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Nearly 70% of
Americans will enjoy a barbecue
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00:00:05,788 --> 00:00:07,572
on the 4th of July alone.
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00:00:07,703 --> 00:00:10,184
Barbecue really embeds
itself as this kind of
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00:00:10,314 --> 00:00:12,664
uniquely American phenomenon,
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00:00:12,795 --> 00:00:16,103
particularly on holidays and
during the summer months.
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00:00:16,233 --> 00:00:19,280
This is a ubiquitous
symbol of a summer pastime.
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00:00:20,716 --> 00:00:22,370
Charcoal
sales are an astronomical
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00:00:22,500 --> 00:00:26,896
$747 million in the
United States alone,
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00:00:27,027 --> 00:00:30,030
and more than $600
million worth of hotdogs
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00:00:30,160 --> 00:00:32,728
are sold between Memorial
Day and Labor Day.
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00:00:32,858 --> 00:00:35,731
We gather and cook outdoors,
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00:00:35,861 --> 00:00:38,821
even if the great
outdoors is our backyard.
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00:00:38,951 --> 00:00:40,910
The American
barbecue grill market
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00:00:41,041 --> 00:00:43,826
is worth almost three
billion dollars.
15
00:00:43,956 --> 00:00:45,306
But a hundred years ago,
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00:00:45,436 --> 00:00:48,657
the backyard barbecue as
we know it, doesn't exist.
17
00:00:48,787 --> 00:00:50,789
There was no demand
in America for this.
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00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:52,617
People don't know
what to do with it.
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00:00:52,748 --> 00:00:54,402
You wanted to
be cooking inside
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00:00:54,532 --> 00:00:57,100
in your more modern,
electric kitchen.
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00:00:57,231 --> 00:00:58,406
It would
take visionaries.
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00:00:58,536 --> 00:01:00,973
Henry Ford could
look into the future
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00:01:01,104 --> 00:01:03,889
and see this love affair
we were going to have
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00:01:04,020 --> 00:01:06,849
with grilling out and charcoal.
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00:01:06,979 --> 00:01:09,025
He sees these
buoys and he says,
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00:01:09,156 --> 00:01:10,722
I think I can do
something with this.
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00:01:11,984 --> 00:01:15,423
I call it the Wiener Mobile.
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00:01:15,553 --> 00:01:16,554
It's one of the
most successful
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00:01:16,685 --> 00:01:19,383
advertising coups in history.
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00:01:19,514 --> 00:01:20,863
God, I love America.
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00:01:20,993 --> 00:01:22,212
Each invention.
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00:01:22,343 --> 00:01:24,519
It starts with good food.
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00:01:24,649 --> 00:01:26,390
Forging
the way for the next.
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00:01:26,521 --> 00:01:27,652
Then you'd light it all up
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00:01:27,783 --> 00:01:31,178
with some Kingsford
charcoal, on a Weber grill.
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00:01:31,308 --> 00:01:33,789
It gave America a
product that they needed.
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00:01:33,919 --> 00:01:35,312
To ignite
one of America's
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00:01:35,443 --> 00:01:37,793
greatest food innovations.
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00:01:37,923 --> 00:01:39,925
George Steven
took his brainchild
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00:01:40,056 --> 00:01:41,753
from a mere idea in his head,
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00:01:41,884 --> 00:01:43,755
into something in the backyards
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00:01:43,886 --> 00:01:45,670
of nearly everybody in America.
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00:02:11,392 --> 00:02:14,351
In the 1920s,
the idea that most Americans
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00:02:14,482 --> 00:02:16,440
would be cooking right
outside their homes,
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00:02:16,571 --> 00:02:18,616
is nothing short
of preposterous.
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00:02:20,052 --> 00:02:22,881
The idea of a backyard
comes along with suburbia.
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00:02:23,012 --> 00:02:25,057
That hadn't really
been invented.
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00:02:25,188 --> 00:02:27,364
If you were living,
certainly in a tenement
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00:02:27,495 --> 00:02:29,018
or in another kind
of urban settlement,
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00:02:29,149 --> 00:02:31,847
you couldn't just go
outside and grill.
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00:02:31,977 --> 00:02:34,284
Back in those
days, pre automobile,
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00:02:34,415 --> 00:02:37,113
you had the urban America and
then you had rural America.
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00:02:37,244 --> 00:02:39,985
They were miles, miles apart,
literally and figuratively.
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00:02:40,116 --> 00:02:42,336
But the American
landscape is changing,
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00:02:42,466 --> 00:02:44,642
thanks in part to
one key invention,
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00:02:46,035 --> 00:02:47,906
Henry Ford's automobile.
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00:02:49,256 --> 00:02:51,736
The Model T changed
both how we drove around
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00:02:51,867 --> 00:02:53,825
and how we got
things in a huge way.
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00:02:53,956 --> 00:02:55,262
It was cheap and
it was reliable.
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00:02:55,392 --> 00:02:56,828
Suddenly, you're mobile.
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00:02:58,352 --> 00:03:02,660
The Model T made
the car approachable
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00:03:02,791 --> 00:03:04,793
for most every American family,
63
00:03:04,923 --> 00:03:07,883
and it opened up this
world of open roads,
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00:03:08,013 --> 00:03:10,886
and seeing the
world in a way that
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00:03:11,016 --> 00:03:12,540
they'd only read about before.
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00:03:14,106 --> 00:03:16,587
But while sales
of the Model T skyrocket,
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00:03:16,718 --> 00:03:18,981
Henry Ford begins
to see a major flaw
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00:03:19,111 --> 00:03:21,157
in his otherwise
efficient operation.
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00:03:22,419 --> 00:03:23,899
Ed.
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00:03:24,029 --> 00:03:24,726
Yeah.
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00:03:27,903 --> 00:03:30,210
What more can we be doing
with the saw mill waste?
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00:03:32,734 --> 00:03:35,040
Model Ts used a
great deal of hardwood.
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00:03:35,171 --> 00:03:36,651
They had wooden running boards
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00:03:36,781 --> 00:03:38,914
and a lot of other
parts that were wooden.
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00:03:39,044 --> 00:03:41,264
I'm Henry Ford
and I hate waste.
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00:03:41,395 --> 00:03:44,136
I'm looking at my
sawmill factory
77
00:03:44,267 --> 00:03:46,661
and I'm just looking
at piles and piles,
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00:03:46,791 --> 00:03:49,533
tons of sawdust and
wood scraps piling up,
79
00:03:49,664 --> 00:03:50,926
and I can't deal with it.
80
00:03:52,188 --> 00:03:53,798
Carting
away the wood waste
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00:03:53,929 --> 00:03:57,933
is costing Ford $182,000
a day, in today's money.
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00:03:59,195 --> 00:04:01,328
Well, we could just burn it.
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00:04:01,458 --> 00:04:03,199
No, I mean,
84
00:04:04,983 --> 00:04:06,594
what can we do with it?
85
00:04:06,724 --> 00:04:08,465
What can we make?
86
00:04:08,596 --> 00:04:11,251
Edward Kingsford was a
real estate agent first,
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00:04:11,381 --> 00:04:13,992
who actually had
given Ford the land
88
00:04:14,123 --> 00:04:16,778
upon which to make
their wood mill.
89
00:04:16,908 --> 00:04:20,216
And Henry Ford
gets Edward Kingsford
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00:04:20,347 --> 00:04:22,174
to run his sawmill for him.
91
00:04:22,305 --> 00:04:23,480
He knows timber.
92
00:04:23,611 --> 00:04:26,266
He brings Henry something
that he didn't have,
93
00:04:26,396 --> 00:04:28,529
a business knowledge
of the outdoors.
94
00:04:28,659 --> 00:04:31,358
So he was able to run
this wood producing,
95
00:04:31,488 --> 00:04:33,621
parts producing, component
for Ford Motor Company.
96
00:04:35,057 --> 00:04:38,930
There's gotta be a use for it.
97
00:04:45,328 --> 00:04:48,549
Henry Ford was a
fisherman, he was a hunter,
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00:04:48,679 --> 00:04:51,900
but really it was the
time that he got to think
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00:04:52,030 --> 00:04:53,684
outside of the office,
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00:04:53,815 --> 00:04:57,166
it was the time that he
got to spend ideating.
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00:04:58,341 --> 00:05:00,256
Henry Ford invited
Edward Kingsford
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00:05:00,387 --> 00:05:01,823
to come along with him camping.
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00:05:05,740 --> 00:05:07,394
It's not catching.
104
00:05:07,524 --> 00:05:09,309
The wood's too moist.
105
00:05:09,439 --> 00:05:11,136
Henry Ford was
a big naturalist.
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00:05:11,267 --> 00:05:16,054
He would go on outdoor trips
and would love to cook.
107
00:05:16,185 --> 00:05:18,405
So, collect some more.
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00:05:18,535 --> 00:05:20,842
It's no use, it
rained last night.
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00:05:20,972 --> 00:05:23,018
Henry Ford is
always thinking about
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00:05:23,148 --> 00:05:24,889
how to make the
whole more efficient,
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00:05:25,020 --> 00:05:27,370
to get greater and
greater productivity.
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00:05:27,501 --> 00:05:30,591
He was always about
what can I learn
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00:05:30,721 --> 00:05:33,811
and how can I use that
to improve business,
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00:05:33,942 --> 00:05:35,683
to improve the lives of others?
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00:05:35,813 --> 00:05:37,162
He was a tinkerer.
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00:05:40,340 --> 00:05:41,036
Kingsford,
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00:05:42,907 --> 00:05:44,082
I think we just figured
out what we're gonna do
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00:05:44,213 --> 00:05:45,170
with all that sawdust.
