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Enlarge By Diane Bondareff, AP Guy and doll: "Ken," aka model Leif Stacey, and a "Barbie."

Ken looked stoked.

"I've got to admit it's quite fun running around here. The women look absolutely gorgeous," Stacey, dressed in a black Kenneth Cole tuxedo, said with a grin. "I admit my curiosity in Barbie has perked a little bit since I booked this job."

Stacey was the single male model cast in Barbie's blowout Fashion Week show, in which 50 models sauntered down a sparkling pink runway to celebrate the doll's 50th birthday. Fifty of America's top fashion designers created signature looks for Barbie's runway reveal.

"You have 50 Barbies coming to life," Heidi Klum said backstage before the show. Calling it a fantasy show, she said, "that's what Barbie was always known for: having the kind of clothes that you kind of wanted."

Minutes before the show started, mothers and daughters filled the tent, and little girls began ripping into boxes filled with vintage Barbies left as gifts on each seat.

"This is so cool. I think I would have dropped dead if this had happened 10 years ago when I had Barbies," model Rachel Clark, 20, said while waiting for her runway spin backstage. Dressed in 1950s cat-eye makeup, slick red lips and a sky-high ponytail, she pointed out: "Now we (models) kind of are real-life Barbies. So you know, this isn't much more different than usual, just a little more hair and makeup (than a typical show)."

The models, each wearing specially dyed Barbie Pantone 219 Christian Louboutin stilettos, were grouped into three acts in the 28-minute show: Barbie past, present and future. Top designers, including Calvin Klein, Donna Karan and Michael Kors, showed their take on Barbie fashion. Rag and Bone's Barbie was school-girl preppy. Vena Cava's Barbie slithered down the runway in a long gown with jeweled shoulders. Marchesa's Barbie floated in a long sea of purple chiffon, and Vera Wang's wedding Barbie looked white-gown ready for "I do."

"I grew up in the Alps and France, and Barbie was my first exposure to the American woman," designer Catherine Malandrino said backstage. "For me she was blonde, she was free and she was fun." Malandrino created an American flag Barbie dress.

Futuristic Barbie got funky with a Betsey Johnson Martian-green sequined cupcake dress, Bob Mackie's see-through gold Egyptian dress, and a tiny sculpted Brian Reyes mini.

"It's an outfit to celebrate in," Reyes said.

For the final runway walk, 50 young models, dressed in Baby Phat tutus and Barbie T-shirts, walked hand-in-hand with the adult models.

"We went on an audition and they liked us. I feel so happy," said Musheerah Elamin, 7, who was cast alongside her sister Mekkah, 8.

And the tutus? "I love it! It's really comfortable. It's not something that's itchy," said Kylie Simone, 7.

In a season when fashion shows are scaling back, the one thing Barbie's thumping show wasn't lacking was a whoosh of whimsy.

"Isn't it so nice to have a reason to celebrate right now?" Reyes said backstage. "It's so nice to see everyone smiling."

Said Mackie: "People are going to be conservative and pull in how they spend. A little 12-inch fantasy may do the trick."

Stylist Robert Verdi agreed. "Coming to a place and forgetting, 'Oh my God, how am I going to pay my rent?'

After the show, Barbie got raves. "It was done like a professional show," Verdi said. "They had as many models in this show as they do in a Marc Jacobs show. There was one girl for every look."

But after all, it's not every day America's most portable fashionista turns 50. "Barbie looks fabulous," Mattel CEO Bob Eckert said. "It's amazing what a little plastic can do."

As for Stacey, he ultimately found his intended Barbie, made easier by the fact that she was wearing a Kenneth Cole T-shirt emblazoned with the words "Everyone needs a Ken."