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Timeline of Lego

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Lego Group logo

The Lego Group is a Danish construction toy manufacturer and media company based in Billund. It manufactures Lego-branded toys, consisting mostly of interlocking acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic and rubber bricks. The Lego Group has also built several amusement parks around the world, each known as Legoland, and operates numerous retail stores. The Lego Group has its origins as a wooden toy manufacturing company founded by Ole Kirk Christiansen.

19th–20th century

[edit]
  • 1891:
  • 1916:
    • Ole Kirk Christiansen purchases the Billund Joinery Manufacturing and Carpentry Workshop and begins his carpentry business.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1924:
    • Two of Ole Kirk's sons play with matches and burn down the family home and workshop. Ole Kirk rebuilds both.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1932:
    • Ole Kirk's workshop begins to struggle financially due to the Great Depression, and he begins to manufacture wooden toys. One of his first wooden toys, the yo-yo, sells very well for a brief period.[1]: 10–12 
  • 1934:
    • Ole Kirk holds a company competition to name the company. He wins it himself, ultimately choosing the name "Lego", a portmanteau of the phrase "leg godt" ("play well") in Danish.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1935:
    • The first Lego wooden duck toy and the first Lego construction toy are released.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1937:
    • Ole Kirk coins the first company motto: "det bedste er ikke for godt" ("only the best is good enough").[1]: 24–25 
    • Godtfred Kirk Christiansen begins designing models for Lego at 17 years old.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1939:
    • The company grows to 10 employees.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1942:
    • A fire destroys the Lego factory, forcing the company to rebuild. Ole Kirk remakes all of the lost toy designs.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1943:
    • The company grows to 29 employees.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1946:
    • Lego begins producing wooden blocks with painted letters and numbers.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1947:
    • Ole Kirk imports a plastic injection-molding machine from the United Kingdom, and the company begins manufacturing plastic toys, including a plastic ball and an educational game called Monypoli.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1948:
    • The company grows to 63 employees.[1]: 24–25 
    • Lego produces a pinball game.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1949:
    • Lego begins producing plastic bricks, calling them "Automatic Binding Bricks."[1]: 24–25  The bricks are inspired by samples of the "Kiddicraft Self-Locking Building Brick", a design patented by the Briton Hilary Fisher Page.[2]
  • 1950:
    • Godtfried Kirk Christiansen is appointed as Junior Managing Director of Lego.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1952
    • The Lego Ferguson Tractor toy launches.[1]: 24–25 
    • A new Lego manufacturing plant is built.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1953:
    • Automatic Binding Bricks are renamed Lego Mursten, or "Lego Bricks."[1]: 24–25 
  • 1954:
    • The name "Lego" is registered as a trademark in Denmark.[1]: 24–25 
    • Lego introduces brick-compatible window and door elements.[1]: 24–25 
    • Godtfred Kirk has the idea to create the "Lego System" of construction sets.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1955:
    • Lego releases its first building "System" of the Town Plan along with 28 other sets.[1]: 24–25 
  • 1956:
  • 1957:
    • Lego releases bricks with lights and plastic Volkswagen Beetle models in eight colors.[1]: 26–27 
    • The Lego brick design is updated with a new stud and tube-based interlocking system that improves stability.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1958:
    • The Lego brick design is patented in Denmark on January 28.[1]: 26–27 
    • Ole Kirk Christiansen dies; Godtfred inherits leadership of the Lego Company.[1]: 26–27 
    • The company in Billund grows to 140 employees.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1959:
    • A small staff at Lego, the "Futura" division, is established to develop ideas for new sets.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego divisions are founded in France, the United Kingdom, Belgium, and Sweden.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1960:
    • A fire destroys Lego's wooden toy workshop, and a decision is made to stop producing wooden toys and pivot entirely to the Lego System.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego divisions are founded in Finland and the Netherlands.[1]: 26–27 
    • The company in Billund grows to approximately 400 employees.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1961:
    • Godtfried Kirk buys a company airplane and a landing field is built outside of Billund.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego licenses toys to Samsonite for sale in the United States and Canada.[1]: 26–27 
    • The first Lego preschool lines are launched.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego Italy is established.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1962:
    • Lego begins selling toys in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, Morocco, and Japan.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego Australia is established.[1]: 26–27 
    • A Lego wheel element is introduced to the Lego System.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1963:
    • Cellulose acetate is abandoned in favor of the more stable ABS plastic in making Lego bricks.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego model sets with building instructions begin being produced.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego Austria is established.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1964:
    • Lego products begin being sold in the Middle East.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego toys are exhibited at 1964 New York World's Fair.[1]: 26–27 
    • The Ole Kirk Foundation is established to support the arts.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1965:
    • Lego products begin to be sold in Spain.[1]: 26–27 
    • The company in Billund grows to more than 600 employees.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1966:
    • The first battery-powered Lego train sets are released.[1]: 26–27 
    • The first official Lego Club begins in Canada.[1]: 26–27 
    • Lego is now sold in 42 countries.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1967:
    • Over 18 million Lego sets are sold in the year.[1]: 26–27 
    • The Lego Duplo system is patented.[1]: 26–27 
    • A Lego Club forms in Sweden.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1968:
  • 1969:
