" NARRATOR:" "Previously, on "The Men Who Built America:"" "The country has bounced back from a long civil war, and is now stronger than ever." "Cornelius Vanderbilt used brute force and intimidation to build a railroad empire that unites the country." "John D. Rockefeller rose from humble beginnings, and with complete confidence and ruthlessness, created a total monopoly of the oil industry." "Then, a new product transformed the American landscape." " CARNEGIE:" "I am convinced that steel is the future." " NARRATOR:" "And thanks to Andrew Carnegie's steel," "America's cities now reach the sky." " Nothing's impossible." " NARRATOR:" "But after his name is linked to one of the worst disasters in American history," "Carnegie's empire begins to fray." "His chairman, Henry Frick, pushes his workers to the breaking point..." " (explosion)" " (man screaming)" " NARRATOR: ...causing them to fight back..." " MAN:" "All of those in favor of striking, raise your hands." " (crowd cheering)" " NARRATOR: ...barricading Carnegie Steel's flagship plant, and when Frick decides to take it back by force..." " Fire!" " NARRATOR: ... an attempt is made on his life." " Mr. Frick!" " (gunshot)" " NARRATOR:" "Andrew Carnegie is forced to rethink everything." " (Blues Saraceno playing "Save My Soul")" "♪ When I got to Memphis ♪" "♪ To put my ol' baby down ♪" "♪ He said, "I can't take you to Heaven" ♪" "♪ "I can't save your soul" ♪" "♪ "I can't promise forever" ♪" "♪ Whoa, yeah, got my heart in your hands ♪" "♪ I can't feel ♪" "♪ Feel my soul ♪" " NARRATOR:" "With his chairman shot, and his workers rebelling, Andrew Carnegie's back is against the wall." "His company-- and his reputation-- are under threat." "And the empire he spent a lifetime building is on the verge of collapse." "Hoping to salvage his legacy," "Carnegie cuts short his trip abroad, and returns to Pittsburgh." " (ship horn blows)" " (bell tolls)" " NARRATOR:" "Henry Frick survives the attempt on his life." " FRICK:" "Ahh!" " NARRATOR:" "Only three days after being shot and stabbed, he's back in his office at Carnegie Steel." " (grunting)" " NARRATOR:" "Frick's brush with death only strengthens his resolve." "But for his boss, Andrew Carnegie, it's a reminder that his chairman is a liability." " DAVID NASAW:" "There came a time when Frick thought to himself, "I'm running this business." "I'm the one in Pittsburgh." "I'm the one working the twelve-hour days." "I'm the one taking the bullet in the head." "I deserve to be number one."" " NARRATOR:" "Carnegie's relationship with Frick deteriorates, and he realizes he needs to make a change." " DAVID NASAW:" "Carnegie isn't happy." "He whispers to newspaper reporters in Pittsburgh that if he had have been around, it would've been different." "That there wouldn't have been this bloodshed." "That he had more respect for the workers." "And he undercuts Frick." " NARRATOR:" "But Frick refuses to accept any responsibility." "Outraged that Carnegie has hung him out to dry, he even goes behind his back and attempts to orchestrate a hostile takeover." "Carnegie Steel is eroding from the inside out." "But the biggest challenge to Carnegie's empire isn't coming from within." "A new threat is emerging." "J.P. Morgan is a banker, who's made a fortune consolidating broken industries," "buying out failing companies, and returning them to profitability." "Companies like Carnegie Steel." " DONALD TRUMP:" "You look at J.P. Morgan, the way he controlled the banks." "Basically he's one man who just literally dominated the banking industry, and, essentially, dominated financing in the country." " NARRATOR:" "Morgan most recently consolidated parts of the broken railroad industry, making them profitable by eliminating unnecessary competition." " We need an answer." " We'll win this war." " (rapping on table)" " You wanna come to war?" " I've heard enough." "This is what's going to happen." "There's going to be an end to this war." "The Morgan Bank will buy the West Shore and lease it to the Central." "They'll also buy the central stake in the South" "Pennsylvania in exchange for a share in other railroads." " MAURY KLEIN:" "He excelled at taking warring parties, who were destroying an industry, and bringing peace on terms that were suitable to them, profitable to him, and which gave him leverage in the business itself." "Anyone who knew anything about him realized that, like him or not, he got things done." " NARRATOR:" "Due to Frick's callousness," "Andrew Carnegie fears he might become Morgan's next target." "He makes a bold move." "One that's become all but inevitable." " (knocking)" " Andy?" " CARNEGIE:" "Henry." "How are you?" " Fine." " CARNEGIE:" "Good." "The board of managers met yesterday." " I was unaware." " CARNEGIE:" "The board has decided that it's best if Carnegie Steel invoked the provision of their agreement with you." "You will have to surrender your interest in the company." "You will, of course, receive full compensation at book value." " Carnegie!" " (pounding)" " FRICK:" "Carnegie!" " (toilet flushing)" " NARRATOR:" "As Carnegie struggles to repair his broken empire," "J.P. Morgan continues to target failing