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00:05:49,436 --> 00:05:52,482
Almost a quarter
century earlier, in 1895,
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00:05:52,613 --> 00:05:54,832
an inventor named WP Taggart,
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00:05:54,963 --> 00:05:56,704
invented a new kind of fuel
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00:05:56,834 --> 00:05:59,402
by combining bits
of wood and sawdust.
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00:06:00,838 --> 00:06:02,884
He was patenting charcoal
briquets to be used
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00:06:03,014 --> 00:06:05,713
as a portable fuel
source for heating.
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00:06:05,843 --> 00:06:08,759
Basically, charcoal
is a dense wood
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00:06:08,890 --> 00:06:10,979
that's been burned, so
then when you burn it
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00:06:11,109 --> 00:06:15,984
the second time, it produces
a constant high heat.
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00:06:17,028 --> 00:06:18,203
But people
simply didn't see the need
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00:06:18,334 --> 00:06:20,205
to risk switching from firewood
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00:06:20,336 --> 00:06:23,165
to the unfamiliar fuel source.
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00:06:23,295 --> 00:06:25,515
There was no demand
in America for this.
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00:06:25,646 --> 00:06:27,256
And you have this
charcoal patent,
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00:06:27,387 --> 00:06:29,693
people don't know
what to do with it.
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00:06:29,824 --> 00:06:33,436
Ford came up with the idea
of burning a wood waste down
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00:06:33,567 --> 00:06:36,178
and turning it into
charcoal briquets.
136
00:06:36,308 --> 00:06:39,399
Ford thinks, well, we're going
into the charcoal business.
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00:06:40,922 --> 00:06:42,358
One day, sales
of charcoal will reach
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00:06:42,489 --> 00:06:43,925
half a billion dollars a year,
139
00:06:44,055 --> 00:06:46,580
and Ford's colleagues
name, Kingsford,
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00:06:46,710 --> 00:06:48,712
will be on the number
one charcoal brand
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00:06:48,843 --> 00:06:50,061
in the United States.
142
00:06:52,324 --> 00:06:56,241
But for now, Ford hopes bringing
charcoal out of obscurity,
143
00:06:56,372 --> 00:06:58,200
will solve his
wood waste problem.
144
00:06:59,593 --> 00:07:02,117
But before briquets
become a household staple,
145
00:07:02,247 --> 00:07:04,336
many more groundbreaking
innovations will
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00:07:04,467 --> 00:07:05,250
need to take hold.
147
00:07:09,472 --> 00:07:10,952
Meanwhile, in Chicago,
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00:07:12,127 --> 00:07:13,998
a young man has
just begun working
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00:07:14,129 --> 00:07:16,044
at his uncle's meat
processing company.
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00:07:16,827 --> 00:07:18,525
One of his first tasks
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00:07:18,655 --> 00:07:21,615
is making the rounds of
the local butcher shops,
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00:07:21,745 --> 00:07:24,879
to inspect how his company's
products are being displayed.
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00:07:38,283 --> 00:07:40,068
Which ones are Oscar Mayer's?
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00:07:40,198 --> 00:07:43,158
At the time, people weren't
packaging their hotdogs,
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00:07:43,288 --> 00:07:47,902
and generally it was sold to
the public in a giant bin.
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00:07:48,032 --> 00:07:52,428
Retailers really didn't
position one dog as being better
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00:07:52,559 --> 00:07:54,299
or even different
than any others.
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00:07:55,387 --> 00:07:56,345
If you don't know,
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00:07:57,302 --> 00:07:58,739
how should the customers know?
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00:08:00,523 --> 00:08:02,656
Who are you to tell me
how to run my shop, Sir?
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00:08:03,918 --> 00:08:06,877
Carl Mayer, of the
Oscar Mayer company.
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00:08:07,008 --> 00:08:09,706
One day,
Carl will help Oscar Mayer
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00:08:09,837 --> 00:08:12,448
become the world's
biggest name in hotdogs.
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00:08:12,579 --> 00:08:14,145
And thanks to their innovations,
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00:08:14,276 --> 00:08:16,931
Americans will enjoy
them, coast to coast,
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00:08:17,061 --> 00:08:20,151
catapulting the hotdog into
the fourth most popular food
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00:08:20,282 --> 00:08:21,109
in the country.
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00:08:22,850 --> 00:08:23,807
But for now...
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00:08:25,505 --> 00:08:29,683
Carl Mayer is 27 years old,
really brash, loads of ideas,
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00:08:31,249 --> 00:08:32,903
but sometimes he gets a little
too big for his britches,
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00:08:33,034 --> 00:08:33,687
so to speak.
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00:08:35,210 --> 00:08:38,561
Oscar Mayer came to
the United States in 1873
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00:08:38,692 --> 00:08:40,955
from a very poor
family in Bavaria,
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00:08:41,085 --> 00:08:43,653
and he decided then
to open his own shop,
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00:08:43,784 --> 00:08:46,221
having learned meat cutting
for a number of years.
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00:08:46,351 --> 00:08:49,180
Oscar F's brother,
Gottfried died early,
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00:08:49,311 --> 00:08:51,443
unfortunately from appendicitis.
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00:08:51,574 --> 00:08:54,359
His son Carl, went to
college to study business
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00:08:54,490 --> 00:08:56,623
and then worked his
way into the business.
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00:08:56,753 --> 00:08:57,928
Their
dedication to quality
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00:08:58,059 --> 00:09:00,844
in their bacon and sausage,
has built the brand
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00:09:00,975 --> 00:09:04,544
since the late 1800s, in
Chicago and the Midwest region.
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00:09:05,675 --> 00:09:06,981
From the very beginning,
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00:09:07,111 --> 00:09:10,550
they advertised their products
as the best, the purest,
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00:09:10,680 --> 00:09:12,726
because they signed
on right away
186
00:09:12,856 --> 00:09:15,685
to the new meat inspection laws.
187
00:09:15,816 --> 00:09:17,382
But when
it comes to hotdogs,
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00:09:17,513 --> 00:09:20,951
it's an uphill battle to
convince consumers they're safe.
189
00:09:21,082 --> 00:09:24,215
People were wary and
skeptical about hotdogs
190
00:09:24,346 --> 00:09:26,566
after Upton Sinclair's
novel, "The Jungle" came out
191
00:09:26,696 --> 00:09:29,743
and exposed some
pretty horrific stuff
192
00:09:29,873 --> 00:09:34,051
about what went into some of
these processed meat products.
193
00:09:34,182 --> 00:09:35,357
And
even years later,
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00:09:35,487 --> 00:09:38,273
these questionable fillings
have left a stigma.
195
00:09:39,579 --> 00:09:42,190
The rumor was that
hotdogs got their name
196
00:09:42,320 --> 00:09:45,236
from dachshund dogs,
that German breed of dog
197
00:09:45,367 --> 00:09:47,761
with their long slim bodies,
198
00:09:47,891 --> 00:09:50,851
but also they may or may
not have used dog meat
199
00:09:50,981 --> 00:09:51,852
to make them.
200
00:09:51,982 --> 00:09:53,114
Yuck.
201
00:09:53,244 --> 00:09:54,855
But
Carl Myers determined
202
00:09:54,985 --> 00:09:57,640
to help change the
public's perspective.
203
00:09:57,771 --> 00:10:00,295
So when the federal
government starts
204
00:10:00,425 --> 00:10:02,210
a meat inspection service,
205
00:10:02,340 --> 00:10:04,865
the Mayer brothers are among
the first to step up and say,
206
00:10:04,995 --> 00:10:07,868
"yes, we want you to
inspect our product."
207
00:10:07,998 --> 00:10:10,392
Hotdogs have
gained regional popularity
208
00:10:10,522 --> 00:10:13,569
thanks to a few trusted
restaurants and hotdog stands,
209
00:10:13,700 --> 00:10:16,920
like Nathan's and
Feltman's of Coney Island.
210
00:10:17,051 --> 00:10:21,577
But the idea of home-cooked
hotdogs is still mostly obscure.
211
00:10:21,708 --> 00:10:24,841
People thought of hotdogs
as really a novelty food item,
212
00:10:24,972 --> 00:10:26,190
something when you
were having fun,
213
00:10:26,321 --> 00:10:29,498
you'd have it at the
boardwalk or a baseball game.
214
00:10:29,629 --> 00:10:30,934
It wasn't something
people considered
215
00:10:31,065 --> 00:10:34,721
as part of the food items they
would serve at their table.
216
00:10:34,851 --> 00:10:37,071
To get people
to make hotdogs at home,
217
00:10:37,201 --> 00:10:40,596
Oscar Mayer knows he'll first
need to gain their trust.
218
00:10:40,727 --> 00:10:44,295
Oscar Mayer had seven
full-time government inspectors
219
00:10:44,426 --> 00:10:46,602
stationed at various
points in their factory,
220
00:10:46,733 --> 00:10:48,256
inspecting the food.
221
00:10:48,386 --> 00:10:50,954
This level of transparency
was unheard of.
222
00:10:51,085 --> 00:10:54,001
Even though the Mayer
family goes the extra mile
223
00:10:54,131 --> 00:10:57,221
by labeling their boxes and
to get a government stamp
224
00:10:57,352 --> 00:11:00,616
on the boxes, sometimes
the boxes are thrown away
225
00:11:00,747 --> 00:11:02,966
and the hotdogs are
just thrown in the bin
226
00:11:03,097 --> 00:11:06,404
with every other hotdog, despite
the difference in quality.
227
00:11:06,535 --> 00:11:09,190
But Oscar Mayer thinks
if they can convince people
228
00:11:09,320 --> 00:11:11,279
that this is something
on their menu at home,
229
00:11:11,409 --> 00:11:12,759
at their dinner table,
230
00:11:12,889 --> 00:11:14,021
they're onto something.
