1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:01,960 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:10,320 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, 3 00:00:10,320 --> 00:00:14,960 Speaker 1: a show for those who can never know enough about history. 4 00:00:15,960 --> 00:00:19,360 Speaker 1: I'm Gay Bluesier, and today we're looking at the story 5 00:00:19,440 --> 00:00:21,880 Speaker 1: of how one of the most popular toy brands in 6 00:00:21,880 --> 00:00:25,079 Speaker 1: the world wound up opening a theme park in its 7 00:00:25,079 --> 00:00:38,960 Speaker 1: own backyard. The day was June seven. The first theme 8 00:00:39,040 --> 00:00:43,160 Speaker 1: park dedicated to Lego Bricks opened in the company's hometown 9 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:47,760 Speaker 1: of bill and to Denmark. The park, dubbed Lego Land, 10 00:00:48,159 --> 00:00:51,000 Speaker 1: was small at first, with just one restaurant and a 11 00:00:51,080 --> 00:00:54,840 Speaker 1: handful of attractions. The main draw was a section of 12 00:00:54,880 --> 00:00:58,440 Speaker 1: the park known as Mini Land, which feature detailed city 13 00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:02,880 Speaker 1: scenes and dioramas of real world locations, all modeled in 14 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:08,120 Speaker 1: Lego bricks. About three thousand guests visited the park on 15 00:01:08,200 --> 00:01:10,800 Speaker 1: opening day, and by the end of its first year, 16 00:01:11,000 --> 00:01:14,800 Speaker 1: attendance had soared to six hundred and twenty five thousand, 17 00:01:15,200 --> 00:01:18,959 Speaker 1: twice the amount projected by the company. Today, there are 18 00:01:19,040 --> 00:01:22,800 Speaker 1: ten Lego Land parks spread all across the world, attracting 19 00:01:22,800 --> 00:01:26,160 Speaker 1: a total of more than fifteen million guests each year. 20 00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:31,679 Speaker 1: The original Lego Land park likely wouldn't exist if not 21 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:35,920 Speaker 1: for the work of one woman, Dagney Holme. She was 22 00:01:35,959 --> 00:01:39,680 Speaker 1: the niece of Lego founder Ole Kirk Christiansen and the 23 00:01:39,760 --> 00:01:42,600 Speaker 1: cousin of his son Godfried, the head of the company 24 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:46,319 Speaker 1: at the time. Dagney first joined the company as an 25 00:01:46,319 --> 00:01:49,880 Speaker 1: intern in nineteen thirty six, when she was just nineteen 26 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:54,280 Speaker 1: years old. At the time, Lego made wooden toys and 27 00:01:54,320 --> 00:01:58,080 Speaker 1: Wooden patent its famous plastic brick for another two decades. 28 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:03,240 Speaker 1: After her three month internship in the nineteen thirties, Dagney 29 00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:06,640 Speaker 1: moved to Copenhagen, where she went to school for classical 30 00:02:06,680 --> 00:02:11,120 Speaker 1: sculpture design. Twenty five years later, following the death of 31 00:02:11,160 --> 00:02:14,840 Speaker 1: her husband, Dagney returned home to Billend and rejoined the 32 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:18,840 Speaker 1: Lego group as a model builder. A lot had changed 33 00:02:18,919 --> 00:02:22,480 Speaker 1: since she last worked for the family business. The interlocking 34 00:02:22,560 --> 00:02:25,600 Speaker 1: system of bricks that had been introduced in nineteen fifty 35 00:02:25,639 --> 00:02:30,080 Speaker 1: eight was now the company's premiere product. At first, Dagney 36 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:34,600 Speaker 1: had trouble adjusting to the new medium of rigid plastic bricks. 