Barbie's Ken turns 50, gets Facebook and Twitter makeover

Ken, the Barbie doll's male alter-ego, is to get a Facebook and Twitter makeover to win back the affections of his former girlfriend when he turns 50 this year, his maker said Thursday.

Since 1961, Ken has regularly switched costumes, from red bathing trunks to disco trousers, but his youthful and strong body hasn't shown any signs of wrinkling.

But, according to his official biography, he never married Barbie, two years his junior, and she only wears wedding dresses "to please her tailor friends."

Barbie and Ken officially separated in 2004, to live out their lives as singletons.

But manufacturers Mattel revealed at the opening of the Nuremberg toy fair on Thursday that Ken will use his new Facebook and Twitter accounts to get back together with his girlfriend.

The fair, the largest international event in the toy industry, ends Tuesday.