231
00:11:15,370 --> 00:11:16,850
Carl Mayer
wants to be the one
232
00:11:16,980 --> 00:11:19,548
to make this vision a reality.
233
00:11:19,679 --> 00:11:20,984
And to do so,
234
00:11:21,115 --> 00:11:22,856
he'll have to sell his uncle
235
00:11:22,986 --> 00:11:24,814
on one of the most
radical schemes
236
00:11:25,902 --> 00:11:27,208
in food history.
237
00:11:32,822 --> 00:11:34,258
It's the late 1920s,
238
00:11:34,389 --> 00:11:36,043
and automobile
mogul, Henry Ford,
239
00:11:36,173 --> 00:11:37,522
believes he's figured
out what to do
240
00:11:37,653 --> 00:11:40,308
with the 350 tons of wood waste
241
00:11:40,438 --> 00:11:43,137
coming from his Model
T factory each year.
242
00:11:43,267 --> 00:11:46,967
Ford came up with the idea
of burning a wood waste down
243
00:11:47,097 --> 00:11:49,404
and turning it into
charcoal briquette.
244
00:11:49,534 --> 00:11:50,405
But neither Ford
245
00:11:50,535 --> 00:11:53,103
nor his sawmill manager,
Edward Kingsford,
246
00:11:53,234 --> 00:11:56,019
knows the first thing
about making charcoal.
247
00:11:56,150 --> 00:11:58,892
So he turns to one of his
lifelong mentors for help.
248
00:12:00,067 --> 00:12:02,330
Ford
has this incredible
249
00:12:02,460 --> 00:12:03,287
list of close friends.
250
00:12:03,418 --> 00:12:06,682
One of his closest
is Thomas Edison.
251
00:12:06,813 --> 00:12:08,118
They were kindred spirits.
252
00:12:08,249 --> 00:12:12,296
They were both tinkerers great
American iconic tinkerers.
253
00:12:12,427 --> 00:12:14,777
So he approaches
Edison and says,
254
00:12:14,908 --> 00:12:18,041
"help me build a
charcoal factory."
255
00:12:18,172 --> 00:12:20,914
Edison readily jumped in.
256
00:12:21,044 --> 00:12:22,567
The
factory Edison designs
257
00:12:22,698 --> 00:12:25,309
exceeds anything Ford imagined,
258
00:12:25,440 --> 00:12:29,705
making use of every last
scrap of wood and sawdust.
259
00:12:29,836 --> 00:12:32,926
Edison didn't just design
any charcoal factory.
260
00:12:33,056 --> 00:12:35,319
It was a model of efficiency.
261
00:12:35,450 --> 00:12:40,107
600 pounds of charcoal from
every two tons of waste.
262
00:12:40,760 --> 00:12:41,891
Incredible.
263
00:12:42,022 --> 00:12:43,501
Ford puts
Kingsford in charge
264
00:12:43,632 --> 00:12:44,981
of the briquette factory,
265
00:12:45,112 --> 00:12:48,593
which sits on the same tract
of land as his sawmill.
266
00:12:48,724 --> 00:12:52,119
Together they become
known as Iron Mountain,
267
00:12:52,249 --> 00:12:54,599
but it's still not without risk.
268
00:12:54,730 --> 00:12:58,038
Henry Ford is this, you know,
mega successful businessman.
269
00:12:58,168 --> 00:12:59,604
He's already made it.
270
00:12:59,735 --> 00:13:03,739
So getting into the charcoal
business is a little off brand.
271
00:13:03,870 --> 00:13:06,655
So if this doesn't
work out for him,
272
00:13:06,786 --> 00:13:08,526
this can really
damage his reputation.
273
00:13:08,657 --> 00:13:10,093
This can take a little
274
00:13:10,224 --> 00:13:11,791
polish off the Ford name.
275
00:13:13,009 --> 00:13:14,663
A
quarter century prior,
276
00:13:14,794 --> 00:13:16,491
there was no
interest in charcoal.
277
00:13:16,621 --> 00:13:19,494
Now it's up to Ford
to create a demand.
278
00:13:19,624 --> 00:13:21,452
But beyond hunting
and fishing trips,
279
00:13:21,583 --> 00:13:25,108
outdoor cooking is still
virtually unknown to the public.
280
00:13:25,239 --> 00:13:28,329
Henry Ford, because he
had a love of the outdoors,
281
00:13:28,459 --> 00:13:31,811
and he knew it was
this coveted luxury
282
00:13:31,941 --> 00:13:34,161
to be able to get
to the outdoors,
283
00:13:34,291 --> 00:13:37,077
I think that he had a good
sense of Americans wanting
284
00:13:37,207 --> 00:13:39,079
and chasing that dream.
285
00:13:39,209 --> 00:13:41,124
And as
Americans become more mobile
286
00:13:41,255 --> 00:13:44,127
and public parks start
sprouting up across the country,
287
00:13:44,258 --> 00:13:47,739
they are gathering outdoors
more and more, for picnics.
288
00:13:47,870 --> 00:13:51,308
Ford knew that the
American consumer,
289
00:13:51,439 --> 00:13:54,703
which included the
workers at Ford's factory,
290
00:13:54,834 --> 00:13:56,357
the more they
enjoyed their family,
291
00:13:56,487 --> 00:13:58,054
the more cars they
were gonna buy.
292
00:13:58,185 --> 00:13:59,882
People suddenly realized
that they're able to
293
00:14:00,013 --> 00:14:02,406
go and explore the
world, in a greater way.
294
00:14:02,537 --> 00:14:04,104
It gives them a sense
that they're able to
295
00:14:04,234 --> 00:14:07,150
live the kind of lives, at
least for brief moments,
296
00:14:07,281 --> 00:14:10,023
that previously only rich
people have been able to enjoy.
297
00:14:11,851 --> 00:14:13,243
Ford
sees an opportunity
298
00:14:13,374 --> 00:14:15,115
to capitalize on charcoal,
299
00:14:15,245 --> 00:14:16,943
and packages his briquets
300
00:14:17,073 --> 00:14:19,249
with a small
brazier style grill.
301
00:14:19,380 --> 00:14:21,730
Brazier's had been
around for a while.
302
00:14:21,861 --> 00:14:24,211
They're basically
a metal box or bowl
303
00:14:24,341 --> 00:14:27,431
that sits off the ground and
people would burn wood inside.
304
00:14:27,562 --> 00:14:30,434
First used
thousands of years ago,
305
00:14:30,565 --> 00:14:33,350
by the 1900s, modern
versions of the brazier
306
00:14:33,481 --> 00:14:35,309
are used primarily by campers
307
00:14:35,439 --> 00:14:37,659
during hunting
and fishing trips.
308
00:14:37,789 --> 00:14:39,835
They're very simple
little metal grills,
309
00:14:39,966 --> 00:14:42,055
no more than two feet long,
310
00:14:42,185 --> 00:14:45,885
only about 16 inches
wide and not that deep.
311
00:14:46,015 --> 00:14:49,149
They really didn't give you
much flexibility in cooking.
312
00:14:49,279 --> 00:14:50,367
And
the only fuel source
313
00:14:50,498 --> 00:14:52,804
available to grill with is wood,
314
00:14:52,935 --> 00:14:56,025
which usually only burns
for less than 45 minutes,
315
00:14:56,156 --> 00:14:58,636
while charcoal can stay
lit for up to three hours.
316
00:15:02,423 --> 00:15:05,165
Hoping to guide Americans
toward outdoor cooking,
317
00:15:05,295 --> 00:15:08,603
in the mid thirties, Ford
begins selling picnic kits
318
00:15:08,733 --> 00:15:11,345
out of his dealerships, for $1.
319
00:15:11,475 --> 00:15:15,697
It's essentially a bag of
Ford charcoal and a grill.
320
00:15:15,827 --> 00:15:19,179
And that's forward thinking
really in America at the time,
321
00:15:19,309 --> 00:15:22,878
and thus begins one of
the craziest side hustles
322
00:15:23,009 --> 00:15:24,749
ever known in American history.
323
00:15:26,055 --> 00:15:27,622
Ford's
confident that Americans
324
00:15:27,752 --> 00:15:30,059
will fall in love
with outdoor cooking.
325
00:15:30,190 --> 00:15:33,149
Henry Ford was someone
who was deeply invested
326
00:15:33,280 --> 00:15:38,024
in celebrating a very particular
kind of American ideal.
327
00:15:39,242 --> 00:15:41,810
He had a vision
that he wanted to see
328
00:15:41,941 --> 00:15:45,074
come from his head
into the real world.
329
00:15:45,205 --> 00:15:47,685
But Ford's
vision is about to be derailed
330
00:15:47,816 --> 00:15:49,426
by something he
never saw coming.
331
00:15:55,389 --> 00:15:58,958
Meanwhile, Carl Mayer reports
to his uncle, Oscar Mayer,
332
00:15:59,088 --> 00:16:00,350
that in butcher shop barrels,
333
00:16:00,481 --> 00:16:02,265
customers can't
tell the difference
334
00:16:02,396 --> 00:16:05,486
between their superior quality
hotdogs and all the rest.
335
00:16:07,096 --> 00:16:09,620
Oscar and Carl met every day.
336
00:16:09,751 --> 00:16:11,753
They talked all the time.
337
00:16:11,883 --> 00:16:15,235
And they develop
an unprecedented strategy.
338
00:16:15,365 --> 00:16:17,454
Oscar Mayer did
something really genius
339
00:16:17,585 --> 00:16:20,327
to the packaging, to
distinguish the product
340
00:16:20,457 --> 00:16:21,632
as a high quality product.
341
00:16:23,330 --> 00:16:26,289
They came up with the idea,
let's put yellow bands on
342
00:16:26,420 --> 00:16:27,334
individual hot dogs.
