Who designed minifigure?

[Kalais]

Hello,

I was wondering who is the designer of the original minifigure? I think, like probably, lot of us :) it so brilliant idea. Minifigs are just awesome :) I am curious is he/she designed any other famous things.

So far I found only info that first minifigs were released in 1975 (non-moving ones) and in 1978 was first release of sets with "real" minifigs. But who designed them? 

P.S. First ever released minifigs from 1978:

 

[Aanchir]

Jens Nygaard Knudsen. He worked for LEGO from 1968 to 2000. BrickJournal volume 2, issue 6 has a really good interview with him, though mostly about his work on LEGO Space (which he worked on from the very start all the way through M:Tron).

[Kalais]

Awesome! Thx for that info! I just read that interview. Veeery interesting.

I thought LEGO designers had much more freedom in the 70-80s tho.

P.S. Lego Minifigure Patent drawing by Jens Nygaard Knudsen :)

[Aanchir]

6 hours ago, Kalais said:

Awesome! Thx for that info! I just read that interview. Veeery interesting.

I thought LEGO designers had much more freedom in the 70-80s tho.

Perhaps they may have in some ways, but LEGO was very strict with designers about anything that might make LEGO play violent or morbid. For instance, the "Yellow Castle" was originally yellow because LEGO was worried that kids would make war machines like tanks if they had a large supply of grey bricks.

Niels Milan Pedersen, the other participant in that BrickJournal interview, also shared a funny anecdote on the LEGO Inside Tour last year about how one time (long before the introduction of official LEGO ghosts and skeletons) he cobbled together a custom minifigure skeleton as a joke and put it in the dungeon of a Castle set that was being presented to upper management. Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, the CEO at the time, didn't find it funny, pulling him aside and telling him "if I ever see a dead LEGO man in another set, you are fired." It was many years before Niels worked up the courage to pitch that idea again! Fortunately for his career, by that time the company was a lot more easygoing about that kind of thing!

[Blondie-Wan]

13 hours ago, Aanchir said:

Perhaps they may have in some ways, but LEGO was very strict with designers about anything that might make LEGO play violent or morbid. For instance, the "Yellow Castle" was originally yellow because LEGO was worried that kids would make war machines like tanks if they had a large supply of grey bricks.

Niels Milan Pedersen, the other participant in that BrickJournal interview, also shared a funny anecdote on the LEGO Inside Tour last year about how one time (long before the introduction of official LEGO ghosts and skeletons) he cobbled together a custom minifigure skeleton as a joke and put it in the dungeon of a Castle set that was being presented to upper management. Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, the CEO at the time, didn't find it funny, pulling him aside and telling him "if I ever see a dead LEGO man in another set, you are fired." It was many years before Niels worked up the courage to pitch that idea again! Fortunately for his career, by that time the company was a lot more easygoing about that kind of thing!

Yikes! I had no idea. I knew the culture at LEGO had long resisted anything violent or morbid, but to think there was such revulsion at the early idea of a skeleton, which is now such a classic LEGO icon... it's just amazing.

I have to wonder what Godtfred Kirk Christiansen would say now about some of the licensed material that's made it into official LEGO products, especially something like Gremlins.

[antp]

Once of the most

3 hours ago, Blondie-Wan said:

I have to wonder what Godtfred Kirk Christiansen would say now about some of the licensed material that's made it into official LEGO products, especially something like Gremlins.

Or the Nazi soldiers from Indiana Jones sets...

[badchriss]

Those are some interesting Things about grey Bricks or dead Lego Minifigures.

The weird Thing is that there was a Time when they didn't seem to have Problems with making various Shop Signs were one of them spelled "TABAK" in big Letters.

[Blondie-Wan]

5 hours ago, antp said:

Or the Nazi soldiers from Indiana Jones sets...

Technically, they were German soldiers, but not necessarily Nazis themselves (though obviously in service of the Nazi regime). That might be why they allowed them, while never producing minifigures of specific characters who are actual, unmistakable Nazis, such as Toht and Vogel.

Though they did do Dr. Schneider...

That said, I do know there were people inside LEGO at the time who were uncomfortable with taking on the Indiana Jones license. I suspect it was pretty controversial internally.

Edited December 3, 2016 by Blondie-Wan
Adding

[Niku]

Interesting topic and comments also, I am glad LEGO takes care about what they produce.

[Sven F]

Very interesting.  A lot of those initial boundaries have been crossed in the meantime, we have guns and weapons in many themes but LEGO still retained the image of a very happy, positive toy.  Much more so than its closest toy competitors like Hasbro or Mattel.

Controlling colors of elements is maybe a bit too much, you can't control what some people will do anyway. Seems like yellow hips are kept off the table since the early 90's

[ProvenceTristram]

Best toy ever.