LEGO's 80th Anniversary... of what?

[Anio]

This was just uploaded to YouTube.

-Sci

Nice video.

As I commented on Youtube, the music, and the way the story is told definitely reminds me Forrest Gump movie.

Edited August 11, 2012 by Fugazi
What did I just say? :-/

[JackJonespaw]

That was a great video!

Am I the only who finds Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen's scene at the end a bit creepy?

It reminded me quite a bit of the old Walt Disney movies:

[Jargo]

Ehrmehrgehrd - I got a Lego date wrong. Shoot me now! The video is still creepy as a Werthers Originals advert though.

[Nightshroud99]

I found the whole animation creepy. Something about the sanitised version of events and really odd posture of all the characters. Felt like a cult indoctrination film.

lol I have to agree, but it's not surprising. That's what companies do, especially when something is aimed at children.

[Walter]

It reminded me quite a bit of the old Walt Disney movies:

I also got that vibe!

It was a lovely short, although I do agree the animation was kinda weird..

[LEGO Historian]

You mean 1955? I'm not aware of anything really interesting happening in 1954, apart from that being when Godtfred had the conversation with the chief buyer for Magasin du Nord, which later inspired the 'system of play'.

1955 was the start of the LEGO "system" of play, with the town plan and other associated sets-- from my understanding, that, in combination with the stud-and-tube system in 1958 really got LEGO going. And LEGO has celebrated the 1958 anniversary. Not so much the 1955 one.

From the way you say "System", however, I'm wondering what you mean-- today, we refer to "System" as the scale of regular LEGO bricks (as compared to DUPLO, Modulex, Jumbo, Quatro, Soft, Primo, or whatever). That scale was introduced in 1949, and was "perfected" in 1958 with stud-and-tubes.

The "System" in 1955 refers to the fact that there were many similar toys in a toy line that were meant to be combined and added to. Previously, LEGO bricks were just general "boxes of bricks". But now, there was an explicit purpose to the bricks-- IE, adding to the "Town Plan" set.

DaveE

Dave, I think he was referring to the "Principles of Play"... rather than the "System of Play"...

The encounter with the Magasin du Nord executive in 1954 is what got Godtfred Kirk Christiansen to think about creating a toy based on those 10 principles to create a system.....

1 LEGO — unlimited play potential

2 LEGO — for girls, for boys

3 LEGO — fun for every age

4 LEGO — year round play

5 LEGO — healthy and quiet play

6 LEGO — long hours of play

7 LEGO — development, imagination, creativity

8 LEGO — the more LEGO, the greater its value

9 LEGO — extra sets available

10 LEGO — quality in every detail

So although the idea started formulating in 1954... it was not until 1955 that it took hold in the first LEGO System... the Town Plan.

[LEGO Historian]

Only 2 things about the video that I can really criticize.....

1) they don't mention Karl-Georg, Johannes and Gerhardt.... the other 3 sons of Ole Kirk... who... until the wooden toy factory burned down in 1960... were an integral part of TLG. After Godtfred decided in 1960 to just stay with plastic toys, the other 3 brothers disapproved, and Godtfred bought them out.... (Ole Kirk is in the middle, Godtfred Kirk is on the right... in this 1957 image....)

The 2nd thing that I think deserves criticizing is that at 11:00 into the movie they talk about the start of the Town Plan in 1955. Well the images they show are how far the Town Plan evolved by 1961. The 1955 version of the Town Plan was much more primitive, as seen here in this 1955-57 image....

They even had a different Town Plan board in the 1950s than they did in the 1960s.... but they show the 1960s board as what was used starting in 1955.

This error is not just shown here.... even THE ULTIMATE LEGO BOOK has this same error.

[Multiverse]

I'm disappointed in the presentation of this video; I find it outrageous that it would be marketed as anything but a commercial. The script is terribly self-praising and is clearly twisting everything into its best meanings. I've no doubt that all of Lego's creators were indeed noble and decisive people, but I dooubt they were as flawless and idealistic as this. I don't want to see them as flawless and idealistic as this, since it feels strongly like indoctrination.

