WEBVTT
00:00:22.555 --> 00:00:26.058
AND RIGHT NOW WE'RE HEADING DOWN
OLD HIGHWAY 50
00:00:26.092 --> 00:00:27.659
IN EL DORADO COUNTY,
00:00:27.694 --> 00:00:30.596
ABOUT 40 MILES
OUTSIDE OF SACRAMENTO.
00:00:30.630 --> 00:00:32.564
NOW, THIS IS MOTHER LODE
COUNTRY.
00:00:32.599 --> 00:00:35.334
WE ARE RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE
OF GOLD COUNTRY.
00:00:35.368 --> 00:00:38.971
THIS IS WHERE IT ALL STARTED.
THERE'S A LOT OF HISTORY HERE.
00:00:39.005 --> 00:00:42.007
NOW, WHAT WE'RE DOING
IN THIS PARTICULAR EPISODE
00:00:42.042 --> 00:00:44.710
IS WE'RE GONNA TAKE A LOOK
AT TWO PRODUCTS
00:00:44.744 --> 00:00:48.113
THAT WERE INVENTED RIGHT HERE
BACK DURING THE GOLD RUSH
00:00:48.148 --> 00:00:50.349
THAT WE'RE ALL STILL USING
TODAY.
00:00:50.383 --> 00:00:53.952
AND I'LL GIVE YOU A HINT --
WE WEAR ONE OF THE PRODUCTS,
00:00:53.987 --> 00:00:55.888
AND THE FACT THAT WE'RE RIDING
00:00:55.922 --> 00:00:58.924
IN THE BACK OF THIS OLD
1959 STUDEBAKER TRUCK
00:00:58.958 --> 00:01:01.860
HAS SOMETHING TO DO
WITH THE SECOND PRODUCT.
00:01:01.895 --> 00:01:04.697
WELL, IF ALL THIS
PIQUES YOUR INTEREST,
00:01:04.731 --> 00:01:08.200
AS ALWAYS, YOU'RE INVITED
TO COME ON ALONG WITH US
00:01:08.234 --> 00:01:10.903
AS WE CONTINUE
OUR SEARCH TOGETHER --
00:01:10.937 --> 00:01:14.573
THIS TIME IN THE BACK OF
A BUMPY, OLD STUDEBAKER TRUCK --
00:01:14.607 --> 00:01:16.408
FOR CALIFORNIA'S GOLD.
00:01:16.443 --> 00:01:20.746
[ "CALIFORNIA HERE I COME"
PLAYING ]
00:01:45.505 --> 00:01:48.240
Howser: OUR FIRST STOP
WAS PLACERVILLE --
00:01:48.274 --> 00:01:50.109
A NICE LITTLE GOLD-RUSH TOWN
00:01:50.143 --> 00:01:52.544
RIGHT IN THE HEART
OF GOLD COUNTRY.
00:01:52.579 --> 00:01:55.781
WE WERE IN SEARCH OF A PRODUCT
THAT GOT ITS START HERE
00:01:55.815 --> 00:01:57.316
BACK IN THE '50s.
00:02:03.957 --> 00:02:06.425
Announcer: YOU'LL GLOW
WITH PRIDE WHEN YOU WHEEL ALONG
00:02:06.459 --> 00:02:08.727
IN YOUR DISTINCTIVE 1954
STUDEBAKER COMMANDER V-8.
00:02:08.762 --> 00:02:10.863
Howser: WAIT A MINUTE.
00:02:10.897 --> 00:02:13.766
I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT THE 1950s.
00:02:13.800 --> 00:02:16.368
I'M TALKING ABOUT THE 1850s.
00:02:16.403 --> 00:02:19.271
AND I'M NOT LOOKING
FOR A STUDEBAKER AUTOMOBILE.
00:02:19.305 --> 00:02:22.241
I'M LOOKING FOR SOMETHING
STUDEBAKER MANUFACTURED
00:02:22.275 --> 00:02:25.277
LONG BEFORE THE AUTOMOBILE
HAD EVEN BEEN INVENTED.
00:02:25.311 --> 00:02:27.379
AND TO LOCATE THIS PRODUCT,
00:02:27.414 --> 00:02:31.183
I HEADED OVER TO THE EL DORADO
COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS
00:02:31.217 --> 00:02:32.818
IN PLACERVILLE --
00:02:32.852 --> 00:02:36.255
SPECIFICALLY, TO THE EL DORADO
COUNTY HISTORICAL MUSEUM,
00:02:36.289 --> 00:02:38.657
WHICH IS LOCATED
IN A BIG BUILDING
00:02:38.692 --> 00:02:40.025
ON THE FAIRGROUNDS.
00:02:40.060 --> 00:02:42.327
AND AFTER A QUICK TOUR
OF THE PLACE
00:02:42.362 --> 00:02:44.797
BY BEVERLY HERZOG,
ONE OF THE DOCENTS,
00:02:44.831 --> 00:02:47.966
WE GOT TO THE STUDEBAKER EXHIBIT
I WAS LOOKING FOR.
00:02:48.001 --> 00:02:50.569
NOW, BEVERLY,
WE WE ARE HERE
00:02:50.603 --> 00:02:54.039
TO SEE YOUR MUSEUM'S
NUMBER-ONE EXHIBIT.
00:02:54.074 --> 00:02:57.376
AND I'VE PEEKED,
SO I KNOW WHAT IT IS.
00:02:57.410 --> 00:03:00.646
BUT LOOKING AT IT,
IT JUST LOOKS LIKE
00:03:00.680 --> 00:03:03.749
KIND OF A ROTTING,
OLD WHEELBARROW.
00:03:03.783 --> 00:03:06.218
WELL,
THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT IT IS,
00:03:06.252 --> 00:03:08.754
BUT THERE'S MORE TO IT
THAN THAT.
00:03:08.788 --> 00:03:12.624
OKAY, AND YOU'RE THE ONE
WHO'S GONNA TELL US THE STORY.
00:03:12.659 --> 00:03:16.362
THIS IS THE BEGINNING
OF THE STUDEBAKER AUTOMOBILE.
00:03:16.396 --> 00:03:20.132
THE WHEELBARROW
WAS MADE BY JOHN STUDEBAKER.
00:03:20.166 --> 00:03:26.372
HE CAME OUT WEST IN 1853...
00:03:26.406 --> 00:03:27.873
LOOKING FOR HIS FORTUNE.
00:03:27.907 --> 00:03:29.742
JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE.
00:03:29.776 --> 00:03:31.610
JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE.
00:03:31.644 --> 00:03:35.247
SO HE CAME OUT TO PAN FOR GOLD,
TO MINE FOR GOLD?
00:03:35.281 --> 00:03:37.182
WELL, HE WAS SMARTER
THAN THAT.
00:03:37.217 --> 00:03:40.119
MOST OF THE MEN WHO WERE PANNING
AND MINING FOR GOLD
00:03:40.153 --> 00:03:42.488
DIDN'T MAKE NEAR
AS MUCH MONEY AS HE DID
00:03:42.522 --> 00:03:44.823
BY SHOEING HORSES
AND REPAIRING WAGONS.
00:03:44.858 --> 00:03:48.327
SO HE CAME OUT TO SHOE HORSES
AND REPAIR WAGONS...
00:03:48.361 --> 00:03:51.296
FOR THE PEOPLE
WHO WERE PANNING FOR GOLD.
00:03:51.331 --> 00:03:53.999
...AND ENDED UP
MAKING A WHEELBARROW.
00:03:54.034 --> 00:03:56.568
HOW DID HE GET
TO THE WHEELBARROW?
00:03:56.603 --> 00:03:59.104
WELL, HE CAME HERE
TO PLACERVILLE.
00:03:59.139 --> 00:04:02.241
PLACERVILLE, IN THOSE DAYS,
WAS CALLED "OLD DRY DIGGINGS."
00:04:02.275 --> 00:04:04.910
IT WAS VERY RICH,
BUT IT DIDN'T HAVE MUCH WATER.
00:04:04.944 --> 00:04:08.447
THE MINERS NEEDED A WAY
TO BRING THE GRAVEL
00:04:08.481 --> 00:04:11.183
FROM THEIR CLAIMS
TO SOME WATER
00:04:11.217 --> 00:04:14.386
SO THEY COULD WORK THE GOLD
OUT OF IT.
00:04:14.421 --> 00:04:17.222
AND HE STARTED BUILDING
WHEELBARROWS --
00:04:17.257 --> 00:04:18.824
HE DIDN'T INVENT THEM.
00:04:18.858 --> 00:04:20.426
HE BUILT THEM, THOUGH.
00:04:20.460 --> 00:04:23.162
HE STARTED BUILDING
THE WHEELBARROWS,
00:04:23.196 --> 00:04:25.297
AND PEOPLE STARTED BUYING THEM.