37 00:02:34,639 --> 00:02:37,840 Speaker 1: She found it more restrictive and less intuitive than working 38 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:41,440 Speaker 1: with wood or clay, but eventually her skill, talent, and 39 00:02:41,600 --> 00:02:45,800 Speaker 1: i for design one out. Dagney began building eye catching 40 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:50,040 Speaker 1: Lego models of everything from modern buildings to medieval castles, 41 00:02:50,480 --> 00:02:55,440 Speaker 1: from realistic animals to fantasy creatures. Over the next few years, 42 00:02:55,760 --> 00:02:59,240 Speaker 1: the growing popularity of Lego products prompted the company to 43 00:02:59,360 --> 00:03:04,120 Speaker 1: open the doors of its factory to the public. Children, retailers, 44 00:03:04,120 --> 00:03:07,800 Speaker 1: and model builders of all ages began making the pilgrimage 45 00:03:07,840 --> 00:03:10,280 Speaker 1: to the small town of Billund in order to tour 46 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:14,120 Speaker 1: the Lego factory. The highlight of the tour was an 47 00:03:14,120 --> 00:03:17,960 Speaker 1: exhibition of large scale Lego models, most of which had 48 00:03:18,000 --> 00:03:22,160 Speaker 1: been built by Dagney Holme. By the mid nineteen sixties, 49 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:26,440 Speaker 1: the company was entertaining more than twenty thousand visitors each year, 50 00:03:26,880 --> 00:03:31,360 Speaker 1: and with interest only growing, Godfrey Kirk Christiansen started looking 51 00:03:31,360 --> 00:03:34,200 Speaker 1: for a way to relieve the pressure on the factory tour. 52 00:03:35,200 --> 00:03:37,960 Speaker 1: What they needed was a place to display their Lego 53 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:41,720 Speaker 1: models out in the open, separate from the factory itself. 54 00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:46,240 Speaker 1: The initial plans for Lego Land took shape in nineteen 55 00:03:46,360 --> 00:03:49,680 Speaker 1: sixty three, and since the mini Land models were to 56 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:52,680 Speaker 1: be the focal point of the park, Dagney Home was 57 00:03:52,720 --> 00:03:56,119 Speaker 1: put in charge of the creative design work. She set 58 00:03:56,200 --> 00:03:59,080 Speaker 1: up shop in a section of the company's old woodworking 59 00:03:59,120 --> 00:04:03,200 Speaker 1: factory and began to create oversized models of urban settings 60 00:04:03,200 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 1: and popular landmarks. Meanwhile, window display designer Arnold boot Trop 61 00:04:09,520 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 1: was brought on board to help craft the landscape of 62 00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:17,200 Speaker 1: the fourteen acre park. Since Billand is largely flat terrain, 63 00:04:17,600 --> 00:04:20,600 Speaker 1: boot Trop trucked in thousands of loads of dirt and 64 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:24,680 Speaker 1: turf to ensure that many land had rolling hills, mountains, 65 00:04:24,960 --> 00:04:29,040 Speaker 1: and other visually interesting landscapes that would complement Dagney's brick 66 00:04:29,080 --> 00:04:33,400 Speaker 1: built models. In the end, Dagney Home and her team 67 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:37,200 Speaker 1: used more than twenty million lego bricks to construct the 68 00:04:37,240 --> 00:04:43,280 Speaker 1: mini land models. Using innovative building techniques, they produced incredibly detailed, 69 00:04:43,320 --> 00:04:47,039 Speaker 1: scaled down versions of famous landmarks throughout Denmark and the 70 00:04:47,080 --> 00:04:53,719 Speaker 1: rest of the world. Some of the countries represented included Sweden, Scotland, Germany, Japan, 71 00:04:54,040 --> 00:04:58,560 Speaker 1: the United States, and the Netherlands. To be clear, the 72 00:04:58,640 --> 00:05:02,240 Speaker 1: models weren't built at usual mini figure scale that most 73 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:06,000 Speaker 1: retail sets adhere to today that would have made the 74 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:11,039 Speaker 1: models much smaller and less impressive in an outdoor setting. Instead, 75 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:14,880 Speaker 1: Dagney devised her own mini land scale with a much 76 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:18,599 Speaker 1: larger brick built characters and buildings up to five feet 77 00:05:18,640 --> 00:05:23,479 Speaker 1: tall or even larger. It wasn't an entirely static display either. 