Ole Christiansen (1891–1958), a carpenter from Billund, Denmark began building simple wooden toys in 1932 in his workshop after losing his job.
Two years later, Christiansen founded The Lego company. The Danish words Leg (play) and Godt (well) were put together to make its name. It was only discovered later that in Latin, the term "Lego" means "I put together" or "I assemble."
In 1947 Lego began making simple plastic toys as well as wooden ones and two years later, Lego began producing, among other new products, an early version of the now famous Lego interlocking bricks.
Ole Christiansen was strongly anti-war, reflecting his Christian upbringing and the effects of World War II. Not wanting to encourage warlike construction with his new toy, he made sure that brown and green bricks, which could be used to represent camouflaged military vehicles, were virtually absent from basic Lego sets.
The modern brick design was developed by Ole's son Godtfred Kirk Christiansen. At 1:58 p.m. on January 28, 1958, he filed a patent for the Lego plastic brick with its stud-and-hole design, which is still compatible with ones produced today.
The first of the chain of Lego-themed children's/family theme parks opened in Billund, Denmark on June 7, 1968. The park is located next to the original Lego factory. They are not fully owned by Lego Group itself; rather they are owned and operated by the British theme park company Merlin Entertainments.
During the 1960s and ‘70s Lego produced a line of bricks intended for professional use by architects and planners under the name Modulex.
Two years later, Christiansen founded The Lego company. The Danish words Leg (play) and Godt (well) were put together to make its name. It was only discovered later that in Latin, the term "Lego" means "I put together" or "I assemble."
In 1947 Lego began making simple plastic toys as well as wooden ones and two years later, Lego began producing, among other new products, an early version of the now famous Lego interlocking bricks.
Ole Christiansen was strongly anti-war, reflecting his Christian upbringing and the effects of World War II. Not wanting to encourage warlike construction with his new toy, he made sure that brown and green bricks, which could be used to represent camouflaged military vehicles, were virtually absent from basic Lego sets.
The modern brick design was developed by Ole's son Godtfred Kirk Christiansen. At 1:58 p.m. on January 28, 1958, he filed a patent for the Lego plastic brick with its stud-and-hole design, which is still compatible with ones produced today.
The first of the chain of Lego-themed children's/family theme parks opened in Billund, Denmark on June 7, 1968. The park is located next to the original Lego factory. They are not fully owned by Lego Group itself; rather they are owned and operated by the British theme park company Merlin Entertainments.
During the 1960s and ‘70s Lego produced a line of bricks intended for professional use by architects and planners under the name Modulex.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Lego experienced a significant decline in sales and profits due to competition from electronic toys and changing children's interests. During this time, Lego did face financial difficulties and underwent a major restructuring, which included layoffs and the sale of non-core businesses. The company also shifted its focus from producing a broad range of toys to a more targeted approach, concentrating on their core product: building blocks.
The launch of Bionicle in 2001 was a significant part of this new strategy. Bionicle was a line of construction toys with a storyline and character development, which appealed to older children and teenagers. The line was a massive success, accounting for 10-15% of Lego's total sales by 2003.
Bionicle was a significant factor in Lego's recovery, but it was not the sole reason for the company's turnaround. Lego also introduced new product lines and made changes to its manufacturing and distribution processes, among other things, which helped the company become profitable again.
In 2004, corporate attorney Nathan Sawaya quit his lucrative job to build Lego professionally so he could "get away from the daily grind". His sculptures now command six figure prices each.
Lego Star Wars was the first Lego licensed theme set. The first set was released in 1999 and was based on the original Star Wars trilogy. The lease was originally for ten years but it has been resigned multiple times, most recently in 2012 for a further ten years.
The container ship Tokio Express lost 4.8 million pieces of Lego due to a massive wave in 1997. Coincidently, most pieces have an oceanic theme and continue to wash ashore on beaches in South West England to this day.
