One score and one year ago, a tiny, tiny, obscure subset of the human population is rumored to have held plastic LEGO® brick lighters aloft to commemorate a banner day in the annals of construction toy trademark history (or so we’ve heard). On April 30, 1996, the LEGO TECHNIC mark was first registered in the United States when U.S. Registration No. 1971387 was granted to Interlego AG. Like other LEGO® trademarks before and since, the LEGO TECHNIC mark was registered for “construction toys,” but in practice, the exclusive LEGO TECHNIC name was reserved for premium building sets featuring advanced functionality and specialized pieces such as gears, axles, and motors. The LEGO TECHNIC line was initially called the LEGO EXPERT BUILDER series when it debuted in 1977, but was renamed the LEGO TECHNIC series in 1986. The LEGO TECHNIC mark remains in use, the 1971387 registration is still in force, and at least one trademark attorney practicing today still thinks back wistfully on building the very first set in the line in 1977.

By Bernard de Go Mars (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.