00:04:25.331 --> 00:04:27.866
IN THE FIVE YEARS
THAT HE WAS HERE --
00:04:27.901 --> 00:04:29.501
FROM 1853 TO 1858 --
00:04:29.536 --> 00:04:31.804
HE ACCUMULATED $8,000
IN GOLD,
00:04:31.838 --> 00:04:35.074
WHICH HE TOOK BACK
TO HIS FAMILY'S WAGONWORKS
00:04:35.108 --> 00:04:37.443
IN SOUTH BEND, INDIANA,
00:04:37.477 --> 00:04:42.681
AND THAT PUT HIS FAMILY'S
BUSINESS INTO THE BIG TIME.
00:04:42.716 --> 00:04:45.117
AND THEN,
WHEN THE CIVIL WAR CAME,
00:04:45.151 --> 00:04:47.553
THEY GOT A WAGON-BUILDING
CONTRACT
00:04:47.587 --> 00:04:48.987
FOR THE GOVERNMENT,
00:04:49.022 --> 00:04:51.423
WHICH PUT THEM
IN THE BIGGER TIME,
00:04:51.458 --> 00:04:55.227
AND EVENTUALLY THAT RESULTED
IN THE STUDEBAKER AUTOMOBILE...
00:04:55.261 --> 00:04:56.362
EMPIRE.
00:04:56.396 --> 00:04:59.064
AND IT ALL STARTED
RIGHT HERE.
00:04:59.099 --> 00:05:00.432
NOW, HE MADE --
00:05:00.467 --> 00:05:03.469
NOBODY ELSE
WAS MAKING WHEELBARROWS
00:05:03.503 --> 00:05:06.505
BACK THEN OUT HERE
FOR MINERS TO...
00:05:06.539 --> 00:05:08.474
WELL,
NOT HERE IN THIS AREA.
00:05:08.508 --> 00:05:11.844
SO HE HAD THE EXCLUSIVE CORNER
ON MAKING WHEELBARROWS.
00:05:11.878 --> 00:05:13.545
AND WHAT WAS THE DEAL HERE?
00:05:13.580 --> 00:05:15.981
IS IT ALL RIGHT FOR ME
TO TOUCH THIS?
00:05:16.016 --> 00:05:17.149
SURE. SURE.
00:05:17.183 --> 00:05:18.851
THIS IS ONE
OF THE ORIGINALS.
00:05:18.885 --> 00:05:20.085
YES, IT REALLY IS.
00:05:20.120 --> 00:05:21.186
WOW!
00:05:21.221 --> 00:05:23.722
AND WHAT
WOULD THE MINERS DO?
00:05:23.757 --> 00:05:26.158
THEY WOULD JUST LOAD THE, UH --
WHAT --
00:05:26.192 --> 00:05:28.627
WOULD THEY HAVE IT
SACKED UP?
00:05:28.661 --> 00:05:30.329
WELL, THEY HAD SIDES.
00:05:30.363 --> 00:05:34.033
THERE WOULD BE SIDES
THAT WOULD SIT ON THE SIDE.
00:05:34.067 --> 00:05:35.334
RAILINGS.
00:05:35.368 --> 00:05:38.337
YES. AND THEY'D PUT THE ROCK
IN THE CENTER,
00:05:38.371 --> 00:05:42.474
AND THEN THEY WOULD TAKE IT
DOWN TO THE NEAREST STREAM
00:05:42.509 --> 00:05:44.610
WHERE THEY COULD WASH IT OUT
00:05:44.644 --> 00:05:46.311
AND PAN THE GOLD
OUT OF THE ROCK.
00:05:46.346 --> 00:05:47.946
WOW.
00:05:47.981 --> 00:05:50.983
I'M AFRAID THIS THING --
THIS IS A HISTORIC --
00:05:51.017 --> 00:05:52.217
[ LAUGHS ]
00:05:52.252 --> 00:05:54.687
THIS IS A HISTORIC
WHEELBARROW.
00:05:54.721 --> 00:05:57.222
I DON'T WANT TO DO ANYTHING
TO --
00:05:57.257 --> 00:05:59.124
SO HE SOLD ENOUGH OF THESE
00:05:59.159 --> 00:06:01.994
TO ACCUMULATE $8,000 WORTH
OF GOLD.
00:06:02.028 --> 00:06:05.064
AND THAT WAS A LOT OF GOLD
IN THOSE DAYS.
00:06:05.098 --> 00:06:06.999
SO I GUESS EVERY MINER
00:06:07.033 --> 00:06:10.703
THAT WAS OUT IN THIS PART
OF THE MOTHER LODE
00:06:10.737 --> 00:06:15.174
WOULD HAVE HAD ONE OF THESE
STUDEBAKER WHEELBARROWS.
00:06:15.208 --> 00:06:19.445
SO THE NAME "STUDEBAKER"
WAS KNOWN LONG BEFORE...
00:06:19.479 --> 00:06:22.948
LONG BEFORE THE AUTOMOBILE
WAS INVENTED.
00:06:22.982 --> 00:06:26.018
Man: THAT'S PROBABLY OUR
GREATEST TREASURE IN THE MUSEUM,
00:06:26.052 --> 00:06:27.419
EVEN TODAY.
00:06:27.454 --> 00:06:29.555
WE HAVE PEOPLE
FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD
00:06:29.589 --> 00:06:31.790
THAT COME HERE
TO SEE STUDEBAKER'S WHEELBARROW
00:06:31.825 --> 00:06:33.225
AND TO ASK US QUESTIONS.
00:06:33.259 --> 00:06:35.260
REALLY?
HOW DO THEY FIND OUT ABOUT IT?
00:06:35.295 --> 00:06:37.596
THEY HAVE A STUDEBAKER
ASSOCIATION, YOU KNOW.
00:06:37.630 --> 00:06:39.698
THESE ARE RELATIVES
OF STUDEBAKER'S
00:06:39.733 --> 00:06:41.500
OR PEOPLE
THAT WORKED FOR HIM
00:06:41.534 --> 00:06:43.736
OR SOMEBODY
THAT HAS A STUDEBAKER CAR.
00:06:43.770 --> 00:06:45.604
THEY ALL KNOW
FROM THE LEGEND,
00:06:45.638 --> 00:06:47.606
EVEN IN THE EAST
WHERE HE'S FROM,
00:06:47.640 --> 00:06:49.208
THEY HAVE THE LEGEND
00:06:49.242 --> 00:06:51.643
THAT HE STARTED IN PLACERVILLE
MAKING WHEELBARROWS.
00:06:51.678 --> 00:06:55.214
ACTUALLY, HE MADE THINGS
BEFORE WHEELBARROWS,
00:06:55.248 --> 00:06:57.316
BUT THEY SOLD
LIKE HOT CAKES.
00:06:57.350 --> 00:06:58.784
SO THEY COME HERE.
00:06:58.818 --> 00:07:01.153
THIS IS KIND OF
THE STUDEBAKER SHRINE.
00:07:01.187 --> 00:07:02.354
RIGHT.
00:07:02.389 --> 00:07:04.156
THEY WANT TO SEE
THE SITE,
00:07:04.190 --> 00:07:06.458
WHICH IS MARKED
IN DOWNTOWN PLACERVILLE,
00:07:06.493 --> 00:07:09.128
AND WHAT PICTURES WE HAVE
AND, YOU KNOW,
00:07:09.162 --> 00:07:11.530
THINGS LIKE THIS PICTURE
OF STUDEBAKER,
00:07:11.564 --> 00:07:12.965
YOU KNOW, IN 1912.
00:07:12.999 --> 00:07:14.533
IT'S KIND OF NEAT.
00:07:14.567 --> 00:07:16.635
WE ALMOST KNOW
THE STUDEBAKER PEOPLE
00:07:16.670 --> 00:07:19.805
BECAUSE THEY USUALLY HAVE
A BIG WAD OF MEMORABILIA
00:07:19.839 --> 00:07:21.874
THAT THEY WANT
TO QUIZ YOU ON
00:07:21.908 --> 00:07:24.143
TO MAKE SURE
YOU'VE GOT IT RIGHT.
00:07:24.177 --> 00:07:25.210
HA HA!
00:07:25.245 --> 00:07:27.413
TAKE YOUR MARK,
GET SET...
00:07:27.447 --> 00:07:28.714
[ GUNSHOT ]
00:07:28.748 --> 00:07:29.982
ALL RIGHT!
00:07:32.585 --> 00:07:34.653
Howser:
IT TAKES PLACE EVERY YEAR
00:07:34.688 --> 00:07:36.355
AT THE EL DORADO COUNTY FAIR.
