The Lego Group is a fabulous toy company that is still based where it started in Billund, Denmark, sells over $1 billion worth of products every year. Since 1949 the company has manufactured more than 200 billion plastic bricks. In 2005, the company became profitable again after a few slow years, ranking as the number one boys’ toy brand in the United States.

The company originally was a woodworking shop that made a variety of products, including ironing boards, ladders, and wooden toys. When a yo-yo craze came and went in Denmark in the 1930s, the company was left with an oversupply of wooden yo-yos. Company founder Ole Kirk Christiansen decided to saw the yo-yos in half and use them as toy truck wheels. The company soon became a toymaker exclusively, with a new name,Lego, which means “play well” in Danish. Lego started using plastic after World War II (being the first company in Denmark to bring online a plastic-injecting moulding machine), and in 1949 produced its first “automatic binding bricks.” Eventually these familiar stud and tube building bricks became the company’s only product -- though they aren’t anymore.

In recent years, Lego has expanded in many directions. The company introduced larger Duplo blocks for toddlers (these interlock with regular Lego's) and even bigger Quatro blocks for babies.

For boys ages 5 to 11, Lego has come out with one special set after another, going beyond rectangular bricks to offer sets featuring animals, spaceships, dinosaurs, knights, and pirates, as well as licensed properties including Star Wars and Harry Potter.

The sizable adult customer base for Lego has embraced its Mindstorms set, which uses a computer-programmable, motorized brick for creating smart robots and vehicles.

Then there is Bionicle. They have pieces that are different than LEGO pieces. They use ancient like names, for there creations such as toa or nui. Bionicles also come in different colors. Now, 2008 Bionicles shoot tridax pods and midak skyblasters.

In Spring of 2008, LEGO will release the online "LEGO Universe". You can chat with all kinds of users to LEGO.com, and it has safety chat.

"My Theory of Lego Universe is a great idea from Lego.com, especially meeting people around the world, and creating your minifig. I think that going around town is very nice and clever, hope there is Star Wars!"

Keep up to date with the Lego Newsletter, be the first to know about Lego Universe updates, LEGO Universe’s big game launch is scheduled for 2009.