78 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:28,000 Speaker 1: Lego cars and trains powered by electricity wove their way 79 00:05:28,040 --> 00:05:31,159 Speaker 1: through the intricate scenes, and Lego boats in the mini 80 00:05:31,240 --> 00:05:34,080 Speaker 1: harbor appeared to move on their own thanks to a 81 00:05:34,120 --> 00:05:38,599 Speaker 1: clever underwater pulley system. As if she wasn't busy enough, 82 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:42,880 Speaker 1: Dagney Home was also approached in nineteen sixty seven to 83 00:05:42,960 --> 00:05:46,720 Speaker 1: design a human scale Lego train for guests to ride 84 00:05:46,920 --> 00:05:51,760 Speaker 1: at the famous Tivoli Gardens and Copenhagen. She happily obliged, 85 00:05:52,040 --> 00:05:54,240 Speaker 1: but the train only carried guests on a tour of 86 00:05:54,279 --> 00:05:57,599 Speaker 1: the gardens for about a year. In nine sixty eight, 87 00:05:57,600 --> 00:05:59,920 Speaker 1: when it was time for Lego's own park to open, 88 00:06:00,400 --> 00:06:03,599 Speaker 1: Dagney's train was moved over to Billent and One, just 89 00:06:03,800 --> 00:06:07,839 Speaker 1: like it continues to operate there today. In addition to 90 00:06:07,960 --> 00:06:11,919 Speaker 1: her Lego train, the original park also boasted a puppet theater, 91 00:06:12,279 --> 00:06:15,159 Speaker 1: a bike and go cart driving school aimed at teaching 92 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:19,640 Speaker 1: kids proper road safety, and of course, thousands and thousands 93 00:06:19,680 --> 00:06:23,200 Speaker 1: of Lego bricks for children and adults alike to play with. 94 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:27,240 Speaker 1: It was a somewhat modest group of attractions but it 95 00:06:27,360 --> 00:06:29,520 Speaker 1: was more than enough to capture the interest of the 96 00:06:29,560 --> 00:06:33,800 Speaker 1: public and the press. For example, here's an excerpt from 97 00:06:33,800 --> 00:06:36,680 Speaker 1: a British path A news report on the construction and 98 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:40,000 Speaker 1: opening of the very first Lego Land. Every building here 99 00:06:40,080 --> 00:06:43,640 Speaker 1: is being made from tiny plastic bricks, bricks that children 100 00:06:43,680 --> 00:06:47,760 Speaker 1: themselves use for their own miniature playtime constructions. Millions of 101 00:06:47,839 --> 00:06:50,479 Speaker 1: millions of bricks are being slutted together to build up 102 00:06:50,520 --> 00:06:54,080 Speaker 1: this colorful dream world. The little plastic world is finished 103 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:56,840 Speaker 1: and open to the public. They call it Lego Land. 104 00:07:00,640 --> 00:07:04,560 Speaker 1: Operating a theme park was unknown territory for the Lego group, 105 00:07:04,839 --> 00:07:07,880 Speaker 1: and the opening day crowd proved to be a bit overwhelming. 106 00:07:08,839 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 1: In fact, Eric tap Drop, the head of one of 107 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:15,600 Speaker 1: the company's design departments, was actually called to the restaurant 108 00:07:15,640 --> 00:07:19,280 Speaker 1: kitchen that day to help wash dishes. When he arrived, 109 00:07:19,320 --> 00:07:21,520 Speaker 1: he rolled up his sleeves and took his place at 110 00:07:21,560 --> 00:07:25,520 Speaker 1: the sink, right beside Helga Torp, the Lego marketing director. 