Relationships: A doll for the ages

Connie Johnson of Eagan turned 48 on Wednesday, but her birthday highlight occurs today. Johnson and her 18-year-old daughter, Katie, will shop and dine at a new Mall of America restaurant, surrounded by a sea of familiar faces, including Molly, Felicity and Kit. Yes, that Molly, Felicity and Kit.

"It's something to share with Katie," said Connie, whose collection began two years ago with World War II-era doll Molly -- a gift from Katie. Connie now owns Kit, Julie and Mia, too. "We connect," Mom says. "And the stories are wonderful."

While dozens, maybe hundreds, of giddy girls are expected to line up for today's official opening of the mall's 22,000-square-foot, two-level American Girl Place, with its eatery, hair salon and ear-piercing emporium (for dolls, not humans), the Johnsons represent a significant number of fans whose ages are well into double digits. One American Girl message board (www.mintchocolatechip.net/soagc) lists members in their 70s.

It's hard to imagine Barbie, or any other doll, enjoying the near-feverish loyalty lavished on these wholesome "girls" with their impressive character-driven stories and even more impressive price tags. The dolls are $90 each, book included. That Palomino horse with cream-colored saddle blanket? $75. Birthday parties? $450 for eight girls.

In this economy?

American Girl's vice president of retail, Wade Opland, says the MOA was chosen largely for its "tremendous tourist business." The store has been in the works for 18 months. Opland is "cautiously optimistic" about the company's fourth quarter, noting that girls can still experience the brand through their books, priced at an economical $5.95 each.

Enter the less traditional (read: older) fan with an empty nest and disposable income to spend on pricey collectibles.

Female equivalent of deer-hunting trips

Gail Lieske of Maple Grove got her first American Girl doll for her birthday two weeks ago. Lieske is 53. Her Just Like You doll, with brown hair and blue eyes, was a gift from her grown children, including two daughters-in-law who are both avid American Girl collectors. She was tickled. "I never would have imagined. ... " She, too, was planning to be in line at today's store opening. "She loves holding them," said 27-year-old daughter-in-law Michele Lieske of Montevideo, Minn. Michele keeps her own nine dolls and their considerable accoutrements, from tiny birthday china to school supplies, in a special upstairs room.

Minnesota children's author Mary Casanova, whose third American Girl book will be published in January, said she was "stupefied" years ago by the number of families that saved and planned all year for a weekend at the Chicago American Girl store which was, until today, the only choice for Midwesterners. (Other stores are in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Dallas and Boston.)

"They'd spend a whole weekend in and out of the store," said Casanova, author of "Cecile: Gates of Gold," set in France, and "Jess," based on the 2006 American Girl of the Year, Jess McConnell, who joins her parents on an archaeological dig in Belize. The stores, she said, "are to grandmothers, mothers and daughters what deer-hunting weekends are for boys, dads and grandfathers. I've seen a richness and memory-building quality to these outings that I didn't expect."

Suddenly, a history buff

That memory-building typically begins, if not ends, in childhood. Kansas-based Ann Kirstin, 28, founded the Mintchocolatechip.com website six years ago when she couldn't find any way to connect with other older American Girl fans. Her newsletter section lists 560 members, including 15 in Minnesota. About 150 members are age 40 or older. "This definitely appeals to the girl in all of us," Kirstin said. "It's a throwback to a simpler time."

When she was 7 or 8, Maine-born Michele Lieske sent away for an American Girl catalog. Even though she was already a fan of the books, her parents weren't about to shell out $77, the dolls' price at the time. So Lieske saved her allowance for five years, supplemented by work as a mother's helper. "At 12, I finally saved up enough to buy Molly. She was my constant companion all through high school," Lieske said, adding that the intensity of her hobby was shared only by her closest friends. "We were all a bit of an outsider bunch, anyway."

She chose Molly, after considering Swedish-immigrant-to-Minnesota Kirsten, because of Molly's connection to her grandparents' era. "Before American Girl, I thought history was boring," said Lieske, a homemaker and computer database builder. "It really changed my mind. I started reading everything I could get my hands on about World War II."

Gusto for the girls

After a brief break from the dolls in 2000 to attend college ("I needed to spend my money on books," she said with a laugh), her husband, Chris, encouraged her to start up again. "She was getting really stressed," said Chris, a pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Montevideo. "I encouraged her to rediscover her passion, or something to that effect. And she did, with gusto." Still, he doesn't think her hobby is any quirkier than his -- watching hockey and football. "How many does she have? A bunch. I don't keep track. It's something she really enjoys."

Katie and Connie Johnson also approach the A.G. phenomenon with gusto. Katie got her first doll, Molly, at 6. "My friend had a doll and I really wanted one," she said. As her collection grew, she developed voices for the different dolls, and sat for hours reading the books with her mom. Today, the high school senior, who is home-schooled by her mother, has 19 dolls and checks the A.G. message board regularly.

Aside from a few gifts received at birthdays and Christmas, Katie, who works 30 hours a week at a nearby Byerly's supermarket, has bought just about everything herself. Two years ago, she bought Molly for her mom, then added Molly's table and chairs at Mother's Day. "Now," Katie says happily, "she's hooked, too."

Gail Rosenblum • 612-673-7350