Sure, there was Barbie. But what may turn out to be the true lasting legacy of Mattel co-founder Elliot Handler was the creation of Hot Wheels.

Handler died Thursday of heart failure at 95, a veteran of the toy industry since the end of World War II. The Los Angeles resident didn't think Barbie would be a success when wife Ruth came up the idea in 1959. It became of one of the two products that would define Mattel.

The other was Hot Wheels. Handler was looking for a toy that would hold as much appeal for boys as Barbie did for girls. Die-cast toy cars had been around forever, but Handler figured out how to give them a new spin -- literally. The secret was the wheels, which were the result of a special manufacturing process that made them spin fast,The New York Times reported.

Besides knocking off miniature versions of existing cars, Hot Wheels incorporated designs from the stylists it hired away from big automakers. The cars were given names such as the Beatnik Bandit and King Kuda. Their metalflake paint jobs made them irresistible and with 10,000 designs over the years, Hot Wheels attracted kids and collectors alike.

Handler is dead, but Hot Wheels will live on as long as kids remain passionate about cars.