00:07:36.389 --> 00:07:39.091
THEY CALL IT
THE JOHN M. STUDEBAKER
00:07:39.125 --> 00:07:41.860
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
WHEELBARROW RACE,
00:07:41.895 --> 00:07:43.362
AND IT'S A DOOZY.
00:07:43.396 --> 00:07:46.432
SPONSORED BY THE KIWANIS CLUB
OF PLACERVILLE,
00:07:46.466 --> 00:07:49.168
IT'S HELD IN HONOR
OF MR. STUDEBAKER
00:07:49.202 --> 00:07:52.237
AND HIS FAMOUS
GOLD-RUSH-ERA WHEELBARROWS.
00:07:52.272 --> 00:07:55.641
NOW, THE RACE TAKES CONTESTANTS
IN SEVERAL CATEGORIES
00:07:55.675 --> 00:07:58.610
AROUND A COURSE THAT INVOLVES
ALL KINDS OF OBSTACLES.
00:07:58.645 --> 00:08:01.046
NOW, HOW MANY YEARS
HAVE YOU BEEN DOING THIS?
00:08:01.081 --> 00:08:02.581
Man: ABOUT 15 YEARS.
00:08:02.615 --> 00:08:04.850
SO, YOU HAVE WATCHED
THE EXCITEMENT OVER THE YEARS.
00:08:04.884 --> 00:08:06.318
OH, YEAH, I SURE HAVE.
00:08:06.353 --> 00:08:07.986
WATCHED THEM LITTLE KIDS.
00:08:08.021 --> 00:08:10.522
WE USED TO HAVE LITTLE KIDS
6 AND UP.
00:08:10.557 --> 00:08:13.292
TALK ABOUT SOMETHING
THAT WAS EXCITING --
00:08:13.326 --> 00:08:14.960
THE CROWD PLEASERS --
00:08:14.994 --> 00:08:17.363
REALLY NEVER MADE A BIG TRIP
OUT OF IT.
00:08:17.397 --> 00:08:19.264
BUT IT WAS SO CUTE.
00:08:19.299 --> 00:08:22.868
THEN WE HAD REGULAR SHOVELS, BUT
PEOPLE WERE ABOUT TO GET KILLED.
00:08:22.902 --> 00:08:24.770
SO WE WENT TO GOLD PANS.
00:08:24.804 --> 00:08:27.106
AND WE HAD ROCKS
RATHER THAN SAND.
00:08:27.140 --> 00:08:30.676
AND WE HAD RIVER ROCKS AND WAS
BUSTING OUR WHEELBARROWS UP.
00:08:30.710 --> 00:08:33.746
SO, ARE YOU SAYING
IT USED TO BE EVEN TOUGHER?
00:08:33.780 --> 00:08:35.881
EVEN TOUGHER
THAN IT IS RIGHT NOW.
00:08:35.915 --> 00:08:38.951
OH, YEAH.
YEAH, IT WAS A REAL MEANIE.
00:08:38.985 --> 00:08:42.021
THEY HAD TO RUN DOWN THOSE RAILS
AND THE WHOLE WORKS.
00:08:42.055 --> 00:08:44.656
WELL,
IT'S STILL PRETTY TOUGH.
00:08:44.691 --> 00:08:48.127
IT'S ABOUT 4 1/2 MINUTES
IN THE MAIN RACE.
00:08:48.161 --> 00:08:51.030
IT'S JUST ABSOLUTELY
A MAN-KILLER.
00:08:51.064 --> 00:08:53.465
IS THAT RIGHT?
DO YOU AGREE?
00:08:53.500 --> 00:08:54.767
OH, ABSOLUTELY.
00:08:54.801 --> 00:08:56.335
THOSE LITTLE GIRLS,
00:08:56.369 --> 00:08:59.204
WHEN THEY FIRST STARTED
GOING OVER THAT LOG --
00:08:59.239 --> 00:09:00.673
IT'S A 42-INCH LOG --
00:09:00.707 --> 00:09:03.175
AND THEN WHEN THE BIG KIDS
GET INVOLVED,
00:09:03.209 --> 00:09:04.910
IT GETS MORE SERIOUS.
00:09:04.944 --> 00:09:07.780
THEN WHEN THE MONEY'S AT STAKE,
IT GETS REALLY SERIOUS.
00:09:07.814 --> 00:09:10.516
THAT'S WHY WE HAVE A TRIPLE
CHECK ON THE FINISH LINE.
00:09:10.550 --> 00:09:12.584
AND BEFORE WE ANNOUNCE
THE WINNERS --
00:09:12.619 --> 00:09:14.486
WHAT DO YOU MEAN
"A TRIPLE CHECK"?
00:09:14.521 --> 00:09:16.355
WE HAVE THREE PEOPLE
MONITORING
00:09:16.389 --> 00:09:19.091
TO SEE THAT THE FINISHERS
ARE IN THE ORDER
00:09:19.125 --> 00:09:20.826
THAT THEY ACTUALLY FINISH.
00:09:20.860 --> 00:09:22.661
EVERYTHING HAS TO JUST BE...
00:09:22.696 --> 00:09:24.430
RIGHT DOWN THE LINE,
00:09:24.464 --> 00:09:27.433
BECAUSE, AS WE GET SOME
OF THE HEAVYWEIGHTS OUT HERE,
00:09:27.467 --> 00:09:29.468
THEY GET VERY SERIOUS
ABOUT THIS.
00:09:29.502 --> 00:09:32.237
AND WE DON'T WANT TO BE
ON THE WRONG END OF THAT.
00:09:32.272 --> 00:09:35.240
YOU CERTAINLY DON'T WANT
TO BE IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT.
00:09:35.275 --> 00:09:36.775
ABSOLUTELY.
00:09:36.810 --> 00:09:39.878
NOW, THIS RACE STARTED HERE
AT THE EL DORADO COUNTY FAIR
00:09:39.913 --> 00:09:41.513
BACK IN 1939,
00:09:41.548 --> 00:09:45.050
AND I'M STANDING WITH THE GUY
WHOSE NAME IS ON THE TROPHY
00:09:45.085 --> 00:09:48.153
FOR THE FIRST -- WELL,
IT'S ON THERE FOR 8 YEARS!
00:09:48.188 --> 00:09:51.423
YOU WON IT THE FIRST YEAR,
AND THEN 7 YEARS AFTER THAT.
00:09:51.458 --> 00:09:52.558
THAT'S RIGHT.
00:09:52.592 --> 00:09:54.393
WHAT WAS THAT LIKE,
CHET?
00:09:54.427 --> 00:09:57.329
WELL, IT WAS EXCITING.
I NEEDED THE MONEY.
00:09:57.364 --> 00:09:59.598
I WAS YOUNG,
HAD A BIG FAMILY,
00:09:59.632 --> 00:10:01.600
SO IT WAS A LOT OF EXCITEMENT.
00:10:01.634 --> 00:10:05.304
NOW, WAS THE RACE THE SAME
BACK IN 1939 AS IT IS TODAY?
00:10:05.338 --> 00:10:06.839
WE HAD 8 OR 9 HURDLES.
00:10:06.873 --> 00:10:09.608
WE DIDN'T HAVE QUITE AS ROUGH
A COURSE.
00:10:09.642 --> 00:10:13.612
THERE WAS NO UPHILL RUNNING,
AND THERE WASN'T THE WATER HOLE.
00:10:13.646 --> 00:10:16.648
BUT WE HAD ROCK PILES,
WE HAD PILES OF LIMBS,
00:10:16.683 --> 00:10:19.318
WE HAD LOGS, RAMPS,
AND EVERYTHING --
00:10:19.352 --> 00:10:22.421
HURDLES, DOUBLE FENCES,
AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
00:10:22.455 --> 00:10:24.923
WHO COMES UP
WITH THESE OBSTACLES?
00:10:24.958 --> 00:10:26.392
I DON'T KNOW.
00:10:26.426 --> 00:10:29.528
WHOEVER DESIGNS THE COURSE
I DON'T THINK EVER RAN IT.
00:10:29.562 --> 00:10:30.829
HA HA HA!
00:10:30.864 --> 00:10:33.499
THIS IS A TOUGH COURSE
RIGHT HERE,
00:10:33.533 --> 00:10:36.335
AND YOU'LL SEE THAT
WHEN THE MEN RUN.
00:10:36.369 --> 00:10:37.903
IT'S A TOUGH COURSE.
00:10:37.937 --> 00:10:40.639
DOES THE COURSE
HAVE ANYTHING TO DO
00:10:40.674 --> 00:10:44.109
WITH WHAT A REAL MINER
WOULD HAVE HAD TO, UH --
00:10:44.144 --> 00:10:47.813
WELL, I CAN SEE THE ROCK PILES
AND MAYBE SMALL LOGS
00:10:47.847 --> 00:10:49.615
AND THINGS OF THAT SORT,
00:10:49.649 --> 00:10:52.317
BUT I DON'T KNOW WHETHER
THEY'D GO OVER LOGS OR NOT.