343
00:16:28,900 --> 00:16:31,033
Somebody had invented a glue
344
00:16:31,164 --> 00:16:34,776
which would hold paper
around a sausage.
345
00:16:34,906 --> 00:16:36,734
So it was a glue which
held paper together,
346
00:16:36,865 --> 00:16:39,172
which was not poisonous.
347
00:16:39,302 --> 00:16:41,870
Oscar is always in the
forefront of technology.
348
00:16:42,001 --> 00:16:44,090
That became a
hallmark for them,
349
00:16:44,220 --> 00:16:46,527
that if you wanted people
to buy your product,
350
00:16:46,657 --> 00:16:48,137
you'd say, "look
for the yellow band,
351
00:16:48,268 --> 00:16:49,921
that's how you know it's ours."
352
00:16:50,052 --> 00:16:51,706
You know what
they're doing with that
353
00:16:51,836 --> 00:16:53,708
is not just being
creative in advertising,
354
00:16:53,838 --> 00:16:55,144
is they're creating
a brand image.
355
00:16:55,275 --> 00:16:58,930
They're doing something that
firms struggle so hard to do.
356
00:16:59,061 --> 00:17:00,715
But
it's a time consuming
357
00:17:00,845 --> 00:17:03,239
and expensive undertaking.
358
00:17:03,370 --> 00:17:05,676
Those yellow bands
had to be wrapped around
359
00:17:05,807 --> 00:17:09,158
each individual hotdog, by hand.
360
00:17:09,289 --> 00:17:10,551
And
if it doesn't work,
361
00:17:10,681 --> 00:17:12,596
it's on Carl's shoulders.
362
00:17:12,727 --> 00:17:15,121
Carl felt that this
incredible imposition
363
00:17:15,251 --> 00:17:16,252
on their labor force,
364
00:17:16,383 --> 00:17:18,646
which could have
been a waste of time,
365
00:17:18,776 --> 00:17:22,041
would actually prove to be the
distinctive mark of quality
366
00:17:22,171 --> 00:17:23,607
for an Oscar Mayer wiener.
367
00:17:26,306 --> 00:17:27,698
It's 1935,
368
00:17:27,829 --> 00:17:31,398
Henry Ford's latest business
venture, charcoal briquets,
369
00:17:31,528 --> 00:17:33,922
is struggling to
get off the ground.
370
00:17:34,053 --> 00:17:37,056
He's got car
salesman trying to sell
371
00:17:37,186 --> 00:17:41,408
a Ford picnic kit with
charcoal and a portable grill.
372
00:17:41,538 --> 00:17:44,367
But then comes America's
Great Depression,
373
00:17:44,498 --> 00:17:46,108
which shuts everything down.
374
00:17:46,239 --> 00:17:47,718
Suddenly a new image
375
00:17:47,849 --> 00:17:49,720
of outdoor cooking is cemented,
376
00:17:51,331 --> 00:17:54,856
but it's a far cry from the
idyllic one Ford's pushing.
377
00:17:54,986 --> 00:17:58,033
So when briquets entered
the market in the 1930s,
378
00:17:58,164 --> 00:18:00,514
they did so at a time
when cooking outside
379
00:18:00,644 --> 00:18:03,734
was not aspirational by any
stretch of the imagination.
380
00:18:03,865 --> 00:18:06,128
People who could
afford other options
381
00:18:06,259 --> 00:18:08,522
were not going out
and buying briquets,
382
00:18:08,652 --> 00:18:12,439
to cook outside the way they
assumed only poor people do.
383
00:18:12,569 --> 00:18:14,832
People were cooking outdoors
because they were living in,
384
00:18:14,963 --> 00:18:16,791
you know, shanty towns.
385
00:18:16,921 --> 00:18:19,315
Cooking outdoors
didn't have the luxury
386
00:18:19,446 --> 00:18:21,056
and that kind of
big American dream
387
00:18:21,187 --> 00:18:23,667
that Henry Ford was envisioning.
388
00:18:23,798 --> 00:18:25,147
He's
now sitting on tons
389
00:18:25,278 --> 00:18:27,715
of unsold charcoal briquets
390
00:18:27,845 --> 00:18:31,240
and a sprawling factory
with little to show for it.
391
00:18:31,371 --> 00:18:33,155
It will take some ingenuity,
392
00:18:33,286 --> 00:18:35,114
but the briquets
will one day spawn
393
00:18:35,244 --> 00:18:37,594
a 500 million dollar
a year company,
394
00:18:39,205 --> 00:18:41,294
which Henry Ford
won't see a dime of.
395
00:18:45,689 --> 00:18:49,432
It's 1934, six years since
Carl Mayer helped his uncle
396
00:18:49,563 --> 00:18:52,914
market their wieners by
wrapping them in yellow bands.
397
00:18:53,044 --> 00:18:55,786
Oscar Mayer takes out ads,
398
00:18:55,917 --> 00:18:58,049
and their ads actually said,
399
00:18:58,180 --> 00:19:00,487
not only was this a
product of extreme quality
400
00:19:00,617 --> 00:19:01,923
that the public should trust,
401
00:19:02,053 --> 00:19:05,579
but they instructed the public
to look for the yellow band.
402
00:19:07,102 --> 00:19:08,103
The yellow band,
403
00:19:08,234 --> 00:19:10,410
and the marketing push
behind it, pay off,
404
00:19:10,540 --> 00:19:13,326
as sales of Oscar Mayer's
hotdogs begin to grow.
405
00:19:13,456 --> 00:19:15,632
Oscar Mayer
develops a reputation,
406
00:19:15,763 --> 00:19:18,374
and I think fairly so, of
being extremely consistent
407
00:19:18,505 --> 00:19:20,420
in the way they
made their products.
408
00:19:20,550 --> 00:19:23,553
This generates what you
might call brand loyalty.
409
00:19:23,684 --> 00:19:26,077
By the mid
1930s, the Oscar Mayer Company
410
00:19:26,208 --> 00:19:27,862
expands from the Midwest
411
00:19:27,992 --> 00:19:29,733
to the eastern United States,
412
00:19:29,864 --> 00:19:31,648
but the company's
top selling meats
413
00:19:31,779 --> 00:19:33,911
are still bacon and sausage.
414
00:19:34,042 --> 00:19:37,263
Hotdogs in the 1920s
and thirties are not food
415
00:19:37,393 --> 00:19:38,699
that you prepare at home.
416
00:19:38,829 --> 00:19:42,355
This is street food that you
would buy at a sporting event.
417
00:19:42,485 --> 00:19:44,531
It's not considered
an everyday food
418
00:19:44,661 --> 00:19:46,620
you can feed your family.
419
00:19:46,750 --> 00:19:49,710
But Carl sees
greater potential in hotdogs
420
00:19:49,840 --> 00:19:51,886
and proposes another plan.
421
00:19:52,016 --> 00:19:54,671
Carl Mayer comes
out with an idea that
422
00:19:54,802 --> 00:19:57,021
maybe doesn't make so
much sense at first.
423
00:19:58,022 --> 00:19:58,719
I call it
424
00:20:00,242 --> 00:20:01,200
the Wiener Mobile.
425
00:20:05,943 --> 00:20:08,946
The giant drivable hotdog
426
00:20:09,295 --> 00:20:10,861
with their branding on it.
427
00:20:12,646 --> 00:20:13,690
Is this a joke?
428
00:20:15,997 --> 00:20:17,868
We'll be laughed out of Chicago.
429
00:20:20,306 --> 00:20:21,002
Well, it's...
430
00:20:24,614 --> 00:20:25,354
it's a little late.
431
00:20:27,356 --> 00:20:31,404
Yes, you can thank Carl
Mayer for the Wiener Mobile.
432
00:20:32,666 --> 00:20:33,884
Carl's
already commissioned
433
00:20:34,015 --> 00:20:36,496
the 13 foot long
novelty vehicle,
434
00:20:36,626 --> 00:20:39,150
at a cost of $5,000,
435
00:20:39,281 --> 00:20:41,544
over a hundred
thousand dollars today.
436
00:20:41,675 --> 00:20:43,546
And even though
the Mayer family
437
00:20:43,677 --> 00:20:46,984
mustered up all of their courage
438
00:20:47,115 --> 00:20:49,160
to believe in this project,
439
00:20:49,291 --> 00:20:51,859
they thought he was one
bun short of a pack.
440
00:20:53,774 --> 00:20:56,080
In 1936,
despite reservations
441
00:20:56,211 --> 00:20:57,691
from many within the company,
442
00:20:57,821 --> 00:21:00,781
the Wiener Mobile hits
the streets of Chicago.
443
00:21:00,911 --> 00:21:02,565
Today it seems
like nothing special,
444
00:21:02,696 --> 00:21:04,959
but consider that it
wasn't until the 1940s
445
00:21:05,089 --> 00:21:07,483
that the military
even had its own Jeep.
446
00:21:07,614 --> 00:21:09,877
So this notion of
a branded vehicle
447
00:21:10,007 --> 00:21:12,662
rolling around,
promoting hotdogs,
448
00:21:12,793 --> 00:21:14,795
was really, really
outside the box.
449
00:21:14,925 --> 00:21:17,363
It seems like
something akin to a float
450
00:21:17,493 --> 00:21:19,452
in the Macy's Day parade.
451
00:21:19,582 --> 00:21:21,367
Like, here's something on wheels
452
00:21:21,497 --> 00:21:24,021
that's going down the
street, that shouldn't be.
453
00:21:24,152 --> 00:21:25,806
Originally
driven locally,
454
00:21:25,936 --> 00:21:28,504
in the open cockpit
sat, Little Oscar,
455
00:21:28,635 --> 00:21:30,376
a character meant
to add a personal
456
00:21:30,506 --> 00:21:31,464
connection to the brand.