It's clearly not Mr.Kristiansen himself speaking (not that I think anyone would've expected that), since he would've been able to pronounce his own name and those of his father and grandfather (the narrator is mispronouncing their names in a way that is both hilarious and tear-wrenchingly emberrassing).

Also, why are they all speaking american? In my mind, whenever somebody who isn't American or Australian speaks English, they speak some type of a British dialect. =)

Another thing we should be aware of: "Det bedste er ikke for godt" doesn't mean "Only the best is good enough", but rather "The best is not too good".

All things considered, there were things I liked about the video. There was that hilarious scene when Ole was looking for a name for his company and that truck drives by. =J

Edited August 13, 2012 by Multiverse

[TheRedGuy]

Is it me, or did I hear damn at 10:10?

[Bilbo Baggins]

The vide was mentioned today at a Local Radio Station (91.3) I was really pleased to hear it.

[Vindicare]

I'm disappointed in the presentation of this video; I find it outrageous that it would be marketed as anything but a commercial. The script is terribly self-praising and is clearly twisting everything into its best meanings. I've no doubt that all of Lego's creators were indeed noble and decisive people, but I dooubt they were as flawless and idealistic as this. I don't want to see them as flawless and idealistic as this, since it feels strongly like indoctrination.

It's clearly not Mr.Kristiansen himself speaking (not that I think anyone would've expected that), since he would've been able to pronounce his own name and those of his father and grandfather (the narrator is mispronouncing their names in a way that is both hilarious and tear-wrenchingly emberrassing).

Also, why are they all speaking american? In my mind, whenever somebody who isn't American or Australian speaks English, they speak some type of a British dialect. =)

Another thing we should be aware of: "Det bedste er ikke for godt" doesn't mean "Only the best is good enough", but rather "The best is not too good".

All things considered, there were things I liked about the video. There was that hilarious scene when Ole was looking for a name for his company and that truck drives by. =J

I got a good laugh out of the truck at the window too. That video was great. It was really nice hearing the history of TLG in a little more detail than I previously knew.

[Redhead1982]

It's a nice cartoon, telling the LEGO story more as a tale than history. The truck driving by and showing LEGO on the window is a nice touch. Being a non-Danish, but knowing the Danish pronounciation is something extremely hard for foreigners, I agree with you that at least the names should be pronounced correctly.

It's clearly not Mr.Kristiansen himself speaking (not that I think anyone would've expected that), since he would've been able to pronounce his own name and those of his father and grandfather (the narrator is mispronouncing their names in a way that is both hilarious and tear-wrenchingly emberrassing).

Another thing we should be aware of: "Det bedste er ikke for godt" doesn't mean "Only the best is good enough", but rather "The best is not too good".

[davee123]

the narrator is mispronouncing their names in a way that is both hilarious and tear-wrenchingly emberrassing)

I always thought he was called "Ole Kirk" rather than "Ole"-- but they also say "Oh-lay", which... I think is wrong. Granted, I've always been curious to hear a proper Dane's opinion on the matter.

DaveE

[Multiverse]

I always thought he was called "Ole Kirk" rather than "Ole"-- but they also say "Oh-lay", which... I think is wrong. Granted, I've always been curious to hear a proper Dane's opinion on the matter.

DaveE

Ole is his first name, and I believe Kirk is his middle name. As for pronounciation, it's O- as in 'Olympics' and -Le as in, well, 'Lego'. Or 'Levitation'. It used to be a very common Danish name.

[Omicron]

Ole is his first name, and I believe Kirk is his middle name. As for pronounciation, it's O- as in 'Olympics' and -Le as in, well, 'Lego'. Or 'Levitation'. It used to be a very common Danish name.

So Uh-Leh?

-Omi

[Multiverse]

So Uh-Leh?

-Omi

Well, there's not really any 'U'-sound... come to think of it, it's also more like the O in 'Lego'.