00:10:52.352 --> 00:10:54.319
I THINK
THESE ARE ADDITIONAL THINGS
00:10:54.354 --> 00:10:55.888
THAT WE PUT IN YEARS LATER.
00:10:55.922 --> 00:10:57.189
20th-CENTURY ADDITIONS.
00:10:57.223 --> 00:10:58.424
THAT'S RIGHT.
00:10:58.458 --> 00:11:01.026
HOW MUCH DOES THIS MEAN
TO THE PEOPLE
00:11:01.061 --> 00:11:03.462
WHO ENTER IT
AND RUN IT EVERY YEAR?
00:11:03.496 --> 00:11:05.297
I THINK IT MEANS A LOT.
00:11:05.331 --> 00:11:08.934
IT'S THE CHALLENGE MORE THAN,
I THINK, THE MONEY INVOLVED,
00:11:08.968 --> 00:11:11.270
BECAUSE BACK WHEN I
WAS RUNNING IT,
00:11:11.304 --> 00:11:12.805
THE PRIZE WAS $100,
00:11:12.839 --> 00:11:15.541
WHICH WAS A LOT OF MONEY
BACK IN '39, '40, '41.
00:11:15.575 --> 00:11:17.376
BUT IT'S JUST A CHALLENGE.
00:11:17.410 --> 00:11:18.877
THEY'RE ATHLETES,
00:11:18.912 --> 00:11:21.914
AND THERE WILL BE SOME
GOOD ATHLETES IN THIS.
00:11:21.948 --> 00:11:23.749
AND THEY JUST WANT TO WIN.
00:11:23.783 --> 00:11:27.152
WHAT ABOUT BRAGGING RIGHTS?
HOW FAR DOES THAT --
00:11:27.187 --> 00:11:29.822
YEAH, THEY'RE PLAYING
FOR THAT, TOO.
00:11:29.856 --> 00:11:32.224
AND I TRY NOT TO BRAG
ABOUT IT,
00:11:32.258 --> 00:11:34.727
BUT I'M KIND OF PROUD
OF THE FACT
00:11:34.761 --> 00:11:37.463
THAT I WON IT
AS MANY TIMES AS I DID.
00:11:37.497 --> 00:11:39.698
WE'RE GETTING READY
FOR THE BIG RACE.
00:11:39.733 --> 00:11:41.667
YOU CAN FEEL THE TENSION
HERE.
00:11:41.701 --> 00:11:43.302
HAVE YOU DONE THIS BEFORE?
00:11:43.336 --> 00:11:45.671
YES, THIS IS MY FOURTH TIME
AT THIS RACE.
00:11:45.705 --> 00:11:47.706
SIXTH IS THE BEST
I'VE FINISHED,
00:11:47.741 --> 00:11:49.942
AND I'M THE OLDEST GUY
RUNNING THIS RACE.
00:11:49.976 --> 00:11:51.844
WHY DO YOU KEEP
COMING BACK?
00:11:51.878 --> 00:11:54.613
STAY YOUNG.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO GET OLD.
00:11:54.647 --> 00:11:57.516
AND I LOVE TO RUN
AGAINST THESE YOUNG GUYS
00:11:57.550 --> 00:12:01.320
'CAUSE THEN THEY KNOW THAT A GUY
THEIR DAD'S AGE BEAT 'EM.
00:12:01.354 --> 00:12:04.289
THIS HAS A LITTLE BIT
OF HISTORY TO IT, TOO.
00:12:04.324 --> 00:12:07.126
THIS STARTED BACK
WHEN OLD JOHN STUDEBAKER
00:12:07.160 --> 00:12:10.195
MADE HIS FIRST WHEELBARROW
AND SOLD IT FOR $8.
00:12:10.230 --> 00:12:12.698
AND THEN THE RACES
STARTED BACK HERE
00:12:12.732 --> 00:12:14.099
IN THE '30s OR '40s,
00:12:14.134 --> 00:12:16.335
AND IT'S BEEN GOING
EVER SINCE.
00:12:16.369 --> 00:12:18.804
THE RACE CHANGES,
THE COURSE CHANGES,
00:12:18.838 --> 00:12:20.305
AND THE GUYS CHANGE.
00:12:20.340 --> 00:12:21.907
IT'S A REAL CHALLENGE
00:12:21.941 --> 00:12:24.410
TO COME OUT HERE
AND RUN WITH THE GUYS.
00:12:24.444 --> 00:12:27.379
BUT THE SENSE OF COMPETITION
STAYS THE SAME.
00:12:27.414 --> 00:12:29.882
YEAH, COMPETITION
AND SPORTSMANSHIP.
00:12:29.916 --> 00:12:32.284
YOU STILL GET
A BUTTERFLY STOMACH.
00:12:32.318 --> 00:12:34.253
DO YOU FEEL
A SENSE OF TRADITION
00:12:34.287 --> 00:12:35.721
BEING A PART OF ALL THIS?
00:12:35.755 --> 00:12:37.856
YEAH, I'M ORIGINALLY
FROM PLACERVILLE.
00:12:37.891 --> 00:12:39.758
I LIVE
DOWN IN ORANGE COUNTY NOW,
00:12:39.793 --> 00:12:41.927
AND I COME UP EVERY YEAR
FOR THE RACE.
00:12:41.961 --> 00:12:44.263
YOU COME UP HERE
FROM ORANGE COUNTY?
00:12:44.297 --> 00:12:47.199
YEAH, EVERY YEAR.
I WAS BORN AND RAISED UP HERE.
00:12:47.233 --> 00:12:48.667
BUT I MOVED DOWN THERE.
00:12:48.702 --> 00:12:51.203
WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS
IN ORANGE COUNTY SAY
00:12:51.237 --> 00:12:53.839
WHEN YOU TELL THEM
YOU'RE GOING BACK HOME?
00:12:53.873 --> 00:12:55.174
THEY THINK I'M CRAZY.
00:12:55.208 --> 00:12:56.909
"A WHEELBARROW RACE?!
00:12:56.943 --> 00:12:59.745
ARE YOU GONNA HAVE A BUDDY
THAT YOU HOLD BY THE FEET?"
00:12:59.779 --> 00:13:00.846
20?
00:13:00.880 --> 00:13:02.848
WE BETTER LET HIM
GO IN HERE.
00:13:02.882 --> 00:13:04.083
GOOD LUCK.
00:13:04.117 --> 00:13:05.317
THANK YOU.
00:13:05.352 --> 00:13:06.618
[ LAUGHS ]
00:13:08.621 --> 00:13:12.124
[ CROWD CHEERING ]
00:13:17.564 --> 00:13:20.232
IT'S HARDER THAN IT LOOKS,
ISN'T IT?
00:13:20.266 --> 00:13:21.934
Carsten:
OH, YEAH, IT IS.
00:13:21.968 --> 00:13:24.370
ANYBODY WHO HAS NOT RUN IT
CAN'T REALIZE IT.
00:13:24.404 --> 00:13:26.271
IT LOOKS LIKE
IT MIGHT BE EASY
00:13:26.306 --> 00:13:28.307
GOING OVER THESE LOGS
AND ALL THAT,
00:13:28.341 --> 00:13:31.443
BUT WHEN YOU'RE RUNNING
AND COMPETING AGAINST OTHERS,
00:13:31.478 --> 00:13:34.680
AND YOU'RE LIFTING AND DOING
THE WHOLE THING AT ONE TIME,
00:13:34.714 --> 00:13:37.082
BELIEVE ME,
A PERSON HAS TO BE IN SHAPE.
00:13:37.117 --> 00:13:39.485
A WHEELBARROW
IS NOT THE MOST NATURAL THING
00:13:39.519 --> 00:13:41.153
TO BE DOING ALL THIS WITH.
00:13:41.187 --> 00:13:43.589
NO, JUST TO RUN AROUND
THIS COURSE IS ONE THING,
00:13:43.623 --> 00:13:47.126
BUT IF YOU'RE CARRYING
A WHEELBARROW OVER THESE THINGS
00:13:47.160 --> 00:13:49.361
AND RUNNING
WITH A WHEELBARROW,
00:13:49.396 --> 00:13:50.829
IT'S A LOT DIFFERENT.
00:13:50.864 --> 00:13:51.997
[ CROWD CHEERS ]
00:13:52.032 --> 00:13:53.198
CONGRATULATIONS.
00:13:53.233 --> 00:13:55.267
YOU KNOW,
YOU'RE SHAKING HANDS
00:13:55.301 --> 00:13:58.370
WITH THE MAN WHO WON
THE FIRST ONE BACK IN 1939.