111 00:07:26,240 --> 00:07:28,960 Speaker 1: So yeah, you know a company's had a busy day 112 00:07:29,040 --> 00:07:33,720 Speaker 1: when two executives are put on dishwashing duty. The success 113 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:36,800 Speaker 1: of opening Day continued in the years to come, with 114 00:07:36,880 --> 00:07:40,920 Speaker 1: the park eventually expanding to include nine additional themed areas 115 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:46,000 Speaker 1: spread across forty five acres. These lands, including Pirate Land, 116 00:07:46,120 --> 00:07:50,040 Speaker 1: Lego City, Knights Kingdom, and the Lego Movie World, are 117 00:07:50,080 --> 00:07:53,240 Speaker 1: populated by a host of flat rides, water rides, and 118 00:07:53,360 --> 00:07:57,160 Speaker 1: roller coasters. The Bill and Park remained the only Lego 119 00:07:57,240 --> 00:08:01,720 Speaker 1: Land until nineteen six, when the first international park opened 120 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:05,360 Speaker 1: in Windsor, England. From there, it was joined by three 121 00:08:05,400 --> 00:08:10,520 Speaker 1: parks in the United States, as well as ones in Malaysia, Dubai, Japan, Korea, 122 00:08:10,760 --> 00:08:14,160 Speaker 1: and Germany. After falling on hard times in the ninety 123 00:08:14,320 --> 00:08:17,920 Speaker 1: nineties and early two thousands, the Lego Group actually sold 124 00:08:17,960 --> 00:08:20,880 Speaker 1: all of its theme parks to an entertainment management group 125 00:08:20,960 --> 00:08:25,760 Speaker 1: called Merlin in two thousand five. Although Lego no longer 126 00:08:25,760 --> 00:08:29,040 Speaker 1: owns the parks, it continues to work in close partnership 127 00:08:29,080 --> 00:08:31,920 Speaker 1: to make sure they still reflect the quality and values 128 00:08:31,960 --> 00:08:35,319 Speaker 1: of the brand. One way of ensuring that has been 129 00:08:35,360 --> 00:08:38,280 Speaker 1: to model all the newly built Lego Land theme parks 130 00:08:38,440 --> 00:08:42,160 Speaker 1: after the original one in billing. The biggest similarity the 131 00:08:42,200 --> 00:08:45,079 Speaker 1: parks share is that every Lego Land has its own 132 00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:49,440 Speaker 1: sprawling mini land area. This shared feature is one of 133 00:08:49,440 --> 00:08:52,360 Speaker 1: the things that sets Lego Land apart from other modern 134 00:08:52,440 --> 00:08:55,880 Speaker 1: theme parks. Instead of strapping in for a thrill ride, 135 00:08:56,120 --> 00:08:59,840 Speaker 1: guests are encouraged to tour a highly manicured landscape while 136 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:04,760 Speaker 1: miring the imagination and craftsmanship of the detailed models. In 137 00:09:04,800 --> 00:09:07,880 Speaker 1: this way, many land serves as a kind of throwback 138 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:11,280 Speaker 1: to the European pleasure gardens from which amusement parks and 139 00:09:11,360 --> 00:09:15,359 Speaker 1: theme parks were born. They were places to relax outdoors 140 00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:18,760 Speaker 1: and see examples of architecture from different places that you 141 00:09:18,840 --> 00:09:22,240 Speaker 1: might never get a chance to visit in person. That 142 00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:26,000 Speaker 1: sense of discovery and endless possibility is a big reason 143 00:09:26,000 --> 00:09:29,320 Speaker 1: why Lego products have been embraced around the world. Even 144 00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:32,599 Speaker 1: if you never make it to a Lego land park yourself, 145 00:09:32,640 --> 00:09:35,400 Speaker 1: you can always grab a pile of Lego bricks and 146 00:09:35,520 --> 00:09:45,240 Speaker 1: build your own. I'm Gay Bluesier and hopefully you now 147 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:48,960 Speaker 1: know a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 148 00:09:49,840 --> 00:09:51,679 Speaker 1: If you'd like to keep up with the show, you 149 00:09:51,720 --> 00:09:55,160 Speaker 1: can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at t 150 00:09:55,320 --> 00:09:59,040 Speaker 1: D I HC Show, and if you have any comments 151 00:09:59,160 --> 00:10:02,040 Speaker 1: or suggestions, you can always send him my way at 152 00:10:02,120 --> 00:10:06,280 Speaker 1: this Day at I Heart media dot com. Special thanks 153 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:09,720 Speaker 1: to guest producers Joey Patt and Casey Pegrum and thank 154 00:10:09,760 --> 00:10:12,800 Speaker 1: you for listening. I'll see you back here again tomorrow 155 00:10:13,080 --> 00:10:15,199 Speaker 1: for another day in history class.