In January 2014, seven-year-old American child Charlotte Benjamin sent a handwritten letter to Lego complaining there were "more Lego boy people and barely any Lego girls". Six months later, Lego announced a new "Research Institute" collection featuring female scientists, which sold out within a week.
THE LEGO MOVIE
The Lego Movie, based on the Lego line of construction toys opened in 2014. The film tells the story of Emmet (Pratt), an ordinary Lego mini figure prophesied to save the universe from the tyrannical Lord Business (Ferrell) as he gains different allies along the way.
Profits for the Lego company went up 15% after 'The Lego Movie' premiered.
Throughout the entire 'Lego Movie,' no one ever says the word "Lego."
One could recreate 'The LEGO Movie' using 15,080,330 total bricks and 183 different mini figures.
FUN FACTS
Today Lego has over 9,000 employees worldwide.
Lego is manufactured in Denmark, Czech Republic, Hungary and Mexico. The plastic is heated until it is like dough before being injected into molds where it stays for five-ten seconds before being ejected.
Five thousandths of a millimeter is the tolerance of accuracy at the Lego mold factories.
The molds used are so accurate that only 18 elements in every million fail to meet the required standard.
Such is Lego's exacting degree of precision that bricks from 1958 still interlock with those made in the current time.
The biggest manufacturer of tires in the world today is Lego.
On average, every person on the Earth owns 86 Lego pieces.
A 2x2 Lego bricj can withstand an excess of 950 pounds (431 kgs).
Lego men have those little holes in the top of their head to allow air to pass through should a child ever get one stuck in their throat.
Lego has developed a pair of super-padded slippers to combat the agony of unwittingly stepping on a Lego brick.
Professionals who walk over hot coals and broken glass have confirmed that walking over Lego bricks is more painful.
Lego heads were all "smileys" in 1980, but by the 1990s about 80% were smiling and by 2010 only 50% were smiling.
Lego bricks can be used 37,112 times before they lose their clutch power and won't stick to other pieces anymore.
Building an averaged size house (79 sq m) out of Lego would cost almost six times more than building it from real bricks.
A three-piece set of Galileo, Jupiter, and Juno aluminum figurines, which was sent to the planet Jupiter in 2011, tops the list of the 100 Most Valuable Minifigures of all time. Although they cost $15,000 to produce, the he 1.5-inch likenesses of Galileo Galilei, the Roman god Jupiter and his wife Juno are now valued at $2,200,000,000 dollars because that is the cost estimated to retrieve them.
According to the Lego Group, the word "Lego" is not a noun; rather it is an adjective, as in Lego bricks, Lego products, Lego universe, etc.
The plural of Lego is Lego.
Source The New Zealand Herald
Lego men have those little holes in the top of their head to allow air to pass through should a child ever get one stuck in their throat.
Lego has developed a pair of super-padded slippers to combat the agony of unwittingly stepping on a Lego brick.
Professionals who walk over hot coals and broken glass have confirmed that walking over Lego bricks is more painful.
Lego heads were all "smileys" in 1980, but by the 1990s about 80% were smiling and by 2010 only 50% were smiling.
Lego bricks can be used 37,112 times before they lose their clutch power and won't stick to other pieces anymore.
Building an averaged size house (79 sq m) out of Lego would cost almost six times more than building it from real bricks.
A three-piece set of Galileo, Jupiter, and Juno aluminum figurines, which was sent to the planet Jupiter in 2011, tops the list of the 100 Most Valuable Minifigures of all time. Although they cost $15,000 to produce, the he 1.5-inch likenesses of Galileo Galilei, the Roman god Jupiter and his wife Juno are now valued at $2,200,000,000 dollars because that is the cost estimated to retrieve them.
According to the Lego Group, the word "Lego" is not a noun; rather it is an adjective, as in Lego bricks, Lego products, Lego universe, etc.
The plural of Lego is Lego.
Source The New Zealand Herald
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