00:13:58.405 --> 00:14:00.673
I KNOW.
HE'S GREAT. HE'S MY IDOL.
00:14:00.707 --> 00:14:03.008
HE GAVE ME
THE GOOD LUCK HANDSHAKE
00:14:03.043 --> 00:14:04.410
BEFORE I STARTED.
00:14:04.444 --> 00:14:06.512
WHAT DO YOU THINK
ABOUT THIS GUY?
00:14:06.546 --> 00:14:07.913
WELL, HE'S TOUGH.
00:14:07.947 --> 00:14:10.149
THIS IS THREE TIMES NOW
YOU'VE WON IT?
00:14:10.183 --> 00:14:11.984
NO,
THIS IS MY SECOND TIME.
00:14:12.018 --> 00:14:13.485
FOR WINNING FIRST?
00:14:13.520 --> 00:14:15.821
YEAH. I'VE TOOK SECOND,
THIRDS, AND FOURTHS.
00:14:15.855 --> 00:14:18.691
HE WAS GIVING ME COMMENTARY
AS YOU WERE RUNNING,
00:14:18.725 --> 00:14:20.225
TELLING ME ALL THE THINGS,
00:14:20.260 --> 00:14:22.761
THE WAY YOU WERE FEELING
AROUND THE RACE.
00:14:22.796 --> 00:14:23.829
TIRED.
00:14:23.863 --> 00:14:25.798
OH, ONCE YOU HIT
THAT HILL,
00:14:25.832 --> 00:14:28.300
THAT'S WHERE YOU GOTTA
PUT IT TO 'EM.
00:14:28.335 --> 00:14:30.302
THAT HILL THERE
IS A KILLER.
00:14:30.337 --> 00:14:32.104
GETTING OUT
OF THAT WATER HOLE
00:14:32.138 --> 00:14:33.372
IS ANOTHER KILLER.
00:14:33.406 --> 00:14:35.107
YEAH, 'CAUSE
YOU CAN HARDLY SEE
00:14:35.141 --> 00:14:37.276
BY THE TIME
YOU GET IN THE WATER HOLE.
00:14:37.310 --> 00:14:38.811
WELL, CONGRATULATIONS.
00:14:38.845 --> 00:14:39.845
THANK YOU.
00:14:39.879 --> 00:14:41.146
YEAH, THAT'S GREAT.
00:14:41.181 --> 00:14:42.214
THANK YOU, SIR.
00:14:42.248 --> 00:14:43.549
THERE THEY ARE --
00:14:43.583 --> 00:14:45.851
THE FIRST WINNER
AND THE LAST WINNER.
00:14:45.885 --> 00:14:49.188
Howser:
THE LAST STUDEBAKER AUTOMOBILE
00:14:49.222 --> 00:14:51.724
WAS PRODUCED ON MARCH 17, 1966.
00:14:51.758 --> 00:14:55.260
BUT THE STUDEBAKER NAME
IS STILL VERY MUCH ALIVE
00:14:55.295 --> 00:14:58.630
RIGHT HERE IN CALIFORNIA
IN EL DORADO COUNTY,
00:14:58.665 --> 00:15:00.432
WHERE THE LOCAL CITIZENS
00:15:00.467 --> 00:15:03.268
ARE RIGHTFULLY
VERY PROUD OF THE FACT
00:15:03.303 --> 00:15:06.505
THAT IT ALL STARTED RIGHT HERE
BACK IN 1853
00:15:06.539 --> 00:15:10.743
WITH A SIMPLE WHEELBARROW
WHICH SOLD FOR $8
00:15:10.777 --> 00:15:15.214
AND WAS MANUFACTURED
BY MR. JOHN M. STUDEBAKER
00:15:15.248 --> 00:15:17.916
TO HELP OUT THE GOLD MINERS.
00:15:20.487 --> 00:15:22.454
TO GET TO OUR NEXT DESTINATION
00:15:22.489 --> 00:15:25.524
IN SEARCH OF A PRODUCT
PRODUCED IN CALIFORNIA
00:15:25.558 --> 00:15:27.292
BACK DURING THE GOLD RUSH,
00:15:27.327 --> 00:15:29.728
WE HEADED
RIGHT OVER THE BAY BRIDGE
00:15:29.763 --> 00:15:31.230
FOR SAN FRANCISCO.
00:15:31.264 --> 00:15:34.099
NOW, WE WERE HEADING
FOR A MANUFACTURING PLANT
00:15:34.134 --> 00:15:35.801
LOCATED ON VALENCIA STREET.
00:15:35.835 --> 00:15:37.870
IT WAS A NEAT OLD BUILDING
00:15:37.904 --> 00:15:41.607
THAT'S BEEN IN CONTINUOUS
OPERATION SINCE 1906.
00:15:41.641 --> 00:15:44.677
WELCOME
TO LEVI STRAUSS & COMPANY,
00:15:44.711 --> 00:15:49.314
WHICH HAS BEEN MAKING JEANS
IN SAN FRANCISCO SINCE 1873.
00:15:49.349 --> 00:15:52.317
NOW, THE FIRST THING I DID
WHEN I GOT THERE
00:15:52.352 --> 00:15:56.321
WAS TO GET A TOUR OF THE PLACE
BY LINE MANAGER JOE CASALETTO.
00:15:56.356 --> 00:15:59.491
AND THE FIRST THING I NOTICED
DURING THAT TOUR
00:15:59.526 --> 00:16:01.994
WAS THAT THE PLACE
HAD A WONDERFUL,
00:16:02.028 --> 00:16:03.796
OLD-TIMEY FEELING TO IT.
00:16:03.830 --> 00:16:05.798
[ European accent ]
WE KEEP IT A TRADITION.
00:16:05.832 --> 00:16:08.934
WE SEW STILL WITH
A OLD-FASHIONED MACHINE,
00:16:08.968 --> 00:16:10.469
ALMOST HANDMADE.
00:16:10.503 --> 00:16:12.404
WE DO NOW ALMOST HANDMADE.
00:16:12.439 --> 00:16:14.540
BECAUSE THE OTHER COMPANY --
00:16:14.574 --> 00:16:17.443
THEY USUALLY
ALL MODIFIED MACHINERY,
00:16:17.477 --> 00:16:19.845
AND WE USUALLY USE
THE SAME.
00:16:19.879 --> 00:16:21.046
UH-HUH.
00:16:21.081 --> 00:16:23.949
WHY DO YOU STAY
WITH THE OLD STUFF?
00:16:23.983 --> 00:16:26.585
GOOD. WE LIKE IT.
IT WORKS.
00:16:26.619 --> 00:16:28.987
IS IT PRETTY HARD
TO DO THAT?
00:16:29.022 --> 00:16:31.357
[ Mexican accent ]
WELL, WHEN YOU START, YES.
00:16:31.391 --> 00:16:33.459
BUT AFTER, YOU KNOW,
SO MANY YEARS,
00:16:33.493 --> 00:16:35.027
SO MANY PRACTICE...
00:16:35.061 --> 00:16:37.596
SO MANY THOUSANDS
AND THOUSANDS
00:16:37.630 --> 00:16:38.897
AND THOUSANDS.
00:16:38.932 --> 00:16:40.065
YES.
00:16:40.100 --> 00:16:42.534
HAVE YOU EVER TRIED
TO COUNT THEM UP?
00:16:42.569 --> 00:16:43.902
NO! NO WAY!
00:16:43.937 --> 00:16:46.138
YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO WORK
FOR PIECEWORK.
00:16:46.172 --> 00:16:48.507
SO, WHATEVER YOU, UH,
MADE MORE --
00:16:48.541 --> 00:16:51.310
THE MORE YOU MADE,
THE MORE YOU ADD MONEY.
00:16:51.344 --> 00:16:54.446
SO, I BETTER NOT BE
STANDING HERE TALKING TO YOU
00:16:54.481 --> 00:16:57.850
BECAUSE YOU'RE LOSING MONEY
TALKING TO ME, AREN'T YOU?
00:16:57.884 --> 00:17:00.419
YEAH, HE GONNA PAY ME.
[ LAUGHS ]
00:17:00.453 --> 00:17:03.188
OH, THE BOSS
IS GONNA PAY YOU?
00:17:03.223 --> 00:17:06.258
NO, NO, I JUST KIDDING.
[ LAUGHS ]
00:17:06.292 --> 00:17:08.027
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
00:17:08.061 --> 00:17:09.528
YOU ARE WELCOME.
00:17:09.562 --> 00:17:11.797
SHE GETS PAID BY THE PIECE.