457
00:21:35,119 --> 00:21:39,123
Carl had been to the
Chicago World's Fair in 1933,
458
00:21:39,254 --> 00:21:41,604
and there he saw something
called the Midget Village,
459
00:21:41,735 --> 00:21:42,692
which was little people
460
00:21:42,823 --> 00:21:44,825
who people could go
and look at them,
461
00:21:44,955 --> 00:21:46,217
which is pretty revolting,
462
00:21:46,348 --> 00:21:48,655
but it was very popular.
463
00:21:48,785 --> 00:21:50,091
And he came back
and said, you know,
464
00:21:50,221 --> 00:21:53,181
maybe if we had a spokesman,
465
00:21:53,312 --> 00:21:56,706
like a Little Oscar,
might be good.
466
00:21:56,837 --> 00:21:58,447
Played
by Meinhardt Robbie,
467
00:21:58,578 --> 00:22:00,406
who worked in their
advertising department
468
00:22:00,536 --> 00:22:02,277
and would later have
a legendary role
469
00:22:02,408 --> 00:22:04,671
as the constable
in Wizard of Oz,
470
00:22:04,801 --> 00:22:07,064
Little Oscar would
greet onlookers
471
00:22:07,195 --> 00:22:09,371
and occasionally give
cooking demonstrations.
472
00:22:10,807 --> 00:22:12,635
The Wiener Mobile was
what they'd send around
473
00:22:12,766 --> 00:22:16,117
to various places, and it'll
be covered by the press.
474
00:22:16,247 --> 00:22:19,120
So to be a little kid
standing on the corner
475
00:22:19,250 --> 00:22:22,123
and all of a sudden you see
something coming down the road
476
00:22:22,253 --> 00:22:25,213
that's big and colorful,
it's a weird shape,
477
00:22:25,344 --> 00:22:27,433
and it's gonna draw
your attention.
478
00:22:27,563 --> 00:22:30,653
That was a big part of
the marketing scheme
479
00:22:30,784 --> 00:22:32,960
behind the Wiener Mobile.
480
00:22:33,090 --> 00:22:36,790
Sales increased
the following year by $200,000,
481
00:22:36,920 --> 00:22:39,314
which is the modern day
equivalent of over $4 million.
482
00:22:41,621 --> 00:22:44,101
Throughout the history of
the foods that built America,
483
00:22:44,232 --> 00:22:45,712
the great minds
have come up with
484
00:22:45,842 --> 00:22:48,497
some pretty novel
marketing ideas.
485
00:22:48,628 --> 00:22:51,544
Wrigley was dropping
gum out of airplanes,
486
00:22:51,674 --> 00:22:53,894
the Coca-Cola Museum in Atlanta,
487
00:22:54,024 --> 00:22:57,288
in terms of the
iconic nature of them,
488
00:22:57,419 --> 00:23:00,814
few can compare to the
Oscar Mayer Wiener Mobile.
489
00:23:00,944 --> 00:23:04,774
Decades later, still touring
the highways and byways.
490
00:23:04,905 --> 00:23:06,907
You might pull up
alongside a giant hotdog.
491
00:23:08,778 --> 00:23:09,866
God, I love America.
492
00:23:11,041 --> 00:23:12,521
It's one of the
most successful
493
00:23:12,652 --> 00:23:14,567
advertising coups in history.
494
00:23:16,003 --> 00:23:17,396
But it's
another publicity stunt
495
00:23:17,526 --> 00:23:20,268
that will truly
cement the hotdog,
496
00:23:20,399 --> 00:23:22,836
courtesy of the United
States President.
497
00:23:24,359 --> 00:23:28,189
In 1939, while the threat
of war percolates overseas,
498
00:23:28,319 --> 00:23:30,496
President Franklin
Delano Roosevelt,
499
00:23:30,626 --> 00:23:33,194
invites King George the
Sixth and the Queen,
500
00:23:33,324 --> 00:23:35,892
to his Hyde Park, New York home.
501
00:23:36,023 --> 00:23:39,853
So they set up a picnic at
Franklin Roosevelt's homestead
502
00:23:39,983 --> 00:23:40,854
away from Washington.
503
00:23:40,984 --> 00:23:41,985
It's where he grew up.
504
00:23:42,116 --> 00:23:43,247
This
would be the first time
505
00:23:43,378 --> 00:23:47,208
a reigning monarch set
foot on American soil.
506
00:23:47,338 --> 00:23:50,907
The idea of the visit
was to reinforce solidarity
507
00:23:51,038 --> 00:23:53,170
between the British people,
the British government,
508
00:23:53,301 --> 00:23:54,650
and the American government.
509
00:23:54,781 --> 00:23:57,044
Remember, this is
the eve of the war.
510
00:23:57,174 --> 00:23:58,828
The setting
is in stark contrast
511
00:23:58,959 --> 00:24:01,483
to a formal White
House state dinner.
512
00:24:01,614 --> 00:24:04,094
They sit outside and
for the main course,
513
00:24:04,225 --> 00:24:06,749
the President presents a dish
he's pretty sure the royals
514
00:24:06,880 --> 00:24:08,055
have never been served.
515
00:24:09,143 --> 00:24:10,057
Hotdogs.
516
00:24:11,362 --> 00:24:15,279
The King ate hotdogs
and asked for more.
517
00:24:15,410 --> 00:24:17,891
There's a famous story,
we're not sure if it's true,
518
00:24:18,021 --> 00:24:19,719
but it's in a diary.
519
00:24:19,849 --> 00:24:21,721
The Queen asked FDR,
520
00:24:21,851 --> 00:24:23,549
how do you eat a hotdog?
521
00:24:23,679 --> 00:24:26,334
And he said, well, you
put one end in your mouth
522
00:24:26,465 --> 00:24:29,555
and you keep shoving,
until it's gone.
523
00:24:29,685 --> 00:24:31,034
That's how you eat it.
524
00:24:31,165 --> 00:24:33,559
She ate it with
a knife and fork.
525
00:24:33,689 --> 00:24:35,909
But almost every newspaper
in America covered this.
526
00:24:38,912 --> 00:24:41,218
But the hotdogs
served weren't Oscar Mayer's,
527
00:24:41,349 --> 00:24:42,742
but their competitors,
528
00:24:42,872 --> 00:24:45,092
who happened to be one of
the largest meat purveyors
529
00:24:45,222 --> 00:24:47,181
in the United States.
530
00:24:47,311 --> 00:24:49,357
They were Swift hotdogs.
531
00:24:49,488 --> 00:24:51,881
This was a huge
moment for hotdogs
532
00:24:52,012 --> 00:24:54,231
because this changes
Americans' attitudes
533
00:24:54,362 --> 00:24:55,929
towards outdoor cooking.
534
00:24:56,059 --> 00:24:59,236
We do all the work and
they get all the press.
535
00:25:00,542 --> 00:25:02,457
Oscar
Mayer wants his name
536
00:25:02,588 --> 00:25:05,765
to be the one that gets hotdogs
into homes across America.
537
00:25:05,895 --> 00:25:08,071
To make that happen,
he'll need to innovate
538
00:25:08,202 --> 00:25:10,334
in a bigger way
than ever before.
539
00:25:16,645 --> 00:25:18,865
In the
early forties,
540
00:25:18,995 --> 00:25:20,910
Carl Mayer is
determined to use
541
00:25:21,041 --> 00:25:23,913
Oscar Mayer's reputation
for quality hotdogs,
542
00:25:24,044 --> 00:25:26,786
as a weapon against
their biggest rival,
543
00:25:26,916 --> 00:25:29,397
the largest meat
packers in the country.
544
00:25:29,528 --> 00:25:31,312
Swift was a
monster company,
545
00:25:31,442 --> 00:25:33,923
being the largest
purveyor nationally,
546
00:25:34,054 --> 00:25:36,709
and they used big distributors
to sell their products.
547
00:25:38,058 --> 00:25:39,407
But
modern technology
548
00:25:39,538 --> 00:25:41,888
and change in the
way Americans shop,
549
00:25:42,018 --> 00:25:44,238
could give Oscar Mayer an edge.
550
00:25:44,368 --> 00:25:48,024
In the mid forties, we get
the rise of grocery stores.
551
00:25:48,155 --> 00:25:51,985
The visual appeal of foods
became much more important
552
00:25:52,115 --> 00:25:53,377
in terms of marketing.
553
00:25:53,508 --> 00:25:55,771
People wanted to know that
what they were getting
554
00:25:55,902 --> 00:25:58,426
was high quality and sanitary.
555
00:25:58,557 --> 00:26:01,298
They wanted to see what was
inside all of these packages
556
00:26:01,429 --> 00:26:02,735
they were buying.
557
00:26:02,865 --> 00:26:04,519
Meats such
as ground beef and bacon,
558
00:26:04,650 --> 00:26:06,869
in new clear plastic packaging,
559
00:26:07,000 --> 00:26:09,916
become available in
supermarket grab and go bins,
560
00:26:10,046 --> 00:26:12,571
and refrigerators are becoming
more popular in the home.
561
00:26:13,963 --> 00:26:15,574
The refrigerator allows
you to take something
562
00:26:15,704 --> 00:26:17,445
which is in a package and it's
gonna keep for a few days.
563
00:26:17,576 --> 00:26:19,926
Oscar Mayer realizes
that the presence
564
00:26:20,056 --> 00:26:22,798
of the home refrigerator,
changes the rules of the game.
565
00:26:22,929 --> 00:26:25,758
Oscar decided that packaged
meats were the way to go,
566
00:26:25,888 --> 00:26:29,762
and they first began doing
this with bacon in the 1920s.
