Episode 7 and Beyond

Ridiculously
The

rich.

three men combined are worth 1 trillion dollars in todays money. They literally own nearly everything. gap between the rich and the poor is growing at a staggering rate. Most people make $1 a day.

The

Conditions

in the factories are unbearable.

 As

the country approaches the 1896 election, the poor are desperate and without hope. William Jennings Bryan promises equality for all.

 In

addition, he guarantees that he will take power away from the elite.
monopolies become targets of the Democrats. titans feel threatened if he wins the presidency. threatens to have them put in jail.

The

The

He

 They

decide they must ban together, set aside their differences, to buy the presidency. Their choice is William McKinleythe Republican candidate who will allow them to keep running their businesses they way they had for years. edits speech for McKinley before the Republican Convention.
folks. They had that kind of power!

Rockefeller

Yes,

 Rockefeller

and Carnegie donate an estimated $20 million dollars to McKinleys campaign. The money raised by McKinley outnumbers William Jennings Bryans funds by a margin of 5:1. In spite of this, Bryan conducts the first Whistle Stop Press Tour which is the model for how campaigns are run to this day. He continues to attack the rich and vows for a new era.

 Wealth

distribution is STILL a hot topic today. As we talk about constantly in class, these main ideas that human beings have struggled with for many years will not soon go away. (The issue of states rights, equal rights, etc. are others that come to mind..) country was built on capitalism, but just how far is too far when it comes to this massive gap between the rich and the poor?

This

 For

twenty long hours, the titans agonize over the results. Will all their empires crumble? People across the country DEMAND change. But this is not enough. Bryan carries the rural South, but McKinley takes the big-money North East. McKinley wins! The captains of industry dodged a bullet. The country remains in their control.

 Profits

once again skyrocket. They are set to become even more powerful than before.
alliance frays once the election is over. Back to business.

Their

 Rockefeller

and Carnegie are looking for things to invest their money in. Rockefeller knows little about steel (but he knows tons about stealing from Carnegie..Get it? Get it?!), but knows deposits used to make steel can beat Carnegie at his own game. Rockefeller buys iron ore but Carnegie thinks its silly. No steel producer would buy it because it is too weak. But Carnegie is wrong. Rockefeller supplies it to all of Carnegies competitors at rock bottom prices. (Get it? Rockefeller? Rock bottom?)

 Carnegies

profits begin to take a tumble. Rockefeller senses weakness and plans to build his own steel empire. Carnegie calls a meeting hoping to talk him out of joining the steel business. They had been feuding for decades, but for the first time, they are locking horns directly. Steel is just a small part of Rockefellers fortune, but to Carnegie its everything.

 Carnegie

has little choice. He will buy all the output of Rockefellers mines, and Rockefeller promises not to build a steel mill.
might have gotten the better of

Rockefeller

Carnegie.

 Believes

that some individual needs to bring sense and order to American capitalism
to consolidate steel.

Wants Plans

a takeover of Carnegies empire and his timing is impeccable. this time, Carnegie is questioning his future. Thinks about his legacy.

At

 Morgan

meets with Charles Schwab, Andrew Carnegies right hand man.

goes and asks Carnegie what his price would be, if he would consider selling Carnegie Steel. He responds with the outrageous sum of $480 million, $400 billion of todays money. is more than the United States treasury!

Schwab

This

 Morgan

says YES to this outrageous sum, and Andrew Carnegie is now the richest man in the world. He has a net worth of $310 billion in todays money.
is the largest private fortune the world has ever seen. he is lost without his empire.

This

Initially,

 Part

of a wealthy New York family He decides to take a different path than he could havegoes into politics, not business. To remake his image, he manufactures an everyday guy image. He was a Spanish-American War veteran. He is a Republican and wins election to Become governor.

 He

CANNOT be manipulated. Clamps down on big business in New York. The titans see him as a threat. They need to make him powerlessso they make him Vice President on the McKinley ticket! Its the 1896 election all over again. McKinley is reelected, Roosevelt is Vice President, and they feel they can go about business as usual once more.

 Their

plan backfires in a huge way. McKinley is assassinated by a man fed up with his relationship with big business. Eight days after he is shot, he dies. Theodore Roosevelt takes over. Not only does he become president, he becomes the titans worst nightmare. He quickly launches a campaign against trusts. Refuses to back down. Even when involved with lawsuit with J.P. MorganMorgan loses. Roosevelt breaks up his railroad.

 Rockefeller

avoids all this for a bit, but Standard Oil will not be able to avoid the law forever

Episode Nine: Henry Ford

 Rockefeller

and his posse finally go to court after evading the law for quite some time.
finally stands up for Standard Oil in the landmark case United States v. Standard Oil case marks the beginning of the end for the era of the big business titans.

He

This

 wants

to create an affordable car for regular people Easier said than done; ALAM owns the patent on the automobile. They are a giant car monopoly Ford sees the futurewants cars to be an everyday item At age 33, he builds his first car. He tries to get permission from ALAM to mass produce but he is denied.

 Ford
He

has few options but refuses to give up on his dreams.

challenges Alexander Winton (but he LOST ) to a race (fastest man in the world). He wins with his Ford! (David and Goliath situation here..) He is sued by ALAM eventually for breaching patent on automobile. HoweverFord WINS again. He pushes forward, forever changing America.

 In

1911, the fight to bring down Standard Oil is getting ugly. J.P. Morgan has kept US Steel off the target map. He also raises 40 million dollars to help get project to build the Panama Canal started. US Steel, Standard Oil, and General Electric dominate everything. The gap between the rich and the poor is larger than ever. But like all good thingsthis era is about to meet its end.

 Unlike

the titans of the past, Henry Ford is paying his workers $5 a day and treats them fair. The assembly line is not invented by Ford, but he perfects it. Under Ford, the 8 hour work day is born. The Model T costs $825 and common people could afford it. Literally, Ford has changed America. A prosperous Middle Class is born.

 Harley

and Davidson get together, add an engine to a bike, and Hershey uses the assembly line to make chocolate Wrigley makes gum Max Factor creates make-up, a new consumer product to be used by this growing middle class Working conditions are safe and the 40 hour work week is the norm

 Standard

Oil is broken up, but Rockefeller becomes richer than ever. Exxon, Mobile, and Chevron are all companies that stem from Standard Oil. Their gasoline are used to fill Fords automobiles.
is worth $660 billion dollars. (Todays money)

Rockefeller

 Man

who dies rich, dies disgraced. Carnegie and Rockefeller decide theres a new racewho can give more away!
donates 67 billion dollars in todays

Carnegie

money.
Rockefeller

outlives Carnegie by 13 years, donating $100 billon of todays money.

 20th

century is the American century!

When

WWI breaks out, the world looks to America. years removed form the Civil War, America has become a global superpower. Unbelievable. Remarkable. Awesome. men are incredibly important in our history.

Fifty

These

They

didnt discover Americathey built it.