00:17:11.831 --> 00:17:14.233
HUELL,
I'D LIKE TO WELCOME YOU
00:17:14.267 --> 00:17:17.903
TO THE MOTHER CHURCH,
THE SHRINE TO LEVI'S JEANS.
00:17:17.937 --> 00:17:21.407
THIS IS THE MUSEUM
AT OUR VALENCIA STREET PLANT
00:17:21.441 --> 00:17:23.108
HERE IN SAN FRANCISCO.
00:17:23.143 --> 00:17:26.945
AND THIS IS THE CHRONOLOGICAL
STORY OF LEVI STRAUSS.
00:17:26.980 --> 00:17:28.881
AND A WONDERFUL STORY
IT IS.
00:17:28.915 --> 00:17:32.117
OF COURSE, IT STARTED WITH
THIS WONDERFUL MAN RIGHT HERE,
00:17:32.152 --> 00:17:33.585
MR. LEVI STRAUSS,
00:17:33.620 --> 00:17:35.754
WHO CAME TO SAN FRANCISCO
IN 1853.
00:17:35.789 --> 00:17:37.823
I THINK HE KNEW
THAT THE ONLY WAY
00:17:37.857 --> 00:17:39.725
TO MAKE MONEY
IN THE GOLD RUSH
00:17:39.759 --> 00:17:41.694
WAS TO SELL SUPPLIES
TO MINERS,
00:17:41.728 --> 00:17:43.762
SO HE DIDN'T COME HERE
TO PAN GOLD.
00:17:43.797 --> 00:17:45.097
HE CAME HERE TO OPEN
00:17:45.131 --> 00:17:47.232
A WHOLESALE
DRY-GOODS BUSINESS.
00:17:47.267 --> 00:17:49.868
THIS MAN DOES NOT LOOK LIKE
A FORTY-NINER TO ME.
00:17:49.903 --> 00:17:52.271
HE LOOKS VERY SOPHISTICATED
AND EASTERN.
00:17:52.305 --> 00:17:53.672
YES, HE WAS.
00:17:53.707 --> 00:17:56.342
HE HAD LIVED IN NEW YORK
FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS
00:17:56.376 --> 00:17:59.078
AFTER COMING TO THE STATES
FROM BAVARIA,
00:17:59.112 --> 00:18:00.779
AND AS A YOUNG MAN OF 24,
00:18:00.814 --> 00:18:03.315
CAME TO SAN FRANCISCO
TO FIND HIS FORTUNE.
00:18:03.350 --> 00:18:04.683
AND HE FOUND IT.
00:18:04.718 --> 00:18:06.085
HE CERTAINLY DID.
00:18:06.119 --> 00:18:07.686
HOW DID HE GET STARTED?
00:18:07.721 --> 00:18:10.322
HE STARTED WITH A WHOLESALE
DRY-GOODS BUSINESS.
00:18:10.357 --> 00:18:12.791
HE WAS SELLING
OTHER PEOPLE'S CLOTHING.
00:18:12.826 --> 00:18:15.627
HE WAS SELLING CORSETS
AND COLLARS AND BUTTONS
00:18:15.662 --> 00:18:17.229
AND ALL KINDS OF FABRIC.
00:18:17.263 --> 00:18:19.698
AND BUSINESS WAS GOING ALONG
PRETTY WELL.
00:18:19.733 --> 00:18:22.901
AND HE CAME UPON THE IDEA
SOMETIME AFTER HIS ARRIVAL
00:18:22.936 --> 00:18:25.204
OF MAKING
SOME REALLY STURDY PANTS
00:18:25.238 --> 00:18:28.007
OUT OF A TYPE OF MATERIAL
CALLED "COTTON DUCK,"
00:18:28.041 --> 00:18:29.375
OR POSSIBLY CANVAS.
00:18:29.409 --> 00:18:31.176
THE MINERS LOVED THESE,
00:18:31.211 --> 00:18:33.512
AND HE SOLD THESE
FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS.
00:18:33.546 --> 00:18:34.947
NOW, WAIT A MINUTE.
00:18:34.981 --> 00:18:37.016
ARE THESE MINERS WEARING
LEVI'S --
00:18:37.050 --> 00:18:39.218
WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN LEVI'S
THEN?
00:18:39.252 --> 00:18:41.954
THESE MINERS ARE WEARING
A LATER VERSION OF THE PANTS --
00:18:41.988 --> 00:18:44.590
THE RIVETED VERSION --
PROBABLY COTTON DUCK OR DENIM,
00:18:44.624 --> 00:18:47.393
AS ARE THESE DELIGHTFUL
YOUNG GENTLEMEN DOWN HERE.
00:18:47.427 --> 00:18:48.727
I GOTCHA.
00:18:48.762 --> 00:18:51.930
SO WE'RE GETTING AHEAD
OF OURSELVES HERE.
00:18:51.965 --> 00:18:54.667
I'D LIKE TO SHOW YOU
A LITTLE EXHIBIT OVER HERE.
00:18:54.701 --> 00:18:57.202
IN 1872, LEVI GOT A LETTER
FROM A TAILOR --
00:18:57.237 --> 00:18:59.605
ONE OF HIS CUSTOMERS
FROM RENO, NEVADA --
00:18:59.639 --> 00:19:02.007
WHO'D BOUGHT A LOT
OF HIS BOLTS OF CLOTH.
00:19:02.042 --> 00:19:04.777
AND JACOB DAVIS HAD COME UP
WITH THIS GREAT IDEA
00:19:04.811 --> 00:19:07.680
TO PUT RIVETS IN THE CORNERS
OF THE PANTS HE WAS MAKING
00:19:07.714 --> 00:19:08.947
FOR HIS CUSTOMERS,
00:19:08.982 --> 00:19:10.516
BECAUSE THEY WERE MINERS
00:19:10.550 --> 00:19:12.518
AND THEY'D PUT ORE
IN THEIR POCKETS.
00:19:12.552 --> 00:19:15.087
AND, OF COURSE,
THE POCKETS KEPT ON RIPPING.
00:19:15.121 --> 00:19:16.789
SO HE CAME UP WITH THIS IDEA,
00:19:16.823 --> 00:19:19.525
BUT DIDN'T HAVE THE $60
HE NEEDED FOR THE PATENT,
00:19:19.559 --> 00:19:21.060
SO HE ASKED LEVI STRAUSS
00:19:21.094 --> 00:19:23.962
IF HE'D LIKE TO TAKE OUT
THE PATENT TOGETHER.
00:19:23.997 --> 00:19:26.732
OF COURSE, LEVI THOUGHT
IT WAS A GREAT IDEA
00:19:26.766 --> 00:19:29.401
AND BROUGHT HIM
TO SAN FRANCISCO IN 1873,
00:19:29.436 --> 00:19:32.671
AFTER THEY GOT THE PATENT
TO START WHAT YOU SEE TODAY.
00:19:32.706 --> 00:19:34.840
SO, THE RIVETS
WERE THE TRADEMARK
00:19:34.874 --> 00:19:37.609
OF THESE JEANS FROM ALMOST
THE EARLIEST DAYS.
00:19:37.644 --> 00:19:40.045
FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.
THAT'S RIGHT.
00:19:40.080 --> 00:19:42.214
IN FACT,
WE WERE THE ONLY COMPANY
00:19:42.248 --> 00:19:44.717
ALLOWED TO RIVET CLOTHING
FOR 34 YEARS,
00:19:44.751 --> 00:19:46.251
UNTIL THE PATENT RAN OUT.
00:19:46.286 --> 00:19:48.387
AND THE RIVETS
HAD A SPECIFIC --
00:19:48.421 --> 00:19:49.722
THIS WASN'T COSMETIC.
00:19:49.756 --> 00:19:51.423
THIS REALLY MEANT SOMETHING.
00:19:51.458 --> 00:19:53.692
BECAUSE THE MINERS
HAD THE ORE IN THEIR PANTS.
00:19:53.727 --> 00:19:55.194
THAT'S RIGHT.
00:19:55.228 --> 00:19:57.963
THEY WERE PANTS
FOR A MAN WHO HAD HARD WORK,
00:19:57.997 --> 00:19:59.498
AND NOT JUST MINERS --
00:19:59.532 --> 00:20:01.900
LUMBERMEN, RAILROADMEN,
FARMERS, RANCHERS.
00:20:01.935 --> 00:20:04.003
ANYBODY WHO NEEDED
A PAIR OF PANTS
00:20:04.037 --> 00:20:07.106
THAT WASN'T GONNA FALL APART
WORE OUR RIVETED CLOTHING.
00:20:07.140 --> 00:20:09.942
NOW, SPEAKING OF PANTS
THAT HAVE FALLEN APART...
00:20:09.976 --> 00:20:11.510
[ LAUGHS ]
00:20:11.544 --> 00:20:14.446
...WHAT'S THE STORY ON THESE?