567
00:26:29,892 --> 00:26:30,980
As the
first to package
568
00:26:31,111 --> 00:26:33,287
pre-sliced bacon and baloney,
569
00:26:33,417 --> 00:26:36,986
Mayer has been ahead of the
curve in pioneering packaging.
570
00:26:37,117 --> 00:26:40,424
Now he wants to do
the same for hotdogs.
571
00:26:40,555 --> 00:26:43,776
So packaging hotdogs
is actually really hard.
572
00:26:43,906 --> 00:26:46,561
You can't really put
them in that flat plastic
573
00:26:46,692 --> 00:26:50,217
because air would get in
between the plastic bubbles,
574
00:26:50,347 --> 00:26:51,958
and they would spoil
really quickly.
575
00:26:53,089 --> 00:26:55,135
In
1944, Oscar Mayer
576
00:26:55,265 --> 00:26:57,267
pours hundreds of
thousands of dollars
577
00:26:57,398 --> 00:27:01,097
into cracking the code on how
to properly package hotdogs.
578
00:27:01,228 --> 00:27:05,624
They draw inspiration
from wartime equipment.
579
00:27:05,754 --> 00:27:07,582
The company came
up with a machine
580
00:27:07,713 --> 00:27:10,716
which would make the hotdog
packages look like cartridges.
581
00:27:10,846 --> 00:27:11,934
It looked like
machine gun cartridges.
582
00:27:12,065 --> 00:27:15,503
Beef hotdogs were put
together in strings of 10.
583
00:27:17,070 --> 00:27:18,811
Named for the
way machine gun cartridges
584
00:27:18,941 --> 00:27:19,768
are built together,
585
00:27:22,553 --> 00:27:24,338
they call it the cartridge pack.
586
00:27:29,256 --> 00:27:32,955
It absolutely transformed
supermarket hotdogs.
587
00:27:33,086 --> 00:27:36,089
And with those, you can put
them on refrigerated trucks
588
00:27:36,219 --> 00:27:38,091
and send them out by
the new road system.
589
00:27:38,221 --> 00:27:41,660
So after the war,
Oscar began buying up
590
00:27:41,790 --> 00:27:44,793
small distribution centers
around the country.
591
00:27:44,924 --> 00:27:46,621
Oscar Mayer
hotdogs are now sold
592
00:27:46,752 --> 00:27:50,190
in freshly sealed grab and go
packages, across the nation.
593
00:27:53,759 --> 00:27:56,239
But there's still
one major problem.
594
00:27:59,416 --> 00:28:01,723
Back then, most people
did not have a good way
595
00:28:01,854 --> 00:28:02,985
to cook them.
596
00:28:03,116 --> 00:28:06,162
The preferred Nathan
style, Coney Island style,
597
00:28:06,293 --> 00:28:08,774
is grilling and you put
that hotdog in the bun,
598
00:28:08,904 --> 00:28:11,733
load it up, and it's
absolutely perfect.
599
00:28:11,864 --> 00:28:12,778
Since
most Americans
600
00:28:12,908 --> 00:28:14,867
don't yet cook outdoors,
601
00:28:14,997 --> 00:28:17,130
they can't recreate
the grilled flavor
602
00:28:17,260 --> 00:28:18,566
of restaurant hotdogs.
603
00:28:22,701 --> 00:28:25,355
In 1947, the Ford Motor Company
604
00:28:25,486 --> 00:28:28,315
is mourning the death of
their founder, Henry Ford,
605
00:28:28,445 --> 00:28:29,403
and trying to navigate
606
00:28:29,533 --> 00:28:31,535
the future of the
company, without him.
607
00:28:34,974 --> 00:28:36,323
World War II ends
608
00:28:36,453 --> 00:28:39,543
and the demand for
Ford Motor Company cars
609
00:28:39,674 --> 00:28:42,372
is more than Ford Motor
Company can even manage.
610
00:28:42,503 --> 00:28:44,548
Then Henry Ford dies.
611
00:28:44,679 --> 00:28:48,291
And here's the company trying
to keep up with the demand
612
00:28:48,422 --> 00:28:50,467
for the American
public, for its cars.
613
00:28:50,598 --> 00:28:52,556
And at this point,
they make a very rational
614
00:28:52,687 --> 00:28:55,385
business decision to say, we
are gonna focus on our cars.
615
00:28:55,516 --> 00:28:58,084
Ford Motor Company sells
Ford Charcoal Briquets
616
00:28:58,214 --> 00:29:00,434
to a group of Michigan
business leaders,
617
00:29:00,564 --> 00:29:04,873
and these business leaders
rename it Kingsford Charcoal,
618
00:29:05,004 --> 00:29:06,745
after Edward Kingsford.
619
00:29:08,268 --> 00:29:09,660
Though
neither Kingsford nor Ford
620
00:29:09,791 --> 00:29:12,925
lived to see Ford's
vision come to life,
621
00:29:13,055 --> 00:29:16,058
their briquets paved the
way for another innovator
622
00:29:17,451 --> 00:29:19,235
to create the key missing piece
623
00:29:19,366 --> 00:29:22,195
of the backyard barbecue puzzle.
624
00:29:22,325 --> 00:29:25,241
He was at the metal works,
looking at maritime buoys
625
00:29:25,372 --> 00:29:28,810
they were building and he
kind of glimpsed the future.
626
00:29:38,167 --> 00:29:39,908
It's the
middle of the 20th century
627
00:29:40,039 --> 00:29:43,607
and Americans are experiencing
a post-war economic boom.
628
00:29:43,738 --> 00:29:45,261
What you had was you
had all these soldiers
629
00:29:45,392 --> 00:29:46,306
come back from World War II.
630
00:29:46,436 --> 00:29:50,484
By 1950, people were
starting families
631
00:29:50,614 --> 00:29:54,009
and people were buying
homes in new suburbs.
632
00:29:54,140 --> 00:29:57,186
It's like all part of
this package of this kind of
633
00:29:57,317 --> 00:29:59,623
happy domestic life,
which is shaped
634
00:29:59,754 --> 00:30:01,800
by that moment in history.
635
00:30:01,930 --> 00:30:06,108
So now people wanted to
embrace this outdoor space,
636
00:30:06,239 --> 00:30:08,937
this little green piece of
heaven that they never had.
637
00:30:10,634 --> 00:30:12,593
A lot of men
during World War II
638
00:30:12,723 --> 00:30:14,638
had learned to cook outside
639
00:30:14,769 --> 00:30:16,640
as part of their
military service.
640
00:30:16,771 --> 00:30:19,382
There were these pocket stoves
that American soldiers had,
641
00:30:19,513 --> 00:30:21,384
that they used when
they were deployed,
642
00:30:21,515 --> 00:30:24,300
in order to cook in very
extreme temperatures.
643
00:30:24,431 --> 00:30:26,128
And that was not, I would say,
644
00:30:26,259 --> 00:30:28,565
a fun kind of
relaxing experience,
645
00:30:28,696 --> 00:30:30,959
but it certainly was
a socializing one.
646
00:30:31,090 --> 00:30:34,049
So as GIs start coming
home from World War II,
647
00:30:34,180 --> 00:30:37,226
they also have these
skills to cook outside.
648
00:30:37,357 --> 00:30:39,489
But grill
options are limited.
649
00:30:39,620 --> 00:30:43,319
Until the 20th century,
barbecue meant a big event.
650
00:30:43,450 --> 00:30:46,932
It was a food that was cooked
at a political gathering
651
00:30:47,062 --> 00:30:49,717
or a town celebration,
652
00:30:49,848 --> 00:30:51,980
and it was almost
always cooked in a pit
653
00:30:52,111 --> 00:30:53,634
that was dug in the ground,
654
00:30:53,764 --> 00:30:56,985
a trench with maybe with
masonry sides on it.
655
00:30:57,116 --> 00:30:59,988
And then you started to
have recreational cooking.
656
00:31:00,119 --> 00:31:04,775
In the fifties, backyard
grills were a static structure,
657
00:31:04,906 --> 00:31:06,777
usually made of brick.
658
00:31:06,908 --> 00:31:07,996
They were hard to clean,
659
00:31:08,127 --> 00:31:10,433
you couldn't really take
the grill off to wash it
660
00:31:10,564 --> 00:31:13,262
or clean it, remove
the charcoal debris,
661
00:31:13,393 --> 00:31:17,266
and during winter months,
it took up real estate
662
00:31:17,397 --> 00:31:18,485
in your yard.
663
00:31:18,615 --> 00:31:19,790
You couldn't wheel it away,
664
00:31:19,921 --> 00:31:23,229
you couldn't move
it out of the rain.
665
00:31:23,359 --> 00:31:25,187
Plus many
Americans don't have the means
666
00:31:25,318 --> 00:31:27,755
to have the permanent
grill structure built.
667
00:31:27,886 --> 00:31:30,845
The only affordable
or portable option
668
00:31:30,976 --> 00:31:32,368
is the primitive brazier grill.
669
00:31:32,499 --> 00:31:34,893
They would burn too intensely
670
00:31:35,023 --> 00:31:38,157
and would shoot hot splinters
of wood into the food.
671
00:31:38,287 --> 00:31:39,506
They are so dangerous.
672
00:31:44,772 --> 00:31:47,079
In
Chicago, a father of 12
673
00:31:47,209 --> 00:31:50,212
is growing frustrated, trying
to grill for his family.
674
00:31:50,343 --> 00:31:54,477
George Steven began as a
hardworking blue collar guy.
675
00:31:54,608 --> 00:31:57,219
He was a welder.