[davee123]

Ole is his first name, and I believe Kirk is his middle name.

Mostly, I'm going off of 50 Years of Play and The World of LEGO Toys, which each seem to ALWAYS refer to him as "Ole Kirk" rather than "Ole" (granted, sometimes they use his full name). I don't recall if the other LEGO books do the same thing, but I'm tempted to look.

Anyway, it was surprising to me to hear him called just plain "Ole", since I hadn't ever heard his name referenced that way in anything official from the company. ... Or, at least, I certainly don't recall any such references.

DaveE

[Omicron]

Well, there's not really any 'U'-sound... come to think of it, it's also more like the O in 'Lego'.

The O in Olympic is pronounced as Uh when saying the word. So bad example. :P

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/olympic?s=t

So if it is an O, then combing that with "leh", then you get Oh-leh, which sounds like olay and apparently that is the wrong way of saying it. :P

-Omi

[1974]

Kirk is indeed a secondary last name, not secondary first name. It would be unusual to call a person 'Ole Kirk', unless he could be confused with another Ole (in the company)

Kind regards,

Ole

The O in Olympic is pronounced as Uh when saying the word. So bad example. :P

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/olympic?s=t

So if it is an O, then combing that with "leh", then you get Oh-leh, which sounds like olay and apparently that is the wrong way of saying it. :P

-Omi

The 'O' is pronounced like the O in LEGO, the 'le' is a bit more like french like 'le canard'. Emphasis is on the 'O'

That/my name has always been difficult to pronounce by english speaking people. And the spanish people allways say Olé!

[LEGO Historian]

Kirk is indeed a secondary last name, not secondary first name. It would be unusual to call a person 'Ole Kirk', unless he could be confused with another Ole (in the company)

Kind regards,

Ole

The 'O' is pronounced like the O in LEGO, the 'le' is a bit more like french like 'le canard'. Emphasis is on the 'O'

That/my name has always been difficult to pronounce by english speaking people. And the spanish people allways say Olé!

Whenever I want to brush up on my Danish... I watch this short Norwegian translation video.....

[L@go]

This is quickly turning into a thread about pronouncing Danish names correctly, which was probably never the intention. But what you Danes need to remember is that even though "Olympics" and "Lego" are good examples of the same O sound in Danish, the O in both words are pronounced "oh" in English (the first one with a long "oh" sound, the second with a short one). I think the best way to spell it so that an English-speaking person will understand, is "OO-lah", where the OO is pronounced like an Englishman would (for example in the word "fool"), rather than how an American would. And it's still nowhere near perfect, but better than "oh-lay".

I have also thought it strange when people refer to him as Ole Kirk. Kirk is a given name in most English-speaking countries (Kirk Douglas...) but, as far as I know, not in Denmark. Instead, it's a middle name, but not a second given name; rather one that is derived from a geographical name, probably a short form of the Danish word for church, "kirke". It's directly comparable to the name of the previous US president; it would be strange to consequently refer to him as "George Walker". Walker is his middle name, a second surname.

Anyway, that's how I see it. And now we probably should be getting back to topic :)

EDIT: And the pronunciation of Kirk should be something like "Keer-k", with a clear "ee" sound.

Edited August 15, 2012 by L@go

[purpleparadox]

Okay, just to make sure I understood you correctly: the pronounciation goes like "Oo-lah Keer-k"? (Or would it be "Oo-lah Kee-erk"?)

[L@go]

The first one. Any Danes are welcome to correct me, but I'm pretty sure that's just about the best way to explain the pronunciation to a person who speaks English.

[Multiverse]

The first one is the more correct of the two, but the double 'O's still make that unfortunate sound of the Danish U, which isn't supposed to be there (making it sound like 'Ulla', which is a Danish girl's name).

Try shaping your lips literally like a big O and see what sound comes out. That should be how the O in Ole is pronounced. =J

Edited August 15, 2012 by Multiverse

[Fugazi]

A nice 80th Anniversary crest, as seen on TLG's Twitter account: