Gistok - LEGOS

**Gistok** · March-15-13, 09:25 PM

Well for all those knuckleheads who think LEGO is for nerds [[only half true)... LEGO just knocked Mattel out of #1 as the worlds leading toy maker...
http://www.businessweek.com/news/201...ples-mattel#p1

And I'm in negotiations with The LEGO Group [[company official name) on producing them an Encyclopedic LEGO Collectors Guide... [[shhhh!)...

**old guy** · March-16-13, 01:42 AM

Cograts Gistok. Been enjoying your DVD.

**Gistok** · March-16-13, 02:35 AM

Originally Posted by old guy

Cograts Gistok. Been enjoying your DVD.

Thanks old guy... I've been working on a version 2 that has extra chapters and more historic/rare images... free to current owners such as yourself. When it's done, I'll post it here and you can contact me for the upgrade. Being a LEGO historian is almost like having Alzheimers... you learn new things every day!

Just found out today that there's an entire new form of LEGO called "OLO" that was sold in Japan from 1969-78. For whatever reason LEGO imports were suspended during those years [[still investigating)... and LEGO Company had to create in house production... and called it OLO. This was a similar situation to Minitalia... when in 1970 the Italian Parliament forbade construction toy imports for a few years, so LEGO was produced by the LEGO Company under the Minitalia name [[separate download chapter on that from 1970-74).

Same scenario took place in Norway 1953-61, and Finland 1959-62. In fact LEGO in Finland was produced out of a barn from 1959-62...

LEGO licensed other companies to produce their product in the early years, because their sales grew faster than their capacity to make it. Samsonite was the USA/Canada licensee from 1961 until 1972/1986 respectively. And LEGO in Britain/Ireland/Australia was licensed to Courtauld's Corp. [[a UK chemical and textile maker) from 1960-92.

**old guy** · March-16-13, 03:10 AM

Whoops, meant congrats, not cograts. I'm in training drinking pints of guinness for the upcoming holiday. Kind of embarrassing for an ex editor. Not the drinking of pints part.

**Gistok** · April-04-13, 11:59 AM

Well I thought I had seen it all.... LEGO wise... but apparently not....

Check this out... [[paging Gannon....)......

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...ego-masterwork

**Wheels** · May-06-13, 03:28 PM

If you have this in your collection hang on to it! It may become collectible.

http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs...120924275.html

**Gistok** · May-07-13, 07:54 PM

Some Brits... even blowed up LEGO.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=UAK8HDP1NnA

**Jimaz** · May-08-13, 05:09 PM

Thom has a story today about professional LEGO builders. It begins at 4:33.

**Crystal** · June-18-13, 11:02 AM

Lego Tube map to celebrate 150 years of London Underground

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-22882678

**Gistok** · September-06-13, 12:58 AM

It was just announced yesterday that LEGO [[HQ'ed in the small town of Billund Denmark) just beat HASBRO [[of Pawtucket, Rhode Island) to become the worlds 2nd largest toy company...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-0...ales-jump.html

The largest toy company in the world is Mattel [[of El Segundo, California).

**Gistok** · October-30-13, 11:03 AM

Metro Detroit LEGO enthusiasts Jim Garrett is taking LEGO to a new level of art form... first his Fisher Building, then his Stott Tower... then his 10 ft. tall Penobscot Building... and now he's working on the Guardian Building... LEGO as poetry....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/1896393...-ca56BQ-8z4Fho

He'll be displaying this at The Henry Ford next year....

**Gistok** · December-07-13, 02:44 PM

The BLUES BROTHERS movie car chase scene thru the mall... in LEGO action...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJ_uqlNgSU8

**old guy** · December-12-13, 01:47 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

The BLUES BROTHERS movie car chase scene thru the mall... in LEGO action...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJ_uqlNgSU8

They never cease to amaze me.

**Gistok** · December-30-13, 06:24 PM

Royal Oak LEGO enthusiast Jim Garrett's Guardian Building in LEGO is now up to 25 stories... 15 to go!!

An amazing model!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/decojim/11157286406/

**Jimaz** · December-30-13, 07:29 PM

Originally Posted by Gistok

Royal Oak LEGO enthusiast Jim Garrett's Guardian Building in LEGO is now up to 25 stories... 15 to go!!

An amazing model!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/decojim/11157286406/

A close-up photo of it

**Gistok** · January-08-14, 07:06 PM

The saying that you can make virtually anything out of LEGO rings true here....

ALS suffering world famous physicist... Steven Hawking...

**Gistok** · February-06-14, 10:33 PM

LEGO meets Candid Camera.... via Ellen Degeneres Show....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHhATQDcQ2k

**Jimaz** · February-07-14, 07:44 PM

The LEGO® Movie - Official Main Trailer [HD]

The LEGO Movie - "Behind the Bricks" Featurette

**Gistok** · March-12-14, 08:34 PM

Well it is now official.... founded and HQed in the small Danish town of Billund Denmark [[in Jutland), LEGO is now the worlds largest toy maker, surpassing Hasbro 2 years ago, and Mattel this year....

http://www.fastcodesign.com/3027100/...y-in-the-world

**Pam** · March-29-14, 05:55 AM

Lego artist Nathan Sawaya:

http://games.yahoo.com/photos/the-br...375-slideshow/

**Pam** · July-21-14, 07:00 PM

Shipwrecked Lego:

http://news.yahoo.com/legos-wash-ash...161828729.html

**Gistok** · September-05-14, 02:30 AM

Forbes magazine announced yesterday that LEGO is now the world's largest toy maker....

http://fortune.com/2014/09/04/barbie...-top-toymaker/

LEGO has more than tripled its' revenue over the last 6 years.

**DetroitPlanner** · September-05-14, 08:29 AM

How much of the revenue is from toys rather than amusement parks or movies?

**Gistok** · September-05-14, 04:36 PM

The LEGOLANDs have been spun off years ago, and are now part of Merlin Entertainments...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merlin_Entertainments

I don't know how much revenue The LEGO Movie made the company, but the real money there was the tie-in from the movie to the LEGO product line... lots of very successful LEGO sets were produced and marketed with the advent of the movie.

LEGO A/S is still 100% owned by the founding family... the Kristiansen's of Billund Denmark.

Kjeld Kirk Krisitiansen owns 62.5% of LEGO, while his 3 children each own 12.5%.

The company is valued at about $15 billion.