676
00:31:57,350 --> 00:31:58,046
He's begun cooking
677
00:31:58,177 --> 00:31:59,830
with an alternate fuel source,
678
00:31:59,961 --> 00:32:01,615
that's now gaining
in popularity,
679
00:32:02,703 --> 00:32:03,878
charcoal.
680
00:32:04,009 --> 00:32:05,662
But it doesn't solve
the other big issue
681
00:32:05,793 --> 00:32:07,012
the brazier poses.
682
00:32:07,142 --> 00:32:10,276
Without a lid, the grill
is open to the elements.
683
00:32:10,406 --> 00:32:13,018
Maybe it starts raining,
maybe it's windy,
684
00:32:13,148 --> 00:32:16,586
and all of these things
really annoyed George.
685
00:32:16,717 --> 00:32:17,805
He wanted a better grill.
686
00:32:21,374 --> 00:32:23,854
He loved steak and he
wanted to find a better way
687
00:32:23,985 --> 00:32:25,247
to cook steak.
688
00:32:26,857 --> 00:32:29,338
Stevens is
employed by Weber Metal Works,
689
00:32:29,469 --> 00:32:31,079
a shop that produces buoys.
690
00:32:33,255 --> 00:32:35,997
He was at the metal works
looking at maritime buoys
691
00:32:36,128 --> 00:32:40,219
they were building, and he
kind of glimpsed the future.
692
00:32:40,349 --> 00:32:43,004
He sees these
buoys and he says,
693
00:32:43,135 --> 00:32:44,745
"I think I can do
something with this."
694
00:32:46,312 --> 00:32:48,053
The thing about
George Steven is,
695
00:32:48,183 --> 00:32:51,273
even though he's doing
this very respectable
696
00:32:51,404 --> 00:32:54,755
hard day's work, for an
honest day's pay kind of jobs,
697
00:32:54,885 --> 00:32:55,930
he's a dreamer.
698
00:32:56,061 --> 00:32:58,498
He thought if I cut
this into two pieces
699
00:32:58,628 --> 00:33:01,370
and one side is
used for a fire box,
700
00:33:01,501 --> 00:33:04,895
and the other side is used as
a lid to control smoke,
701
00:33:05,026 --> 00:33:07,289
this would work
out a lot better.
702
00:33:07,420 --> 00:33:09,813
George believes
a deeper, rounder shape,
703
00:33:09,944 --> 00:33:12,686
will better concentrate not
just the charcoal's heat,
704
00:33:12,816 --> 00:33:14,166
but the unique smokey flavor.
705
00:33:16,472 --> 00:33:17,865
He just kept
tinkering with it.
706
00:33:19,736 --> 00:33:21,129
He had in mind
from the beginning
707
00:33:21,260 --> 00:33:22,391
to build something new.
708
00:33:22,522 --> 00:33:25,003
Most grills at that
point were rectangular.
709
00:33:26,178 --> 00:33:28,049
Anyone that's a dreamer,
710
00:33:28,180 --> 00:33:31,618
anyone that dares
to break new ground,
711
00:33:31,748 --> 00:33:34,186
try something that's
never been tried before,
712
00:33:34,316 --> 00:33:39,017
usually will meet with a lot
of doubt, a lot of derision,
713
00:33:39,756 --> 00:33:41,280
a lot of naysayers,
714
00:33:41,410 --> 00:33:44,196
and a million different
reasons to say no.
715
00:33:45,414 --> 00:33:47,025
He's
working around the clock
716
00:33:47,155 --> 00:33:49,331
on his new charcoal
grill prototype.
717
00:33:52,421 --> 00:33:54,293
George's barbecue
had some shortcomings,
718
00:33:54,423 --> 00:33:55,772
which he discovered
as he used it.
719
00:33:55,903 --> 00:33:58,340
It had a round bottom
but the top of it,
720
00:33:58,471 --> 00:34:01,082
had a flat lid that was almost
like the lid of a skillet.
721
00:34:01,213 --> 00:34:03,171
The lid
is a key element,
722
00:34:03,302 --> 00:34:05,217
but it creates a major issue.
723
00:34:05,347 --> 00:34:06,522
By putting a lid on it,
724
00:34:06,653 --> 00:34:09,177
it basically meant that you
could choke off the fire.
725
00:34:09,308 --> 00:34:12,137
George's invention
is looking like a failure.
726
00:34:12,267 --> 00:34:14,530
Like so many dreamers
and so many visionaries
727
00:34:14,661 --> 00:34:18,012
before and since, people
always laughed at him.
728
00:34:18,143 --> 00:34:20,188
His neighbors laughed
and called it Sputnik.
729
00:34:24,279 --> 00:34:26,412
But George
will get the last laugh
730
00:34:26,542 --> 00:34:30,459
when his grills one day bring
in 2.5 billion dollars a year,
731
00:34:30,590 --> 00:34:33,810
and he's dubbed the
father of modern barbecue.
732
00:34:33,941 --> 00:34:37,597
But for now, George can't
get his grill to stay lit.
733
00:34:44,560 --> 00:34:46,693
It's 1951 and
George Steven
734
00:34:46,823 --> 00:34:48,695
has been working tirelessly
735
00:34:48,825 --> 00:34:52,090
to solve a major problem with
his charcoal grill prototype.
736
00:34:53,787 --> 00:34:55,919
The charcoal, it
wouldn't stay lit.
737
00:34:57,312 --> 00:34:58,531
By putting a lid on it,
738
00:34:58,661 --> 00:35:01,490
it basically meant that you
could choke off the fire.
739
00:35:01,621 --> 00:35:03,405
After
hours of frustration,
740
00:35:03,536 --> 00:35:05,973
a quick tip from a neighbor
changes everything.
741
00:35:09,019 --> 00:35:11,239
George, give it some air.
742
00:35:15,983 --> 00:35:19,029
Every good fire pit,
every good smoker,
743
00:35:19,160 --> 00:35:20,466
and every good grill,
744
00:35:21,423 --> 00:35:22,946
needs to have good air flow,
745
00:35:23,077 --> 00:35:27,516
so there's constant supply
of oxygen going to that fire.
746
00:35:29,083 --> 00:35:31,129
The air holes were crucial
to keep the flame going.
747
00:35:33,479 --> 00:35:35,829
But George's
satisfaction is short-lived
748
00:35:37,091 --> 00:35:39,833
as he soon discovers
another problem.
749
00:35:39,963 --> 00:35:41,095
He got really frustrated
750
00:35:41,226 --> 00:35:43,315
because there was no
way to control the heat.
751
00:35:43,445 --> 00:35:45,012
It was just burning
everything up.
752
00:35:49,408 --> 00:35:51,932
At the metal works, he was
making changes to the product.
753
00:35:52,062 --> 00:35:53,760
At home, he was testing
it and using it,
754
00:35:53,890 --> 00:35:55,501
and saying what
would make it better?
755
00:35:57,024 --> 00:35:58,721
Steven knows
he must perfect a way
756
00:35:58,852 --> 00:36:00,158
to control the temperature.
757
00:36:02,769 --> 00:36:05,206
Having louvers meant that
you control the airflow,
758
00:36:05,337 --> 00:36:07,556
you control the
intensity of the fire.
759
00:36:07,687 --> 00:36:09,254
He added two sets of louvers.
760
00:36:09,384 --> 00:36:11,430
They are the top
louvers above the fire,
761
00:36:11,560 --> 00:36:13,475
and then there are
the ones underneath.
762
00:36:13,606 --> 00:36:14,607
When you're cooking,
763
00:36:14,737 --> 00:36:15,695
you have to control
both of those louvers.
764
00:36:15,825 --> 00:36:17,349
If you get it
properly controlled,
765
00:36:17,479 --> 00:36:19,742
you can just get
wonderful smoke flavor.
766
00:36:19,873 --> 00:36:21,266
imbued in it.
767
00:36:25,487 --> 00:36:27,968
In 1952 with
his prototype complete,
768
00:36:28,098 --> 00:36:29,448
George is eager to have
769
00:36:29,578 --> 00:36:31,189
the metal works
company produce them.
770
00:36:32,146 --> 00:36:34,409
But there's still the question
771
00:36:34,540 --> 00:36:36,890
of whether the American
consumers will bite.
772
00:36:38,500 --> 00:36:41,808
George's barbecue kettle
marketed for $29 and 95 cents.
773
00:36:41,938 --> 00:36:43,984
Sounds like nothing
now, but with inflation,
774
00:36:44,114 --> 00:36:47,857
it's the equivalent of
something like $275 or $300.
775
00:36:47,988 --> 00:36:49,859
So it was a high-end
product from the beginning.
776
00:36:49,990 --> 00:36:52,166
This was not a cheap grill.
777
00:36:52,297 --> 00:36:54,690
So the company
runs a limited trial.
778
00:36:54,821 --> 00:36:57,171
He only issues 50 of them,
779
00:36:57,302 --> 00:37:02,176
and it was a real gamble to
wonder if, men especially,
780
00:37:02,307 --> 00:37:05,962
were gonna spend this much
money on a domestic item.
781
00:37:06,093 --> 00:37:09,792
America was in a time
of peace, prosperity,
782
00:37:09,923 --> 00:37:12,839
and there was a desire
for status symbols.
783
00:37:12,969 --> 00:37:16,930
And the Weber will A,
definitely be a status symbol,
784
00:37:17,060 --> 00:37:21,848
B, give you incredibly good
results, time and time again.
785
00:37:23,241 --> 00:37:25,417
They sell
out almost immediately,
786
00:37:25,547 --> 00:37:28,028
prompting George's
employer Weber Metal Works,
787
00:37:28,158 --> 00:37:31,423
to create a barbecue
division, run by George.
788
00:37:31,553 --> 00:37:34,600
I mean it's a well
made, well welded,
789
00:37:34,730 --> 00:37:37,951
solid piece of steel
that's durable.
