American Genius

Wright Brothers vs. Curtiss (1x2)

Air date: Jun 01, 2015

The race for flight is chronicled as aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright face off against Glenn Curtiss in a bitter rivalry that puts lives at risk. After developing the airplane, the Wright brothers keep the technical details under wraps for years, out of fear of losing control of their invention. Meanwhile, Curtiss boldly goes public with his airplanes and innovations and quickly becomes a popular face of flight. The Wright brothers, now patent holders in control of all powered flight, counter with lawsuits; as they hold fast, they stifle innovation in the very industry they’ve launched. Go inside the rivalry so heated that, when Wilbur dies, Orville blames Curtiss for driving him to exhaustion. Scientist Bill Nye, famed theoretical physicist Michio Kaku and others offer insight into the epic showdown that laid the groundwork for modern aviation.