This puzzle's theme relates to one of the three most popular hobbies in the world, the other two being stamp and coin collecting. The six theme answers lead to a "reveal" that is a colloquial phrase which doubles as a literal description of the other theme answers. Note that this puzzle combines co-constructor, Arlene Romoff's two passions—crossword puzzles and the theme of this puzzle.

Arlene's personal collection—from antique to modern—includes ballerinas, Queen Elizabeths, Girl Scouts, First Ladies—as well as many of the types mentioned in the puzzle.  A veritable museum, the collection also includes Swiss, Italian, German and British items.  See below for a photo.

Theme answer links, all American, in order of appearance in our puzzle:

G.I. JOE—a military guy, created by Hasbro in 1964, as an action figure.

RAGGEDY ANN—made entirely of cloth, and along with brother Andy, popular for over 100 years.

KEWPIE—a creation of artist/writer Rose O'Neill, an adorable character popular since the early 1900's.

MADAME ALEXANDER—creator of dolls from the 1920's on, popular with both collectors and children. By the way, Madame Alexander's many philanthropies included B'NAI Brith, and she was honored by them in 1985 at a Palm Beach gala.

BARBIE—a cultural revolution, launched in 1957, and still going strong!

GINNY—the darling of the 1950's, with a huge following, and a larger wardrobe.

And lest we forget, note ...

JIGGS—a male chimp actor of the 1930's. We could have gone instead with the male lead of Bringing Up Father, dating back even further (syndicated from 1913-2000).

ERIC BANA—more than you probably want to know about this talented Australian actor.

COMPARI—a popular apéritif of Italian origin dating from the 1860's. Here's a toast to dolls ... and crossword puzzles!