At over 100 years old, Buddy Lee is still a highly sought after collectible. Making his debut in the 1920s, Buddy stole the hearts of Americans across the country, as he became the Lee Jeans mascot, modeling and advertising a miniature version of Lee Jeans.
It was Lee’s board president, Chester Reynolds who came up with the idea of using a doll to model mini-versions of the jeans in store displays. The Lee company encouraged stores to sell the Buddy dolls after the displays were taken down, which then led to selling the dolls for retail sale. Lee produced Buddy Lee dolls dressed in a variety of costumes, including a cowboy, a Coca-Cola deliveryman, a railroad worker, and a gas station attendant. This started in 1949 and a female version dubbed, Betty Lee soon followed.
In 1962, Buddy Lee dolls were discontinued due to unprofitable sales for the Lee company. By that time, Buddy Lee had risen to stardom, becoming the second highest selling doll in the United States.
The Lee Company couldn’t stay away from Buddy for long and they brought him back in the 1990s-2000 to promote their new Lee “Dungarees” line of jeans. The main campaign was aimed at young males, ages 17-22. Gorilla marketing techniques were put into play, using movie trailer teaser spots, unbranded posters of the doll, and a 6-minute “mockumentary,” titled, “The Buddy Lee Story,” which aired in segments during late night television programming. The doll was presented to consumers as being a “man of action” and was usually seen in the commercial as trying to be heroic during a dangerous situation. Three nemeses for Buddy Lee were also introduced in 2000: Curry, Roy, and Super Greg. They were all seen on the Lee website and then later appeared in commercial spots.
Buddy made an appearance once again after the September 11 terrorist attacks. Lee “Dungaree” ads changed their angle with a “Be Like Buddy” marketing campaign. This included the Buddy Lee doll in a commercial on behalf of the American Red Cross in which the viewer sees the doll with a rolled up sleeve, bandage and an “I Gave” sticker to promote donation.
