed so little girls could wear them in their hair.
Moranguinho[]
Laranjinha ("Little Orange")[]
Pesseguinho ("Little Peach")[]
Melanciazinha ("Little Watermelon")[]
Amorinha ("Little Blackberry")[]
Uvinha ("Little Grape")[]
"Vintage" Series 9 "1992"[]
The final Vintage Estrela Series, released in 1992, was a "back-to-basics" line, seeing Moranguinho accompanied by a small group of new editions of earlier 1980s friends. Each of these friends wore a uniquely re-colored version of the molded vinyl hats sported by the earliest dolls in the line.
Moranguinho[]
Limãozinho ("Little Lemon")[]
- Back to resembling Huckleberry Pie, but with lemon yellow hair.
Laranjinha ("Little Orange")[]
Cerejinha ("Little Cherry")[]
Melanciazinha ("Little Watermelon")[]
Argentinian Exclusive Dolls[]
Two toy companies produced Strawberry Shortcake dolls for the Argentinian market; J. Sulc and Cromy. The dolls produced by J. Sulc were called Frutillitas, the Spanish name for strawberry. Many of them resembled dolls made by Estrela. Cromy also produced a lot of other Strawberry Shortcake toys and merchandise for Argentina.
Standard Size[]
Frutillita[]
- As in Brazil, the name of the main character doubles as the overall name for the series.
- She closely resembles Moranguinho from the 1987 Fruit and Floral series, and her friends mostly follow suit.
Frambuesita[]
- Both the doll and the box illustration match the Brazilian Amorinha ("Little Blackberry"), but her name translates to Raspberry, and her dress has a corresponding decal.
Hortensia[]
- With a box illustration identical to the Brazilian Hortensiazinha, the doll differs only in the color of her bodice.
- This doll, along with Frutillita and Jazmin, has two versions: a boxed & a bagged version. The hair of the boxed version tends to fade with age, while the hair of the bagged version is much curlier.
Clavelina[]
- Both doll and box illustration match the Brazilian Cravinho and translate to the same flower (Carnation).
Jazmin[]
- While she appears identical to the Brazilian Amorinha-perfeito ("Little Pansy"), even in the decal, the Jasmine flower is reflected in her name and on the box.
Noviecita[]
- This "Little Bride" is clearly inspired by the Brazilian dolls without being an exact match for any single one.
- The flowers on the dress and box resemble daffodils.
Mi Cumpleaños[]
- This Birthday doll is scented, according to the box, but the fragrance is unknown.
- Altaya included this doll in their reproduction series, using the same name in Spain and calling her "Mon Anniversaire" in France. The direct translation is "My Birthday", but a possible interpretation could be "Birthday Cake".
Vainillita[]
- Vainillita (roughly “Little Vanilla”) is a doll that was produced by Cromy.
Babies[]
Baby Coquito[]
- Coquito (“Little Coconut”) is a Berry Baby that was produced by J. Sulc. Her name also refers to an eggnog-like holiday drink that is coconut flavored. She somewhat resembles Quindinzinho, but it is unknown if that was intentional.
Baby Margarita[]
- Margarita (“Daisy” or “Little Daisy”) is a Berry Baby that was produced by J. Sulc. While she shares a theme with a Brazilian doll, they do not resemble each other.
Altaya Exclusives[]
Altaya not only reproduced dolls from the US, Brazil, and Argentina, they created a few of their own.
Raisin Cane[]
- Raisin was a comic exclusive character and never got a proper toy release. For some reason, Altaya decided to produce one.
Plum Puddin' (Male)[]
- In the original US TV specials and early American Greetings art, Plum Puddin' was depicted as a boy. Altaya re-released the Party Pleaser and Berrykin versions of the female character, but they also produced this male version.
T.N. Honey[]
- Along with Plum Puddin, T.N. Honey appeared in American Greetings art and a single Strawberry Shortcake cartoon. Altaya produced the only doll representing the character.
Blueberry Muffin "Berrykin"[]
- Kenner did not include Blueberry Muffin in the US Berrykin line. This doll may have been based on original concept drawings or may be a new creation entirely.
Angel Cake "Berrykin"[]
- Kenner did not include Angel Cake in the US Berrykin line. This doll may have been based on original concept drawings or may be a new creation entirely.
Gallery[]
