Lerner would often take potatoes from his mother's garden and using various other fruits and vegetables as facial features, he would make dolls with which his younger sisters could play. The grape-eyed, carrot-nosed, potato-headed dolls became the principal idea behind the plastic toy which would later be manufactured.
Mr Potato Head was born on May 1, 1952. The original toy cost $0.98, and contained hands, feet, ears, two mouths, two pairs of eyes, four noses, three hats, eyeglasses, a pipe, and eight felt pieces resembling facial hair. The original Mr Potato Head kit did not come with a Potato Body , so parents had to supply their own potatoes for face-changing fun. A number of the original accessories reflected certain features of the members of Lerner's own family[citation needed]. Shortly after the toy's initial release, an order form for 50 additional pieces was enclosed in every kit.[2]
