The Toys That Built America - Season 1
Season 1
Episodes
Masters of Invention
The incredible creations of some of the most iconic toys in history happened by chance. During World War II, a naval engineer accidentally creates an iconic spiral toy that walks down stairs, when he's trying to come up with a way to protect ship equipment from damage. At the same time, an engineer is trying to invent a synthetic rubber for the war effort and instead creates a strange putty that becomes another world-famous toy. It's the origin stories of these toys and more, and the genius entrepreneurs who brought them to the world
Clash of the Toy Titans
As the post-war baby boom creates unprecedented demand for toys, Ruth Handler turns her greatest gamble into the most recognizable toy in the world. Meanwhile, rival Merrill Hassenfeld, at the reigns of a company that will one day be one the most famous brands in the world, tries to capitalize on Handler's success to launch a military doll for boys--which is brilliantly rebranded as the world's first "action figure," and eventually spawns a tv series and a movie franchise. For decades, these two companies battle each other to dominate the toy industry. But when the cultural landscape shifts, they are forced to make desperate choices that ultimately earn their toys immortal status.
Toy Car Wars
As car culture cranks up in the early 1950s, a young machinist in England invents one of the world's most successful toys when he creates a toy car small enough to fit inside a matchbox for his daughter to take to school. In Los Angeles, Elliot Handler creates one of the biggest toy rivalries in history when he brings on a former missile designer to make a toy car behemoth of his own.
Board Game Empires
After failing to make a living selling lithographs, Milton Bradley creates one of America's first board games, which will go on to become one of the biggest of all time. But the Parker brothers threaten Bradley's reign. But it's a game about Monopoly that will upend the business. And in its earliest days, it might have been pirated from its true creator, who has been largely lost to history--until now.
Recently Updated Shows
American Dad!
In American Dad!, Stan Smith leads the all-American family in this animated sitcom filled with wild and crazy extremes. Everyday life is taken to the limit as Stan applies the same drastic measures used in his job at the CIA to his home life. Driven by machismo and the American dream, he often is blind to how horribly he fails at his attempts. This father might not know best, but he never stops trying.
Twisted Metal
Twisted Metal is about a motor-mouthed outsider offered a chance at a better life, but only if he can successfully deliver a mysterious package across a post-apocalyptic wasteland. With the help of a trigger-happy car thief, he faces savage marauders driving vehicles of destruction and other dangers of the open road, including a deranged clown who drives an all too familiar ice cream truck.
When Calls the Heart
When Calls the Heart is inspired by Janette Oke's bestselling book series about the Canadian West, the series tells the captivating story of Elizabeth Thatcher, a young teacher accustomed to her high society life, who receives her first classroom assignment in Coal Valley, a small coal mining town where life is simple, but often fraught with challenges. Upon arrival, Elizabeth befriends Abigail Stanton, a wife and mother whose husband, the foreman of the mine, along with a dozen other miners, has just been killed in an explosion. The newly widowed women find their faith is tested when they must go to work in the mines to keep a roof over their heads. Set against the wild canvas of a 19th century coal town, Elizabeth will have to learn the ways of the frontier if she wishes to thrive in the rural west on her own.
Lockerbie: A Search for Truth
Inspired by the true-life story, on December 21, 1988, 259 passengers and crew were killed when Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie 38 minutes after take-off, with a further 11 residents losing their life as the plane came down over the quiet, Scottish town. In the wake of the disaster and his daughter's death, Dr Jim Swire, is nominated spokesperson for the UK victims' families, who have united to demand truth and justice. Traveling across continents and political divides, Jim embarks on a relentless journey that not only jeopardizes his stability, family and life, but completely overturns his trust in the justice system. As the truth shifts under Jim's feet, his view of the world is left forever changed. Exploring events from the disaster and its aftermath, Lockerbie: A Search for Truth provides an intimate account of a man, a husband, and a father who risks everything in memory of his daughter and the unflinching pursuit of truth and justice.