companies, working alongside his legendary father." "Junius Morgan is the founder of one of the world's first modern investment banks, a financial empire that will come to be known as the House of Morgan." " H.W. BRANDS:" "J.P. Morgan was born into the banking business." "His father was one of the first generation of trans-Atlantic bankers, and as a result he identified finance as the industry that was going to command all other industries." " NARRATOR:" "From the time he could count," "J.P. is taught there is only one way to do business:" "the Morgan way." "Investing other people's money to make a fortune for yourself." " I will return tonight." "See that these accounts balance by then." " JENNIFER TONKOVICH:" "Morgan's father had a controlling presence." "Junius really didn't sort of take his eye off Morgan for so many years." "It was very difficult for him to bear." " Go ahead." "Open it." "Now pick it up." "Feel the weight." "You know what that is?" "That's what it feels like to hold a million dollars." "Now," "learn to earn it yourself." " NARRATOR:" "J.P. Morgan's strained relationship with his father continues." "And by age forty, he's looking to create an identity of his own." " Is all this furniture really necessary?" " That painting's four hundred years old." " Yes, sir." " I don't see why you feel the need to pillage Europe of its art." " I bought a few paintings, Father, not a whole gallery." " The bank of England have asked me to handle their next bond issue, so I'm assuming you're accompanying me back to London?" " I have plenty of work to do here." " Just remember where our loyalties lie, Pierpont." " I'll try not to forget." " Let me know how you get on." "I'll leave you in peace to arrange your paintings." " H.W. BRANDS:" "J.P." "Morgan understood the game, and at some point he realized that, as successful as his father had been, he could become even more successful." " NARRATOR:" "Morgan's father always taught him to avoid taking big risks, but J.P.Morgan is tired of doing things his father's way." "He doesn't want to simply buy businesses, he wants to build them from the ground up." "He's watched as John Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie have built empires from nothing," "and he wants to be next." "But to do that, Morgan needs to find an innovation to call his own." "He sets his sights on one of the world's most famous inventors." "Thomas Edison has been a renowned innovator since the age of nineteen." "He first made his name by perfecting the telegraph before going on to invent the stock ticker, and the phonograph." "In his lifetime, Edison will secure over one thousand patents." "But now, at thirty-one, Edison is on the verge of his greatest innovation yet." " RICHARD PARSONS:" "Edison had that unique ability to sort of look at this thing, then figure out how to use it in a way that no one had thought of to use it before." " So this is where genius resides." " "Genius is eternal patience."" " Michelangelo." " NARRATOR:" "One invention catches Morgan's eye:" "the light bulb, and the electricity that powers it." " A stream of invisible energy that heat tiny filaments in the bulbs that like magic, make them glow." " NARRATOR:" "Electric light will revolutionize the world." "Like fire, or the wheel, it will transform human existence." "J.P. Morgan sees the potential in the revolutionary new technology immediately," "and knows it's his chance to create his own legacy." "One that will change the world forever." "As the turn of the twentieth century approaches, America is the most rapidly growing country on earth." "Rail, oil, and steel have driven the expansion." "But a new technology is emerging that may be even more powerful." "Electricity has the potential to completely change the world," "and J.P.Morgan sees it as something he can own." " RUSSELL SIMMONS:" "Most people are too busy looking on the outside to really check what their barometers say inside, so as an entrepreneur, if you look inside, you'll find things that they all need that could become immensely popular," "if someone had the courage to promote." "Or to build it." " NARRATOR:" "For years," "J.P.Morgan has lived in the long shadow of his legendary father." "He's desperate for a way to make his own mark," "and electricity might be it." "Morgan is considering an investment in Thomas" "Edison's company, and his newly-developed electric light bulb." "He hires Edison to install electric lighting in his home on Fifth Avenue, in New York." " Sometimes you've got to take ownership." "They call it "eating your own dog food", right?" "If you aren't willing to use your own product, then how is anybody else going to trust it and have confidence?" "You know, some people might call that being a showman, I call it demonstrating trust in your product, which any smart business has to do." " NARRATOR:" "The Morgan home quickly turns into a laboratory for Thomas Edison's famous electric experiments." "Edison installs a small power plant in a shed on Morgan's property." "He then runs four thousand feet of wiring through the walls and ceilings of the house," "and installs nearly four hundred electric light