The Toys That Built America - Episode Guide

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

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.

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.

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.

After passing on the biggest deal in toy industry history, Mattel President Ray Wagner finds himself a step behind former colleague-turned- rival, Bernie Loomis. Loomis leads a small-town toy company to record heights and revolutionizes the entire action figure market. But Wagner refuses to back down and steals a page from Loomis' playbook to create the next blockbuster toy that will put Mattel back on top.

Defense contractor Ralph Baer invents the world's first home video game console. But it is soon eclipsed by a new table tennis game that becomes one of the most famous video games of all time. And when a third pioneer, Jerry Lawson, creates a console featuring swappable games, the fledgling video game industry explodes into an epic contest for control of what will become a multi-billion dollar market.

A visionary named Marvin Glass oversees the creation of many of the most iconic toys of the 20th Century; from chattering teeth to a legendary game based on a mouse trap, Glass pushes the boundaries of what a toy can be and inspires generations.

At the height of the industrial age, Alfred Carlton Gilbert goes all in on a revolutionary steel building toy that inspires generations of Americans to build bigger; decades later, a struggling Danish carpenter creates the world's biggest toy empire.

Hungarian professor, Erno Rubik's 3-D puzzle takes the world by storm; Leslie Scott stops at nothing to bring an iconic building block board game to market; Alexey Pajitnov risks everything to launch a video game obsession based on a puzzle.

In the midst of the 1970s folk art movement, art student Martha Nelson creates a one-of-a-kind doll to sell at local Kentucky craft markets. She has no idea that a visionary young entrepreneur will use her artwork as inspiration for a mass-produced doll that will spark a multi-billion-dollar toy craze. They will make him rich, but first he must fend off challenges to his empire from Nelson... and from a baseball card company looking to lampoon his dolls to make a fortune of their own.

In the 1980s, groundbreaking technology doesn't just improve adult life, it redefines classic toys. For the first time, childhood staples are reimagined by innovators pushing the boundaries of entertainment technology. A former amusement park employee combines his animatronic knowledge with the cassette tape to create the world's first realistic talking toy, while a NASA engineer invents an entirely new toy segment stemming from the boring old squirt gun. It's an era when technology redefines how we live, and these toy innovations are at the forefront.

After the U.S. videogame crash of 1983, a Japanese electronics company single-handedly resurrects the industry with a game featuring a jumping plumber. But a rival rises to challenge their dominance, setting off a two-way war between video game superpowers. In the process, the two companies will humiliate a third, transforming the fight from a two-player matchup into a three-way brawl...that will change the video game industry forever.

The Christmas crazes that helped transform holiday shopping into the frantic, no-holds-barred $1.1 trillion frenzy that it is today. From a hit doll in the Great Depression, to a $5 plush reselling for a thousand times its value, each season's 'must-have toy' makes the top of Santa's list for its own improbable reason... and sends desperate shoppers to unbelievable lengths just to buy it.

From a first-century Roman emperor who created an early version of the whoopee cushion to modern materials that emulate human body fluids, gross equals big bucks for toymakers; examining innovative toys designed to shock.

In 1983, underdog company Tonka sets out to bring a game-changing toy from Japan to America: the transformable robot. But they're soon confronted by industry giant, Hasbro, who has its own competing toy line. It's a true David vs. Goliath story, as both race to rule this new frontier.

Before World War II, board games are mostly simple, but postwar peace and prosperity reveals a demand for more challenging pastimes. After decades of struggle, three different innovators break the mold to release games that combine fun with an intellectual challenge: Scrabble, Clue and Yahtzee.

Thanks to the industry-defining innovations of three men through the creation of games like Super Mario Brothers, The Legend of Zelda, and Pokemon, Nintendo goes from a struggling playing card company to a video game juggernaut.

In the 1970s, the board game industry is aimed almost entirely at children, until a literal game changer comes along in Trivial Pursuit. Redefining the possibilities for adult fun, it opens up a whole new genre, while also setting the stage for another legendary picture-perfect game.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles high kick their way into the action figure market in the late 1980s, opening the door for a new kind of martial arts toy. But their place at the top is soon challenged by a mighty morphin phenomenon that takes the world by storm.

As toys become increasingly complex in the early 1970s, two unconventional inventors risk their homes and careers to bring revolutionary twists to classic games. Together, Uno and Connect Four unleash a wave of family friendly games that show the world sometimes simple is best.

Two chance discoveries in the 1950s turn mundane industrial materials into legendary toys. Etch A Sketch and Play-Doh will rake in billions for decades to come, but not everyone will reap the rewards.

Santa Claus is one of the most beloved figures--and famous faces--on Earth, a symbol of hope and goodwill for all. But how did this third-century saint become the Santa we know today? This is the story of the creative minds, brands, and major events that shaped our image of jolly ol' St. Nick.

From Furbys to Pogs, the 1990s were full of unforgettable fad toys! It was a decade where old school toys like Beanies Babies went head-to-head with high tech wonders like Tamagotchi, and desperate parents would do anything to get their hands on them.

Whether you wear them, ride them, push them, or drive them, some of the funnest toys of childhood are built on wheels. From the velocipede to the Schwinn Stingray, or even pedal cars to Power Wheels, we're rolling our way through the history of the hottest toys on wheels and the surprising stories behind their creations.

For six decades two silly, but savvy entrepreneurs--S.S. Adams and H. Fishlove--turned their love of a good joke into a booming prank toy industry. Their heated rivalry produced hundreds of tricks and gags that entertained and annoyed four generations of Americans, many of which are still being sold to this day.

From Lionel Trains to video games, for the right collector our cherished childhood toys can be worth millions! Over the last three decades, people have paid some truly outrageous prices to get their hands on that elusive toy they always wanted. But which ones are the most valuable of all time?