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American Genius is an American documentary series focusing on the lives of inventors and pioneers who have been responsible for major developments in their areas of expertise and helped shape the course of history. Consisting of eight episodes, it was telecast on the National Geographic Channel from 1 June 2015 to 22 June 2015. Through re-enactments, each episode focuses on the lives of two individuals competing with each other in the same field of expertise, illustrating how some of the greatest inventions were made possible by competition between aspirants. Segments of the episodes also consist of interviews by historians and experts in the specific domain under discussion. Apple Inc.'s co-founder Steve Wozniak gave his perspective and thoughts on the episode 'Jobs vs Gates' to several media outlets before the series premiere.
Original Release
06/01/2015 on NGEO
US Release
06/01/2015
Links
Cast
| Name | Character |
|---|
| Jeff Wilburn | Narrator / Self - Narrator / Narrator (voice) |
| Benjamin Loeh | Reporter / Edison Electric Board Member / Job's Staff Member / NASA Scientist |
| Nicholas Augusta | German Rebel Soldier / Immigrant Worker / NASA Scientist / RCA Scientist |
| Johnna Leary | New York City Woman / Curtiss Spectator / IBM Executive |
| Don Meehan | Horace Smith (2015) / Horace Smith |
| Vince Eisenson | Xerox Suit / Young Xerox Suit |
| Will Steckman | U.S. Soldier / Union Soldier |
| Chaz Riddle | Charles Peck / Lab assistant |
| Jeffrey Wells | Lead Scientist / Migrant Worker |
| Paul Wallis | 1880's Western Sharp Shooter / Thug leader |
| # | Title | Air Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jobs vs. Gates | Monday, 01 June 2015 |
| 2 | Wright Brothers vs. Curtiss | Monday, 01 June 2015 |
| 3 | Hearst vs. Pulitzer | Monday, 08 June 2015 |
| 4 | Colt vs. Wesson | Monday, 15 June 2015 |
| 5 | Farnsworth vs. Sarnoff | Monday, 08 June 2015 |
| 6 | Oppenheimer vs Heisenberg | Monday, 22 June 2015 |
| 7 | Space Race | Monday, 15 June 2015 |
| 8 | Edison vs Tesla | Monday, 22 June 2015 |
Directors
Writers
Jim Rapsas, Chelsea Coates, Nicholas Greene, Jordan Rosenblum, Ted Poole, David Schaye
Cast
| Name | Character |
|---|
| Jeff Wilburn | Narrator / Self - Narrator / Narrator (voice) |
| Benjamin Loeh | Reporter / Edison Electric Board Member / Job's Staff Member / NASA Scientist |
| Nicholas Augusta | German Rebel Soldier / Immigrant Worker / NASA Scientist / RCA Scientist |
| Johnna Leary | New York City Woman / Curtiss Spectator / IBM Executive |
| Don Meehan | Horace Smith (2015) / Horace Smith |
| Vince Eisenson | Xerox Suit / Young Xerox Suit |
| Will Steckman | U.S. Soldier / Union Soldier |
| Chaz Riddle | Charles Peck / Lab assistant |
| Jeffrey Wells | Lead Scientist / Migrant Worker |
| Paul Wallis | 1880's Western Sharp Shooter / Thug leader |
| Gary Ayash | Bar Patron / Reporter |
| Chuck Taber | Apple Employee |
| John Hawthorne Smith | Alexei Leonov / Larry Tesler |
| Debbie Hartner | Aristocrat wife |
| Vivian Thompson | Chorus Girl #2, Spy Secretary, Asylum Patient |
| Evan I. Schwartz | Self - Author, The Last Lone Inventor |
| Jamie Hodge | UC Berkeley Student / Woman in the Park |
| Nicholas Chase Applegate | Businessman with Breifcase / Race Official |
| Lawrence Derx | Edison Scientist / Heisenberg Colleague |
| Gene Kelleher | Colt's Gunsmith / Judge |
Producers
| Name | Role |
|---|
| Matt Renner | Executive Producer |
| Tim W. Kelly | Executive Producer |
| Stephen David | Executive Producer |
| Shirley Escott | Executive Producer |
| Alec Michod | Producer |
| Jonathan Grupper | Producer |
| Brian Burstein | Producer |
| Avery Fox | Producer |
| Jonathan Soule | Producer |
| Chelsea Coates | Producer |
| John Corser | Producer |
| Lesley Young | Producer |
| Jeff Howard | Producer |
Editors
Joe Headrick, Tim W. Kelly, Patricia Sunshine, Tyler H. Walk, Jonathan Soule, John Kilgour, Daniel Praid, Emmanuel Nomikos, Keith Reamer