790
00:37:38,081 --> 00:37:40,736
They're easy to
clean, easy to move,
791
00:37:40,867 --> 00:37:44,218
and you can put it in the
garage when you're not using it.
792
00:37:44,349 --> 00:37:47,526
By 1958, Steven's
grill is doing so well,
793
00:37:47,656 --> 00:37:50,616
that he buys out the
remaining shares of Weber.
794
00:37:50,746 --> 00:37:53,009
But even he isn't
sure it will last.
795
00:37:53,140 --> 00:37:55,316
When he turned it
into a barbecue company,
796
00:37:55,447 --> 00:37:58,276
he made the name Weber Steven.
797
00:37:58,406 --> 00:38:00,843
He did not make it just Steven
798
00:38:00,974 --> 00:38:03,150
because he was afraid
the barbecue thing
799
00:38:03,281 --> 00:38:05,152
might not catch on, and they
were gonna have to go back
800
00:38:05,283 --> 00:38:06,893
to making hinges and buoys.
801
00:38:07,023 --> 00:38:09,025
He was hedging his bets.
802
00:38:09,156 --> 00:38:10,462
And it pays off.
803
00:38:10,592 --> 00:38:12,681
George's entrepreneurial endeavors
804
00:38:12,812 --> 00:38:15,510
spark a new national hobby.
805
00:38:15,641 --> 00:38:18,165
George Stevens embodies
the American dream.
806
00:38:18,296 --> 00:38:20,428
He's a metal worker,
he's a welder,
807
00:38:20,559 --> 00:38:23,170
and he gave America a
product that they needed.
808
00:38:23,301 --> 00:38:24,867
It's starting
to become national
809
00:38:24,998 --> 00:38:26,826
as growing numbers
of barbecue cookbooks
810
00:38:26,956 --> 00:38:28,262
start coming out in the fifties.
811
00:38:28,393 --> 00:38:30,699
Cooking out in
America exploded
812
00:38:30,830 --> 00:38:33,398
and is this new found passion.
813
00:38:33,528 --> 00:38:36,052
George Steven
took his brainchild
814
00:38:36,183 --> 00:38:38,098
from a mere idea in his head,
815
00:38:38,228 --> 00:38:40,405
into something in the
backyards of nearly
816
00:38:40,535 --> 00:38:42,624
everybody in America.
817
00:38:42,755 --> 00:38:44,452
Today, the
Weber grill remains a leader
818
00:38:44,583 --> 00:38:46,193
in the barbecue industry,
819
00:38:46,324 --> 00:38:48,543
worth over 2.3 billion dollars,
820
00:38:48,674 --> 00:38:51,720
with 30 million units
in American homes.
821
00:38:51,851 --> 00:38:55,289
They're also now top of the
game in gas and electric grills.
822
00:38:55,420 --> 00:38:57,117
And their original
charcoal kettle
823
00:38:57,247 --> 00:38:59,337
remains a best selling icon.
824
00:38:59,467 --> 00:39:01,904
It was a great piece
of industrial design.
825
00:39:02,035 --> 00:39:04,603
It's to barbecue what a
pink Cadillac is to cars
826
00:39:04,733 --> 00:39:06,082
in the fifties.
827
00:39:06,213 --> 00:39:08,563
And it becomes an heirloom,
828
00:39:08,694 --> 00:39:11,131
something that can
legitimately be passed down
829
00:39:11,261 --> 00:39:13,133
from generation to generation.
830
00:39:13,263 --> 00:39:15,875
I don't have a Weber grill,
831
00:39:16,005 --> 00:39:16,876
I have two of them.
832
00:39:18,138 --> 00:39:20,096
It took
almost four decades,
833
00:39:20,227 --> 00:39:23,665
but Ford's vision of outdoor
cooking is a reality.
834
00:39:23,796 --> 00:39:26,364
And Kingsford Charcoal
becomes the top selling brand
835
00:39:26,494 --> 00:39:30,368
in America, with sales
of $500 million annually.
836
00:39:32,108 --> 00:39:33,980
So you look at what Stevens
did by creating Weber grill,
837
00:39:34,110 --> 00:39:36,765
well, he now created
a need for charcoal.
838
00:39:36,896 --> 00:39:38,854
You got hotdogs now
that are a great item
839
00:39:38,985 --> 00:39:40,639
to throw on the grill, right?
840
00:39:40,769 --> 00:39:43,337
This is a guy who's a
metal worker and a welder.
841
00:39:43,468 --> 00:39:45,339
He helped all these
spinoff industries
842
00:39:45,470 --> 00:39:48,560
where people were able to
generate tremendous wealth.
843
00:39:48,690 --> 00:39:49,778
And at
the heart of this,
844
00:39:49,909 --> 00:39:51,998
is the home hotdog industry,
845
00:39:52,128 --> 00:39:55,001
since Americans can finally
replicate the grilled taste
846
00:39:55,131 --> 00:39:56,959
of restaurant hotdogs.
847
00:39:57,090 --> 00:40:00,441
1950s, demand for
hotdogs is soaring,
848
00:40:00,572 --> 00:40:03,401
and it became very
popular at home.
849
00:40:03,531 --> 00:40:06,752
Americans are carnivores,
so they want meat,
850
00:40:06,882 --> 00:40:07,579
especially hotdogs.
851
00:40:07,709 --> 00:40:09,363
If it's crunchy on the outside
852
00:40:09,494 --> 00:40:11,539
and soft on the
inside, it's perfect.
853
00:40:11,670 --> 00:40:14,412
Hotdogs are an essential
part of the American cookout.
854
00:40:16,805 --> 00:40:18,241
With
demand soaring,
855
00:40:18,372 --> 00:40:19,939
Oscar Mayer revolutionizes
856
00:40:20,069 --> 00:40:22,811
the hotdog industry
process again.
857
00:40:22,942 --> 00:40:24,987
They invent the wiener tunnel,
858
00:40:25,118 --> 00:40:27,120
which allows for
mass production.
859
00:40:27,250 --> 00:40:30,210
Oscar Mayer has
this big huge machine
860
00:40:30,340 --> 00:40:32,865
that internalizes all the
functions of hotdog making,
861
00:40:32,995 --> 00:40:34,780
and the only people there,
there's people there
862
00:40:34,910 --> 00:40:38,000
at the front of the machine,
who are guiding the meat.
863
00:40:38,131 --> 00:40:40,307
Production goes from
a thousand an hour
864
00:40:40,438 --> 00:40:43,092
to 36,000 sausages an hour.
865
00:40:43,223 --> 00:40:47,183
In 1963, they
debut a new ad campaign.
866
00:40:47,314 --> 00:40:51,013
♪ Oh, I'd love to be
an Oscar Mayer wiener ♪
867
00:40:51,144 --> 00:40:53,276
It becomes one of the
most iconic jingles
868
00:40:53,407 --> 00:40:54,626
in American history.
869
00:40:56,192 --> 00:41:00,458
By 1968, Oscar Mayer sales
reach a record $481 million.
870
00:41:02,460 --> 00:41:04,157
What Oscar Mayer
was very good at,
871
00:41:04,287 --> 00:41:06,115
was not just being
creative in advertising,
872
00:41:06,246 --> 00:41:07,639
but creating a brand image.
873
00:41:09,771 --> 00:41:11,425
Today,
Oscar Mayer sells
874
00:41:11,556 --> 00:41:14,167
92 million hotdogs each year.
875
00:41:15,473 --> 00:41:17,649
And after a four decade hiatus,
876
00:41:17,779 --> 00:41:20,608
the Wiener Mobile
returned in 1988
877
00:41:20,739 --> 00:41:22,610
and still roams America today.
878
00:41:25,395 --> 00:41:26,571
For thousands of years,
879
00:41:26,701 --> 00:41:29,574
cooking out referred
to the primitive notion
880
00:41:29,704 --> 00:41:33,099
of hanging wild catch over
some form of flame pit.
881
00:41:33,229 --> 00:41:36,058
But in a span of only
the last hundred years,
882
00:41:36,189 --> 00:41:39,888
the ritual was refined,
perfected, and delivered
883
00:41:40,019 --> 00:41:41,020
into the backyard.
884
00:41:42,325 --> 00:41:44,850
As Americans in
the 21st century,
885
00:41:44,980 --> 00:41:48,331
we are very blessed
to live in a country
886
00:41:48,462 --> 00:41:52,684
that for most of us is
a country of abundance,
887
00:41:52,814 --> 00:41:56,601
and we gather,
and cook outdoors.
888
00:41:56,731 --> 00:41:59,168
We gather those nearest
and dearest to us.
889
00:41:59,299 --> 00:42:00,779
It's a sense of community,
890
00:42:00,909 --> 00:42:03,738
a sense of the enjoyment
of good food and drink,
891
00:42:03,869 --> 00:42:05,479
and a sense of celebration.
892
00:42:05,610 --> 00:42:06,785
You light up the grill.
893
00:42:06,915 --> 00:42:08,134
I mean, there's
just something about
894
00:42:08,264 --> 00:42:09,918
the flavor of that food,
895
00:42:10,049 --> 00:42:12,312
being in the outdoors together,
896
00:42:12,442 --> 00:42:15,750
that you just can't
get any other way.
897
00:42:15,881 --> 00:42:17,752
When you think about
the backyard barbecue,
898
00:42:17,883 --> 00:42:20,146
the smell of whatever's
cooking on the grill
899
00:42:20,276 --> 00:42:22,627
and the charcoal burning
in your backyard,
900
00:42:22,757 --> 00:42:26,413
it's baseball, apple
pie, and grilling out.
901
00:42:26,544 --> 00:42:27,545
It is America.
70234
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