CAN I PICK THESE UP?
00:20:14.481 --> 00:20:15.647
SURE.
00:20:15.682 --> 00:20:18.283
THIS IS THE OLDEST PAIR
OF LEVI'S JEANS
00:20:18.318 --> 00:20:20.786
THAT WE HAVE
IN THE COMPANY ARCHIVES.
00:20:20.820 --> 00:20:24.023
THEY'RE 100 YEARS OLD,
AND THEY WERE FOUND IN 1948
00:20:24.057 --> 00:20:27.092
BY A WOMAN WHO WAS EXPLORING
THE CALICO SILVER MINE
00:20:27.127 --> 00:20:28.727
IN THE MOJAVE DESERT.
00:20:28.762 --> 00:20:32.064
NOW, HOW DO WE KNOW
THAT THESE ARE 100 YEARS OLD?
00:20:32.098 --> 00:20:35.234
I CAN DATE THESE PANTS
BY THE DESIGN FEATURES.
00:20:35.268 --> 00:20:38.303
THE RIVETS ON THE BACK
WERE ADDED IN 1873 --
00:20:38.338 --> 00:20:40.906
THESE RIVETS HERE
AND ON THE POCKET.
00:20:40.940 --> 00:20:42.508
IT ONLY HAS ONE POCKET.
00:20:42.542 --> 00:20:44.943
THAT MEANS
IT'S FROM BEFORE 1905.
00:20:44.978 --> 00:20:48.847
IT HAS A LEATHER PATCH,
WHICH MAKES IT AFTER 1886.
00:20:48.882 --> 00:20:50.215
WOW.
00:20:50.250 --> 00:20:51.950
SO, THESE SHOULD BE IN A --
00:20:51.985 --> 00:20:54.620
THESE SHOULDN'T
JUST BE LAYING OUT HERE.
00:20:54.654 --> 00:20:57.122
THESE SHOULD BE IN A VAULT
SOMEWHERE.
00:20:57.157 --> 00:20:58.657
THESE ARE HISTORIC JEANS.
00:20:58.692 --> 00:21:00.025
YES, THEY ARE,
00:21:00.060 --> 00:21:02.261
BUT THEY'RE STILL
A STURDY PAIR OF DENIMS,
00:21:02.295 --> 00:21:05.197
AND THEY CAN STAND UP
TO PEOPLE LOOKING AT THEM.
00:21:05.231 --> 00:21:08.367
100-YEAR-OLD BLUE JEANS.
WHAT'S ALL THIS OTHER STUFF?
00:21:08.401 --> 00:21:10.969
WE HAVE A PAIR
THAT'S A LITTLE BIT YOUNGER
00:21:11.004 --> 00:21:12.438
THAN THAT PAIR.
00:21:12.472 --> 00:21:14.840
THIS IS A PAIR OF OVERALLS,
WHICH, BY THE WAY,
00:21:14.874 --> 00:21:17.609
WAS THE OLD NAME FOR JEANS --
WAIST OVERALLS.
00:21:17.644 --> 00:21:20.179
AND THIS PAIR
BELONGED TO AN ARIZONA COWBOY
00:21:20.213 --> 00:21:21.780
WHO BOUGHT THEM IN 1926.
00:21:21.815 --> 00:21:24.650
AND YOU CAN TELL
BY THE WAY THAT THEY'RE FADED
00:21:24.684 --> 00:21:26.852
THAT HE SPENT HIS LIFE
ON A HORSE.
00:21:26.886 --> 00:21:28.053
YEAH.
00:21:28.088 --> 00:21:30.622
AND IT'S A LITTLE BIT DARKER
ON THE BOTTOM
00:21:30.657 --> 00:21:32.391
BECAUSE HE CUFFED THE PANTS.
00:21:32.425 --> 00:21:34.960
AND HE PROBABLY HAD HIS BOOTS
UP OVER THOSE, TOO.
00:21:34.994 --> 00:21:36.261
YOU BET.
00:21:36.296 --> 00:21:38.897
HERE'S THE LEATHER PATCH
TURNED TO BEEF JERKY
00:21:38.932 --> 00:21:40.366
A LITTLE BIT.
00:21:40.400 --> 00:21:42.835
SO THE LEATHER PATCH
HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PART OF IT.
00:21:42.869 --> 00:21:44.403
OH, YES, BACK TO 1886.
00:21:44.437 --> 00:21:46.672
THE 19th CENTURY
SAW THE BEGINNINGS
00:21:46.706 --> 00:21:49.308
OF ALL OF THE DESIGN FEATURES
THAT WE KNOW
00:21:49.342 --> 00:21:51.310
WHEN WE THINK
OF LEVI'S JEANS.
00:21:51.344 --> 00:21:52.911
WHAT'S THIS THING?
00:21:52.946 --> 00:21:55.280
THIS IS WHAT'S CALLED
A JUMPER.
00:21:55.315 --> 00:21:57.249
IT'S AN OUTER GARMENT
FOR MEN,
00:21:57.283 --> 00:22:00.352
MADE OF COTTON DUCK,
WHICH IS VERY MUCH LIKE CANVAS,
00:22:00.387 --> 00:22:02.688
WITH EITHER WOODEN
OR BAKELITE BUTTONS.
00:22:02.722 --> 00:22:04.556
NOW, WOULD THE MINERS
HAVE WORN THIS?
00:22:04.591 --> 00:22:05.891
CERTAINLY.
00:22:05.925 --> 00:22:08.360
I THINK IT WOULD HAVE BEEN
AN OUTER GARMENT
00:22:08.395 --> 00:22:10.963
FOR WARMTH OR PROTECTION
AGAINST THE ELEMENTS
00:22:10.997 --> 00:22:13.399
BECAUSE, AS YOU CAN SEE,
IT'S VERY STURDY.
00:22:13.433 --> 00:22:15.768
I DON'T THINK
YOU'D WANT TO WEAR THIS
00:22:15.802 --> 00:22:17.169
NEXT TO YOUR SKIN,
00:22:17.203 --> 00:22:19.505
BUT I THINK
THAT YOU'D CERTAINLY WEAR IT
00:22:19.539 --> 00:22:21.073
OVER YOUR OTHER GARMENTS.
00:22:21.107 --> 00:22:23.375
NOW, THIS IS REALLY STURDY
MATERIAL,
00:22:23.410 --> 00:22:26.645
AND I'D HEARD THE STORY
THAT THE WHOLE IDEA OF THE JEANS
00:22:26.680 --> 00:22:28.180
CAME FROM THE TENTS --
00:22:28.214 --> 00:22:30.716
THAT SOMEBODY CUT UP
AN OLD MINER'S TENT
00:22:30.750 --> 00:22:32.284
AND MADE PANTS OUT OF IT.
00:22:32.318 --> 00:22:34.553
WELL,
THAT'S NOT QUITE ACCURATE,
00:22:34.587 --> 00:22:37.289
BUT IT'S POSSIBLE
THAT TENT-LIKE MATERIAL
00:22:37.323 --> 00:22:38.891
WAS USED BY LEVI STRAUSS
00:22:38.925 --> 00:22:41.827
TO MAKE THE VERY FIRST PAIR
OF MINERS' PANTS.
00:22:41.861 --> 00:22:43.429
SO THAT'S JUST A STORY?
00:22:43.463 --> 00:22:44.730
A BIT OF A STORY.
00:22:44.764 --> 00:22:46.632
AND THE REASON
WE DON'T REALLY KNOW
00:22:46.666 --> 00:22:48.734
IS THAT THE 1906 EARTHQUAKE
AND FIRE
00:22:48.768 --> 00:22:51.270
DESTROYED OUR HEADQUARTERS
ON BATTERY STREET.
00:22:51.304 --> 00:22:53.839
WE'D BEEN ON BATTERY STREET
AND THE WATERFRONT
00:22:53.873 --> 00:22:56.241
IN SAN FRANCISCO
SINCE THE VERY BEGINNING.
00:22:56.276 --> 00:22:59.812
WHAT DID MINERS WEAR
BEFORE THEY HAD LEVI'S TO WEAR?
00:22:59.846 --> 00:23:02.915
THEY PROBABLY WORE WOOL,
POSSIBLY GABARDINE,
00:23:02.949 --> 00:23:05.451
OR A TYPE OF COTTON
CALLED "JEAN."
00:23:05.485 --> 00:23:07.920
THEY MADE PANTS
CALLED "JEAN PANTS"
00:23:07.954 --> 00:23:11.056
BECAUSE THAT WAS WHAT
THE FABRIC WAS CALLED.
00:23:11.091 --> 00:23:12.491
J-E-A-N?