bulbs, some of the first to ever be manufactured." "After months of trial and error, the home is ready to be displayed." " JERRY WEINTRAUB:" "When I believe in something, and I want to sell it to somebody," "I want to put it in the best light." "I don't just package it, I creatively package it." " NARRATOR:" "Morgan invites many--including his father-- to see the marvel of electric lighting for the first time," "knowing the demonstration will put him at the forefront of a new industry." " Ladies and gentlemen, behold the miracle of modern science." "The gas lamp is dead." "Long live the electric light." " (click)" " (laughing)" " (applause)" " Every light you see is powered by electricity." "There is no gas, no oil, no flame." "Just a invisible stream of energy." " JILL JONNES:" "Electricity was viewed as something miraculous, and people were amazed." "First of all, they didn't understand how it worked, because you can't see electricity, and so it was viewed as something almost magical by most people." " NARRATOR:" "J.P. Morgan's home is the first private residence in the world to be lit with electricity." " Well Father, what do you think?" " You disappoint me, Pierpont." "I thought you knew better." " This is the future." " This is the stuff of carnivals and fairs." "And you've been played for a fool." " NARRATOR:" "Despite his father's disappointment," "Morgan's event is a success." " You're about to become a very busy man." "Darius Ogden Mills wants you to electrify his home." " He'll have to wait." "The Vanderbilt family's next on my list." " NARRATOR:" "Electricity becomes a must-have for the country's elite," "with one notable exception," "John D. Rockefeller." "Rockefeller has created the largest fortune in America by refining oil for kerosene lamps." "He realizes electric light has the potential to replace kerosene as America's primary light source." "If the technology goes mainstream," "Rockefeller will face his biggest challenge ever." "Following the success of his home lighting display," "Morgan believes that electricity could be the opportunity he's been waiting for," "his chance to control a new business from its start, and become a pioneer like Carnegie and Rockefeller." "But investing in Edison goes against everything" "J.P. Morgan's father has ever taught him." " DONNY DEUTSCH:" "You have to be able to take risk." "You can't have greatness in anything without putting it on the line." "Otherwise, everybody would have it." "If there was no apparent loss, if there was no chance of tremendous failure or tremendous setback, you can't have the upside." " To what do I owe the pleasure, Mr. Morgan?" " There's a noise in the basement." "It's upsetting my wife." " It's the generator." "I'll send someone around to soundproof it." " (toy train whirs)" " JUNIUS MORGAN:" "You disappoint me, Pierpont." "I thought you knew better." " J.P. MORGAN:" "This is the future." " JUNIUS MORGAN:" "This is the stuff of carnivals and fairs." "And you've been played for a fool." " How much competition do you have, Edison?" " Nothing worthy of note." "You know, if you could help me raise money to install a central power station, there'd be no need to have a generator in your basement." "I could power anything within a half-mile radius." " What would it take to light all the homes in New York City?" " I'd need a network of power stations." " J.P. MORGAN:" "What would the cost be?" " EDISON:" "I'll have to go through my figures." " Bring them to me Monday morning." "That model train set-- powered by electricity?" " Yes." " I want one for my daughter's birthday next week." " NARRATOR:" "For Morgan, the potential reward is too great." "Against his father's advice, he invests everything in electricity," "determined to create his own legacy, even if it means going against everything he's ever been taught." "America is undergoing amazing changes." "Steel is building futuristic cities of unimaginable height, and kerosene is lighting homes across the country." "But, a magical new innovation is emerging, and J.P. Morgan is determined to bring it to the world." " (laughter and applause)" " NARRATOR:" "Electricity has captured the public's imagination, but the technology is still unproven, and virtually unused." "But partnered with Thomas Edison, J.P. Morgan is convinced he can bring electricity" "to the entire country." " There is no success without risk taking, and I think that is actually what distinguishes the captains of industry from others." " NARRATOR:" "Morgan gives Edison what amounts to eighty-three million dollars today, and together they form a new business," "the Edison Electric Light Company." "Funding Edison is a huge risk for Morgan, and goes against everything his father taught him." "For years, Morgan was instructed to avoid investing in new and unproven industries." "But where his father sees risk," "J.P. Morgan sees opportunity." " STEVE CASE:" "I think what's great about the truly transformative inventions and the entrepreneurial ideas that really end up having a significant impact is they start relatively small and most people don't quite understand even what you're talking about, and they take