    • The Lego Duplo range, designed for children under five years old, is launched internationally.[1]: 26–27 
    • A 12-volt motor is added to Lego train products.[1]: 26–27 
  • 1970:
    • The company grows to 1,000 employees in Billund.[1]: 28–29 
    • Small, inexpensive Lego car sets are launched.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1971:
    • Lego introduces furniture pieces and dollhouses marketed towards girls.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1972:
    • 1.8 billion Lego bricks and other System elements have been produced.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1973:
    • A new Lego logo is introduced.[1]: 28–29 
    • The first Lego boat designed to float is released.[1]: 28–29 
    • Lego Systems Inc. USA and Lego Portugal are established.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1974:
    • Posable Lego people figures are introduced.[1]: 28–29 
    • A Lego brick replica of Mount Rushmore is built in Legoland Billund by Bjørn Richter.[1]: 28–29 
    • Lego Spain is established.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1975:
    • The company grows to 2,560 employees.[1]: 28–29 
    • The Expert Series of vintage car sets are introduced.[1]: 28–29 
    • Lego USA relocates from Brookfield, Connecticut, to Enfield, Connecticut.[1]: 28–29 
    • Small, non-posable Lego figures are introduced.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1977:
    • The Lego Technic series is launched.[1]: 28–29 
    • Lego Duplo sets with door, window, and figurine elements are introduced.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1978:
    • Lego introduces the minifigure with movable limbs and hands that can grasp utensils.[1]: 28–29 
    • The Lego Castle, Lego Space, and Lego Town themes are introduced.[1]: 28–29 
    • A Lego Club is founded in the UK, and a club magazine titled Bricks 'n' Pieces is launched.[1]: 28–29 
    • Lego Japan is established.[1]: 28–29 
  • 1979:
  • 1980:
    • Lego establishes the Educational Products Department.[1]: 30–31 
    • The Lego Duplo rabbit logo is introduced.[1]: 30–31 
    • 70% of Western European families with children under 14 now own Lego toys.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1981:
    • The first Lego World Show takes place in Denmark.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1982:
    • The Lego Group celebrates its 50th anniversary.[1]: 30–31 
    • Lego South Africa is established.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1983:
    • Lego launches the Duplo Baby series.[1]: 30–31 
    • The company grows to 3,700 employees worldwide.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1984:
    • The first international Lego building competition is held in Billund. Children from 11 countries participate.[1]: 30–31 
    • Lego Brazil and Lego Korea are established.[1]: 30–31 
    • The Black Falcon and Crusader factions are added to Lego Castle.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1985:
    • Lego company grows to 5,000 employees worldwide.[1]: 30–31 
    • The Lego Prize is founded as an international annual award for efforts on behalf of children.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1986:
    • Lego Technic Computer Control products launch in schools.[1]: 30–31 
    • Light and sound kits are launched in the Lego Town and Space themes.[1]: 30–31 
    • The Lego Group is granted the title of "Purveyor to Her Majesty the Queen" on the birthday of Margrethe II.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1987:
    • The Lego Club starts in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, and Norway.[1]: 30–31 
    • Buckets of loose Lego System and Duplo bricks are sold.[1]: 30–31 
    • The official Lego Club magazine, Brick Kicks, is sold in the US.[1]: 30–31 
    • The motorized Lego Space Monorail Transport System is launched.[1]: 30–31 
    • The Lego Space subthemes Blacktron and Futuron are launched.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1988:
    • The first Lego World Cup building contest is held in Billund.[1]: 30–31 
    • Lego Canada is established.[1]: 30–31 
    • An art exhibition titled "Art of Lego" tours the United Kingdom.[1]: 30–31 
  • 1989:
  • 1990
    • The Lego Group is now one of the world's 10 largest toy manufacturers.[1]: 32–33 
    • Lego Malaysia is established.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Model Team and Lego Duplo Zoo themes are launched.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1991
    • The company now has 7,550 employees and 1,000 injection-molding machines across five Lego factories.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Lego Town Harbor and Lego Town Nautica themes are introduced.[1]: 32–33 
    • Lego Technic flex-system elements and transformer-controlled 9-volt trains are introduced.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Lego System Brick Vac is introduced to vacuum loose bricks off of floors.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1992
    • The first Lego Imagination Center is opened in Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, US.[1]: 32–33 
    • The world's largest Lego castle is built on Swedish television using over 400,000 bricks.[1]: 32–33 
    • The second Lego World Cup Final is held in Billund.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Lego Paradisa and Res-Q subthemes of Lego Town are introduced.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1993
    • A Lego building event is held in Red Square in Moscow, Russia.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Ice Planet subtheme of Lego Space is introduced.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1994
    • The United Nations Commission on Human Rights uses Lego minifigures in an awareness campaign.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Lego Belville theme is launched.[1]: 32–33 
    • Lego Mexico is established.[1]: 32–33 
    • Lego products are advertised for the first time on television in China.[1]: 32–33 
    • The company has 8,880 employees worldwide.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Brick Kicks magazine is renamed to Lego Mania.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1995
    • Lego Aquazone and Lego Primo are introduced.[1]: 32–33 
    • Weekly Lego programs are aired on Latvian and Lithuanian television.[1]: 32–33 
    • Lego events and exhibitions take place in Latvia, Peru, Hungary, Switzerland, Denmark, Greenland, the United States, Canada, Italy, and Ecuador.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1996
    • Legoland Windsor is opened in the United Kingdom.[1]: 32–33 
    • The official Lego website is launched.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Lego Western and Lego Time Cruisers themes are launched.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1997
  • 1998
    • Lego adopts a new logo as well as the new slogan, "Just Imagine..."[1]: 32–33 
    • Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko visit Legoland Billund.[1]: 32–33 
    • The Lego Mindstorms, Znap, Space Insectoids, and Adventurers lines are launched.[1]: 32–33 
  • 1999

