• Air date: 07 Dec '04 19 episodes
      John Ratzenberger's Made in America is an American documentary television series hosted by John Ratzenberger. The series premiered January 6, 2004, on the Travel Channel. Ratzenberger visits various American manufacturers, taking the show's viewers along on the tours and showing how various everyday items are made. The show has visited a variety of factories, including Crayola, Airstream, Yankee Candle, Samuel Adams Brewery, Ruger, Delta Faucet Company, and Rodgers Instruments.
  • List of Episodes (19)
    • 1. Yankee Candle

      07 Dec '04
      First stop is the Yankee Candle factory, located in the small town of Deerfield, Western Massachusetts. John talks with Yankee's V.P. of Manufacturing, Art Rubeck, and joins the factory's employees on the assembly line. John also visits the nearby candlemaking museum, where he chats with museum associate Michelle Held and learns how bee's wax candles are mass produced, before dropping by one of Yankee's outlets to discuss candle scents with Fragrance Committee Chairman Bob Nelson. Next stop is
    • 2. Pyrex

      07 Dec '04
      First stop is ""The Magic City,"" Charleroi, Pennsylvania, home to the Pyrex plant. Plant manager ""Jack"" Jackson gives John the scoop about the invention of the sturdy glassware before taking him on a tour. Then quality assurance associate Edna Maxson shows John how measuring cups are cooled on the last stop on the assembly line, the thermal downshock. Later, he meets with collector Mary Jane Martucci. Next stop is Auburn, Massachusetts, where Wolf Coach mass produces vehicles for the
    • 3. US Steel

      14 Dec '04
      First stop is the US Steel plant in Braddock, Pennsylvania. John talks with the company's local historian Lou Jack and steelworker Walt Oliver, and ""suits up"" to see the inside of a blast furnace. Next stop is Manlius, New York, home to Stickley, Audi & Co.'s handmade furniture factory. John meets with company historian Mike Danial, current owners Alfred and Aminy Audi, production supervisor Brenda Bennett, and case fitter Anthony Carolla. John is shown how a chest of drawers is built and
    • 4. GE Transportation

      21 Dec '04
    • 5. Tillamook Cheese

      28 Dec '04
      First stop is the Tillamook Cheese factory in Tillamook, Oregon. Director of Cheese Operations Wayne Bean acts as John's tour guide and informs him of the process of turning milk into cheese, cheesemaker Dale Baumgartner shows John how to stack curds, and Quality Assurance Sensory Supervisor Butch Seufert (who is known as ""The Big Cheese"") splits a stick of cheddar with John. Next stop is John's hometown of Bridgeport, Connecticut, home to Derecktor Shipyards, who build ferries. After John
    • 6. Whitman's Chocolate

      04 Jan '05
    • 7. Weber Grills

      11 Jan '05
      First stop is the Weber Grill plant in Palatine, Illinois. President and CEO Jim Stephen -- whose father, George Stephen, invented the BBQ grill -- takes John on a tour of the company, which includes a bronzed statue of George holding a replica of his favorite tongs. Later, John and Jim head over to a backyard, where Edna Schlosser, Chief of Culinary Research and Development, breaks out some steaks, potatoes, peppers and string beans. John and Jim assemble a brand new Weber Genesis, fire up the
    • 8. Dixon Ticonderoga Pencils

      18 Jan '05
    • 9. Pendleton Woolen Mills

      25 Jan '05
    • 10. Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc.

      15 Mar '05
    • 11. Hallmark Cards

      22 Mar '05
    • 12. Kohler

      29 Mar '05
    • 13. Kitchen Aid

      05 Apr '05
    • 14. Everlast

      12 Apr '05
    • 15. Burt's Bees

      19 Apr '05
    • 16. Vitalie Company

      26 Apr '05
    • 17. Panoz Esperante Convertible

      31 May '05
    • 18. Hale Products, Fleetwood, Duraflame

      07 Jun '05
    • 19. Serta Matresses, Powell Skateboards

      07 Jun '05