Barbie received a new addition to its line-up on Friday, with the US toymaker Mattel presenting a doll dedicated to the androgynous alien messenger Ziggy Stardust, a character created by late musician David Bowie.

The UK rock star portrayed Ziggy, who is neither male nor female, on stage in the early 1970s. The rock persona was featured in his 1972 album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, as well as in Ziggy Stardust: The Motion Picture, which was released over a decade later.

Mattel said the doll was a tribute to Bowie, a "musical genius who redefined rock and roll." Bowie passed away from liver cancer in 2016 at the age of 69.

"In a definitive celebration of two pop culture icons, Barbie honors the ultimate pop chameleon, English singer, songwriter and actor, David Bowie, whose dramatic musical transformations continue to influence and inspire," the company said on their website.

The $50 (€44.4) collectible sports red boots and a striped metallic jumpsuit.

The toymaker said they were dedicating the event to 50th anniversary of Bowie's cult single "Space Oddity," which was released on July 11, 1969. The song about the astronaut called Major Tom appeared less than a week before US astronaut Neil Armstrong first walked on the moon.

Earlier this week, Mattel also released a doll of Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, who is the only active female astronaut working for the European Space Agency (ESA).

dj/ng (AFP, dpa)

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