Posted on 01/14/2009 9:53:24 PM PST by Coleus
Jerry Calabrese readily admits he's not a "fan boy" when it comes to Lionel trains; he doesn't own every locomotive, freight car or caboose Lionel ever made. But Calabrese, a Montclair resident who is Lionel's CEO, can claim something many rabid Lionel fans can't: He actually worked on the railroad, in his case the Erie-Lackawanna. "The summer of 1966, on an Erie-Lackawanna train gang, laying track," Calabrese said, laughing. "Made $2.34 an hour."
He's come a long way, and so has America's best-known toy train company. Calabrese is not only CEO but part-owner of Lionel. Among Calabrese's partners: singer-songwriter Neil Young, a childhood train fan who bought into the company in 1995 and holds patents for train control and sound systems, originally designed for his disabled son. Today, Young and Calabrese are overseeing Lionel's re-emergence as a toy store fixture and American pop icon. The company, which had nearly disappeared from view in the 1970s and 1980s, has enjoyed strong sales in recent years.
Lionel, founded in 1900 by Joshua Lionel Cohen (he later changed his name to Cowen), sold 200,000 train sets in 2006 and expects to top that number this year. Since 2004, when the company emerged from bankruptcy, sales are up 40 percent, according to Calabrese. "Lionel has been coming back; every year it's bigger and better than the year before," said Douglas Waller, co-owner of The Train Station, a toy train store in Mountain Lakes. "I've been through three recessions and we always worry, but it appears we're recession-proof."
In 1999, the A&E television network, in an hour-long show, ranked the top toys of the 20th century. Lionel was fourth, behind the yo-yo, crayons and Barbie. But it wasn't long ago that Lionel, according to Calabrese, "almost died; its heart stopped beating on the operating table."
(Excerpt) Read more at nj.com ...
Thanks. I didn’t know they mostly dealt in O gauge. I just remembered that my brother, in the sixties, had some very nice HO trains and accessories. I’m not even sure if they were Lionel or not.
From wikipedia:
“According to its reorganization papers filed as part of its bankruptcy plan on May 21, 2007, about 95 percent of the company’s sales come from O gauge trains. The plan estimated that about $70 million worth of O gauge trains are sold each year, and that Lionel accounts for about 60% of that market, making it the largest manufacturer of O gauge trains.”
(snip)
“Lionel, LLC continued to manufacture and market trains and accessories in O scale under the Lionel brand and S gauge under the American Flyer brand. While most of the American Flyer product comprises re-issues using old Gilbert tooling from the 1950s, the O scale equipment is a combination of new designs and reissues. Lionel also ventured into HO scale at times during its history, with limited success.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionel_Trains
http://www.lionel.com/Products/Findex.cfm
GREAT PICS.
Thanks.
That one with all the bridges over the deep canyon—incredible.
Though . . . uhhhhh . . . one kind of has the thought that some ‘boys’ may have entirely too much time on their hands! LOL.
Boy, that is one awful website Lionel has, isn’t it? They seriously need someone that knows what they’re doing to do a complete overhaul of it, although this page isn’t too bad:
http://www.lionel.com/Products/Findex.cfm
How Much things cost in 1966
Yearly Inflation Rate USA 3.01%
Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 785
Average Cost of new house $14,200.00
Average Income per year $6,900.00
Gas per Gallon 32 cents
Average Cost of a new car $2,650.00
Dishwasher $119.95
Parker Pen Set $11.95
http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/1966.html
Thanks.
Someone stole my Lionel set decades ago.
I think my mother threw my brother's away. She figured he 'outgrew' them. He went nuts.
Wellllllllllllllll! Harumph!
A Lionel set is worth going nuts over! LOL.
I’m with your Bro.
/very slight sar
IIRC, the American Flyer line was manufactured by Gilbert, famous for erector sets and chemistry sets.
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