My Little Pony was launched in 1983 as an offshoot to the original My Pretty Pony toy. The first generation Ponies ran for 10 years in the United States and spawned a host of animated television and movie releases. The brand was most recently re-launched in 2003, with Hasbro releasing only Earth ponies from 2003-2005, then Pegasus ponies in 2005, and Unicorn ponies in 2006.

They appealed to the dream of many little girls of having their very own horse or pony. The 1980s sought to fulfill these little girls’ wishes with My Little Pony, a line of colored plastic horses with brushable manes and tails. Each toy had its own character name and corresponding “cutie mark” or symbol on their hips.

The original six ponies were named: Minty, Snuzzle, Butterscotch, Bluebelle, Cotton Candy, and Blossom. Besides the standard ponies, there were also Unicorn Ponies, Pegasus Ponies, and Sea Ponies, which looked more like seahorses that you could use in the bathtub and would squirt water. Rainbow Ponies followed with rainbow hair, Twinkle-eyed Ponies with jewels in their eyes, So Soft Ponies that were fuzzy, Flutter Ponies with iridescent wings, and Baby Ponies that were identical smaller versions of their mothers.

A number of carry cases, dream castles were available to store the numerous ponies, and the accessories such as bedding.