21st century

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 Lipkowitz, Daniel (2018). The LEGO book. New York, New York: DK Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4654-7820-7.
  2. ↑ "Technica - 1949". Isodomos.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-10. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  3. ↑ "Lego Galidor 20th Anniversary Theme Announced". thebrickfan.com. 1 April 2022.
  4. ↑ "Muji Lego sets to be available outside of Japan soon!". Brickset. 6 January 2011.
  5. ↑ Sanker, Dan (2012-02-28). Collaborate: The Art of We. John Wiley & Sons Inc. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-118-11472-8.
  6. ↑ "Lego And Muji Join Forces". DesignFetish. 22 November 2009.
  7. ↑ Kuang, Cliff (2009-11-20). "Design Nirvana: Lego Teams Up With Muji". Fast Company. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  8. ↑ "Elizabeth Banks attends The Lego Movie 2 premiere in Los Angeles". United Press International. Retrieved February 10, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ↑ Stuart Miles (February 14, 2019). "Lego Hidden Side sets add augmented reality to create a whole new, spooky world". Pocket-lint.com. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  10. ↑ Wood, Zoe (20 December 2019). "Lego Accused of Muscling in on Fans After BrickLink Takeover". The Guardian. Retrieved 2024-07-21.
  11. ↑ "The Guardian View on Lego for Adults: Play Is a Serious Business". The Guardian. 17 January 2020. Retrieved 2024-07-21.
  12. ↑ Will Thorne (October 30, 2019). "Will Arnett to Host Lego Masters Competition Series on Fox". Variety. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  13. ↑ "Here's how the Lego Group is celebrating NINJAGO's 10th anniversary". 14 January 2021. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
  14. ↑ Lego Group (January 1, 2022). "Lego Friends celebrates its 10-years of building friendships and future creators". Lego.com. Lego. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  15. ↑ "LEGO Avatar Theme Confirmed to be Coming". thebrickfan.com. 23 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  16. ↑ "LEGO and SEGA debut Sonic the Hedgehog range". Mojo Nation. 2023-04-19. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
  17. ↑ Watson, Cole (May 1, 2023). "The LEGO Group builds its first Gabby's Dollhouse range". Kidscreen. Brunico Communications. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  18. ↑ "LEGO officially unveils new theme Dreamzzz, with all-new sets coming August 2023". HardwareZone. 5 May 2023.
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