The impish, cartoony monster toys, whose fans include Sasha Obama and Snoop Dogg, started with a doodle on creator David Horvath’s letters to his college sweetheart.
To their legions of fans — Sasha Obama and Snoop Dogg included — the Ugly Dolls are anything but ugly. ¶ With names such as Babo, Big Toe and Puglee, the plush creatures look more like impish cartoon monsters than adorable Beanie Babies. ¶ Millions of these odd, squishy misfits have charmed their way into buyers’ hands since David Horvath began doodling them eight years ago on letters to his college sweetheart, Sun-Min Kim. ¶ Manhattan Beach residents Horvath and Kim had dreamed about creating toys that could tell stories and make kids happy. But they eschewed the route normally followed by entrepreneurs: Make a toy that fits a trend, pitch it like crazy to all the big toy makers, pray they buy your idea and sell your toys at Wal-Mart. ¶ Instead, Horvath and Kim started small and tried to stay that way by selling only to independent stores. They began by making things they loved.