some time" "before they get traction, but eventually they break through and the impact's far broader than anybody, you know, could have imagined." " NARRATOR:" "Morgan and Edison get right to work, transforming a building in Lower Manhattan into the world's first central power station," "a high-tech wonder filled with massive generators capable of lighting thousands of homes." " The idea was that from this central station would flow all this direct current, but it also meant that it had to be transmitted." " MAURY KLEIN:" "The future of electricity wasn't just illumination." "It was power, and power required transmission over long distance." " NARRATOR:" "Edison's workers labor day and night, digging a network of ditches over fifteen miles long." "They lay over one hundred thousand feet of thick copper wire, connecting Edison's power station to hundreds of homes and businesses throughout New York." "Edison's power grid becomes the model for how electricity is transmitted in the United States." " JILL JONNES:" "He had never worked so long and so hard at any invention to make it functional as he did with electricity." " NARRATOR:" "With Edison's power station up and running, a new era dawns." "The city lights up for the first time ever." "And soon, Edison's power grid covers half of Manhattan." "Electric streetlights line avenues, and homes throughout New York are buzzing with electricity." " JIM CRAMER:" "Edison had a big think approach which said that, "We can build giant distribution centers and make it so that electricity is cheap enough for the masses."" "What a brilliant idea." " NARRATOR:" "J.P. Morgan and Thomas Edison stand to make a fortune." "But their success is bad news for the most powerful man in the country." "Until now, John Rockefeller has been virtually unchallenged while providing light to homes from coast to coast." "But as Edison's power grid expands over a greater and greater area, he realizes his kerosene empire is at risk." "Every home Edison wires with electricity is a lost customer for John Rockefeller." " The great titans of the late 1800s, like Rockefeller, they tended to be very ruthless." "They were interested in dominating the market, and moved in every way they could to get as big a chunk of the market as they could in order to ensure their own profits." " JIM CRAMER:" "The industrialists of that time are naked capitalists." "They absolutely wanted to get rich, and they wanted to build something that lasted." "Rockefeller wanted Standard Oil to be the greatest oil company in the world." " NARRATOR:" "Rockefeller launches a targeted campaign against electricity." "Painting the new technology as dangerous, even deadly, he warns of mass electrocutions and out-of-control fires." "Rockefeller knows if he can frighten the public, kerosene will continue to be the dominant light source." " JERRY WEINTRAUB:" "I am not a good enemy." "I'm a terrible enemy." "So, if you screw around with me, or you hurt me," "I'm gonna hurt you back." "Now that doesn't mean physically, but I will, in the end, win." "Because I'm a winner, and I don't lose." " NARRATOR:" "But John D. Rockefeller is about to become the least of Morgan's problems." "A new competitor emerges." " ANNOUNCER:" "Ladies and gentleman, Nikola Tesla!" " (applause)" " NARRATOR:" "A war over the future of electricity is coming, and J.P. Morgan could be the first casualty." "America's explosive change transforms the world's view of the country." "Where many once saw failure, innovation is now leading the nation into a new age." "Railroads, oil, and steel have rebuilt the country, and electricity is creating unimagined advances." "J.P. Morgan's attempt to unseat John D. Rockefeller as the man lighting America has led him to partner with Thomas Edison to form one of the first electric companies, and together, they're electrifying homes throughout New York." " The inventions, the things that literally almost come out of nowhere, require incredible vision and support from leadership, because those are big leaps." "If a leader doesn't take that invention and really embrace it and own it, it won't happen." " NARRATOR:" "Morgan has gone against his father's advice by backing Edison, but he's maintained one of the rules he's learned." " How much competition do you have, Edison?" " Nothing worthy of note." " NARRATOR:" "Edison is ignoring what's potentially the biggest challenge to his design for electricity, and it comes from inside his own lab." "His apprentice, Nikola Tesla." " JILL JONNES:" "Nikola Tesla, from a very young age, was obsessed with electricity." "And when he first meets Thomas Edison, initially he worships him..." " Mr. Edison, sir." " What is it?" " I was wondering if you had chance to look at my AC motor design." " Nobody's interested in your design, Tesla." "Alternating current is not safe, which is why we use direct current." " NARRATOR:" "Tesla has developed a new form of electricity known as "alternating current", or "AC"." "But Edison believes that higher voltage AC is more dangerous than the direct current electric standard he's pioneered." " JILL JONNES:" "I think Edison probably saw Tesla as a junior