The Mega-Brands That Built America – Season 3
Episodes
The World in Your Palm
The biggest names in computers go head-to-head in a race to create the first portable computers; through failures, alliances and the return of an American icon, they'll usher in their first ever handheld device.
The Retail Reckoning
Three American retail icons are born within months of each other in 1962, sparking a rivalry for the ages.
Rise of the Internet Empires
An ambitious upstart leaves Wall Street to start an internet store that becomes a global empire, while a young computer programmer revolutionizes the way we buy and sell online--creating rival multibillion-dollar brands that become household names.
Hardware Warfare
Family-owned hardware stores become behemoth brands who battle it out taking big risks, ushering in new innovations, and betting it all in a race to become the number one hardware store chain in America.
Rise of the Office Machines
To simplify tedious office tasks in the mid-20th century, one unknown company introduces the world's first photocopier and becomes a household name.
Photo Bombs
An underdog breaks the mold by creating instant photography, revolutionizing how we take photos. And it kicks off a war of innovation between two iconic companies battling to be the number one camera brand in the country.
Fight for the Fast Lane
American cars get a makeover when an engineer creates the first sports car.
Pants on Fire
Levi Strauss partners with a tailor who makes a groundbreaking discovery during the Gold Rush—sparking a blue jean boom and a fierce rivalry between two iconic companies that spans generations and builds a billion-dollar industry.
Wipe Out the Competition
Before toilet paper, Americans used just about anything–until the Scott brothers turn a mistake into an opportunity and invent the toilet paper roll, giving birth to a new billion-dollar industry.
Reinventing the Wheel
Harvey Firestone races to innovation against a crosstown rival as they both bet big on bringing car tires to the nation.