00:23:12.525 --> 00:23:14.426
JUST LIKE THE WORD
WE USE TODAY.
00:23:14.461 --> 00:23:17.196
BUT IT REFERRED TO THE TYPE
OF FABRIC, WHICH WAS COTTON,
00:23:17.230 --> 00:23:18.997
BUT NOT AS STURDY AS DENIM.
00:23:19.032 --> 00:23:24.236
WERE THE LEVI STRAUSS JEANS
THE FIRST BLUE JEANS MADE?
00:23:24.270 --> 00:23:26.105
YES, THEY WERE --
00:23:26.139 --> 00:23:29.041
RIVETED, STRONG,
BUTTON-FLY DENIM PANTS
00:23:29.075 --> 00:23:31.877
HAVE ALWAYS BEEN KNOWN
AS BLUE JEANS.
00:23:31.911 --> 00:23:33.545
AND THAT WAS OUR PRODUCT.
00:23:33.580 --> 00:23:35.881
BUT THAT WASN'T WHAT
THEY WERE CALLED BACK THEN.
00:23:35.915 --> 00:23:38.851
THEY WERE CALLED "WAIST
OVERALLS" OR JUST "OVERALLS."
00:23:38.885 --> 00:23:40.886
WE HAVE SOME OTHER
REPRESENTATIONS
00:23:40.920 --> 00:23:42.388
OF SOME OF THE MYTHS.
00:23:42.422 --> 00:23:44.690
COWBOYS USED TO SIT
IN THE HORSE TROUGH
00:23:44.724 --> 00:23:47.893
TO SHRINK THEIR LEVI'S OVERALLS
BACK IN THE GOOD OLD DAYS.
00:23:47.927 --> 00:23:49.795
NOW, DID THAT
REALLY HAPPEN?
00:23:49.829 --> 00:23:51.130
I BELIEVE SO.
00:23:51.164 --> 00:23:53.232
WE HAVE SOME LETTERS
IN THE ARCHIVES
00:23:53.266 --> 00:23:54.800
SAYING THE SAME THING.
00:23:54.834 --> 00:23:57.336
THAT THEY WOULD PUT ON
A NEW PAIR OF LEVI'S,
00:23:57.370 --> 00:23:59.938
SIT IN A HORSE TROUGH,
AND SHRINK THEM UP?
00:23:59.973 --> 00:24:01.507
MM-HMM. SHRINK TO FIT.
00:24:01.541 --> 00:24:03.542
THEY'D HAVE BLUE LEGS
FOR A WHILE,
00:24:03.576 --> 00:24:05.744
BUT THE PANTS
WOULD SHRINK TO FIT.
00:24:05.779 --> 00:24:09.481
YOU KNOW,
EVERYWHERE I HAVE BEEN
00:24:09.516 --> 00:24:11.550
AROUND HERE TODAY,
00:24:11.584 --> 00:24:16.388
YOU GET THIS SENSE
OF TRADITION, OF HISTORY,
00:24:16.423 --> 00:24:19.058
OF TEXTURE AND CHARACTER
IN THIS COMPANY.
00:24:19.092 --> 00:24:20.826
HAS THAT ALWAYS BEEN HERE,
00:24:20.860 --> 00:24:23.095
OR IS THIS JUST
A MARKETING TOOL
00:24:23.129 --> 00:24:25.798
THAT'S DEVELOPED
IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS?
00:24:25.832 --> 00:24:28.167
I THINK A SENSE
OF TRADITION AND HISTORY
00:24:28.201 --> 00:24:29.768
HAS ALWAYS BEEN HERE
00:24:29.803 --> 00:24:32.304
BECAUSE THE COMPANY
HAS ALWAYS BEEN FAMILY OWNED.
00:24:32.339 --> 00:24:35.874
AND THERE'S A SENSE OF OWNERSHIP
AND A SENSE OF LOVE,
00:24:35.909 --> 00:24:37.976
ON THE PART
OF OUR COMPANY OFFICERS,
00:24:38.011 --> 00:24:40.779
FOR THE HISTORICAL MATERIALS
AND FOR OUR HISTORY.
00:24:40.814 --> 00:24:43.015
OUR HISTORY IS SO MUCH
A PART OF THE WEST
00:24:43.049 --> 00:24:44.683
AND A PART OF CALIFORNIA.
00:24:44.718 --> 00:24:47.319
PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD --
THEY THINK LEVI'S JEANS,
00:24:47.354 --> 00:24:50.189
THEY THINK CALIFORNIA,
THEY THINK THE WILD WEST.
00:24:50.223 --> 00:24:52.791
NOW, IS IT "LEVI"
OR "LEVI STRAUSS"?
00:24:52.826 --> 00:24:54.660
LEVI STRAUSS IS THE FOUNDER,
00:24:54.694 --> 00:24:57.563
AND LEVI STRAUSS & COMPANY
IS THE COMPANY NAME.
00:24:57.597 --> 00:24:59.431
AND LEVI'S JEANS
IS THE PRODUCT.
00:24:59.466 --> 00:25:00.966
ALL RIGHT.
00:25:01.001 --> 00:25:04.169
BECAUSE I'M NOT WEARING MY PAIR
OF LEVI STRAUSS JEANS.
00:25:04.204 --> 00:25:06.538
NO. THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN
HIS JEANS.
00:25:06.573 --> 00:25:10.175
DO YOU THINK
THAT OLD MR. STRAUSS
00:25:10.210 --> 00:25:13.412
HAD ANY IDEA
WHEN HE STARTED THIS IN 1850
00:25:13.446 --> 00:25:16.248
THAT SOMEDAY IT WAS GONNA GROW
INTO WHAT IT'S BECOME?
00:25:16.282 --> 00:25:18.150
I THINK
HE'D BE QUITE ASTONISHED
00:25:18.184 --> 00:25:20.552
AT THE POPULARITY
OF THE BLUE JEANS
00:25:20.587 --> 00:25:22.187
AND HOW THEY'VE BEEN USED
00:25:22.222 --> 00:25:23.689
AND HOW THEY'VE BEEN WORN.
00:25:23.723 --> 00:25:25.958
WHAT DO YOU MEAN
"HOW THEY'VE BEEN USED"?
00:25:25.992 --> 00:25:28.127
WELL, BY EVERYTHING
FROM MINERS TO COWBOYS
00:25:28.161 --> 00:25:29.862
TO ROCK AND ROLL STARS.
00:25:29.896 --> 00:25:33.399
PEOPLE WALKING INTO CLASSY
RESTAURANTS WEARING BLUE JEANS.
00:25:33.433 --> 00:25:36.035
HE WAS A VERY CORRECT
AND UPRIGHT GENTLEMAN,
00:25:36.069 --> 00:25:38.570
WHO I BELIEVE
PROBABLY ALWAYS WORE A SUIT.
00:25:38.605 --> 00:25:40.873
AND I THINK
THAT THE CASUAL USE,
00:25:40.907 --> 00:25:43.075
IN URBAN SETTINGS,
OF BLUE JEANS,
00:25:43.109 --> 00:25:44.643
WOULD ASTONISH HIM.
00:25:46.646 --> 00:25:48.247
WELL, THERE YOU HAVE IT --
00:25:48.281 --> 00:25:50.983
TWO WELL-KNOWN PRODUCTS
THAT GOT THEIR START
00:25:51.017 --> 00:25:53.185
RIGHT HERE
IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
00:25:53.219 --> 00:25:54.987
BACK DURING THE GOLD RUSH.
00:25:55.021 --> 00:25:58.157
FIRST, WE TOOK A LOOK AT
THE OLD STUDEBAKER WHEELBARROW,
00:25:58.191 --> 00:26:01.593
WHICH, OF COURSE, EVOLVED
INTO THE STUDEBAKER AUTOMOBILE.
00:26:01.628 --> 00:26:05.264
AND THEN WE TOOK A LOOK
AT THE WAIST-HIGH OVERALLS,
00:26:05.298 --> 00:26:07.833
WHICH EVOLVED
INTO LEVI'S JEANS --
00:26:07.867 --> 00:26:11.503
BOTH OF THESE COMPANIES
HEADED UP BY MEN OF VISION.
00:26:11.538 --> 00:26:14.073
MR. STUDEBAKER
AND MR. STRAUSS --
00:26:14.107 --> 00:26:18.010
TWO MEN WHO CAME TO OUR STATE
BACK DURING THE GOLD RUSH
00:26:18.044 --> 00:26:20.079
AND LITERALLY STRUCK IT RICH.
00:26:20.113 --> 00:26:23.082
WELL, AS WE PREPARE
TO END THIS EPISODE,
00:26:23.116 --> 00:26:24.950
WE'RE HERE IN SAN FRANCISCO
AT LEVI PLAZA,