employee." "I mean, remember." "Edison is world-famous, and Tesla's just one of many very bright young men who work for him, and the fact that he's pushing AC is no big deal to Edison, because Edison sees himself as the person" "who's really solved this problem and made it commercial." " What's this?" " My resignation." " You won't find anybody else to employ you." " I'll set up my own company." " Good luck finding an investor." " NARRATOR:" "Now free to pursue his own ideas," "Tesla begins looking for an investor to back his AC technology." "He finds one in inventor-turned-businessman" "George Westinghouse." " TESLA:" "The magnetic field, when it moves, it carries the motor around." "Motor powers itself." " How far do you think you can take AC?" "I mean, what is its potential?" " TESLA:" "Build one power plant, can supply enough electricity to eastern part of United States." " That's amazing." " NARRATOR:" "Morgan and Edison may have lit up New York, but Westinghouse and Tesla believe alternating current's greater power is more effective..." " Thank you." " NARRATOR: ...and they set out to prove it." " Good luck, Nikola." " Thank you, Mr. Westinghouse." " ANNOUNCER:" "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the new wizard of electricity," "Nikola Tesla!" " (applause)" " My first demonstration is for those amongst you who fear that AC and high voltage will make the world unsafe." " (electricity humming)" " (applause)" " NARRATOR:" "Tesla travels the country, showing AC pulsing through him." "The successful demonstrations have orders for Westinghouse power stations pouring in." " People who understood the science of electricity realized that Tesla was a new giant, and a significant rival." " (applause)" " NARRATOR:" "J.P. Morgan suddenly finds himself in an unfamiliar position." " I thought you didn't have any competition." " None that are worthy of note." " I have just seen the drawings and descriptions of an electrical machine lately patented by" "Mr. Tesla, which will revolutionize the world's electrical business." " AC has a very high voltage, and is lethal." "A young boy touched a straggling wire and was killed instantly." "You, sir." "You have DC running through your home." "None of your family are at risk." " J.P. MORGAN:" "Edison, I see that the electrical industry has two competing systems right now:" "AC and DC." "This world has room for only one of 'em." " NARRATOR:" "J.P. Morgan is staking everything on Thomas Edison." "But as the battle to electrify the nation heats up, the pressure Morgan puts on Edison sends him down a dark path." "America's advancement in the last three decades is staggering." "Railroads have replaced wagon trails to unite the nation, and the country's cities stand tall on steel." "First kerosene transformed the night, and now, electricity is about to light homes from coast to coast." "Only John D. Rockefeller isn't about to let" "J.P.Morgan and Thomas Edison put him out of business." "He's determined to keep kerosene the leader in the light game." "He begins a campaign to stop electricity before it gains traction, though he may underestimate the draw of this magical new power." " (applause)" " J.P. Morgan has more to worry about than Rockefeller." "Morgan's father always told him to avoid competition at all costs." "And now he and Thomas Edison are locked in a heated battle over what will become the dominant form of electricity." "Nikola Tesla has developed a whole new way to transmit electricity, and his technology threatens to destroy everything Morgan and Edison have built." " J.P. MORGAN:" "The electrical industry has two competing systems right now:" "AC and DC." "This world has room for only one of 'em." " NARRATOR:" "If Morgan loses, he risks ruining his reputation, and his name." "Morgan ratchets up the pressure on Edison, telling him to take out the competition in any way he can." " ALAN GREENSPAN:" "J.P.Morgan was, really, an extraordinary character." "He was steely-eyed, determined, very smart, and somebody who had that characteristic" ""I'll take charge"." "And he did." " NARRATOR:" "Feeling the pressure from Morgan," "Edison sets out on a mission to prove his direct current is the safest form of electricity." " The War of the Electric Currents is the dark side of Thomas Edison." "The tactic that Edison took was to persuade people that alternating current was the killer current." "It is a side of Edison we don't normally see." " NARRATOR:" "He begins using Tesla's alternating current in a series of demonstrations, hoping to scare the public about AC's power." " Edison used all sorts of dirty tricks to try to discredit AC." "He killed animals before an audience." " NARRATOR:" "But nothing seems to be slowing the enthusiasm for Tesla's stronger current." "Growing ever more desperate to please Morgan," "Edison is relieved when a letter arrives that could be his opportunity." "A New York state prison has been looking to replace hanging as a means of execution." "Many have come to believe that the medieval method is cruel and inhumane." "Electricity could provide a useful alternative." "The design Edison envisions is simple, yet groundbreaking."