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A&E Home Video - History Channel - The Epic History of Everyday Things
ASIN: B00AQSMWX4
DVD Release Date: February 26, 2013
Description:
Everything around us has a story to tell. Shoes, cans, string, mirrors; everything we see and touch has an epic tale of how it came to be invented or discovered, and the dramatic moments throughout history at which it played an important role. But few of us know these stories. We go through our days blissfully ignorant of the deadly and dangerous road brave men traveled in order to bring coffee to the world, or the pivotal part beer played in the civilizing of mankind. These stories and many more are brought vividly to life in this two-hour special, which follows one man on a journey through the last day of his life, examining and recounting the epic tales of the everyday items he encounters before his ignorance of their stories leads him to his ultimate doom.
Highlights:
Until 1700s, forks were considered unmanly so only fingers were used
1750 - First factory production of salt
1765 - Industrialization of beer (Note: Sumerians wrote recipe for beer on 4000 BC tablet)
1777 - First funeral home in America
1780 - First American bank formed
1787 - First American alarm clock - only rang at 4am
1790 - Sewing machine invented
1790 - Shoe laces are invented (Note: the earliest pair of shoes date from about 3500 BC)
1797 - U.S. enters spice trade
1810 - Tin Cans were invented to store food (interesting stories of lead contamination)
1846 - Kerosene used for lighting (Seven years later they are used for street lamps)
1848 - Can opened was invented!
1858 - First traffic light; exploded next day and killed policeman
1875 - Electric street lights
1886 - Dishwasher was invented by a socialite
1904 - Safety razor invented (King Gillette)
1917 - The "sneaker" is invented
1926 - SPAM was invented
1928 - Electric razor invented
1946 - The string bikini is invented
1200-1300 - Island of Murano becomes home of fine glassmaking
1291 - Italian guards glass-making secrets
1450 - First completely clear glass developed
1608 - The first glass arrived in U.S.
1900 - Automatic glass-blowing machine invented (early forms of glass making were dangerous and secretive)
Check your local library for a copy or you can find one here:
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