Rust Belt: American Titans

This two-part travelogue featuring exuberant host/guide Megan McCormick visits six cities in America's so-called Rust Belt region—the states surrounding the Great Lakes that hugely contributed to the domestic Industrial Revolution during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Her first stop is Buffalo, NY, once one of the most populous and prosperous cities in the nation thanks to the construction of the Erie Canal and the invention of the grain elevator. With a nod to Cornelius Vanderbilt and his railroad empire, McCormick then proceeds to Pittsburgh, PA, where she sketches the growth of the steel industry and the career of Andrew Carnegie. From there she's off to Akron, OH, where the tire empires of Goodyear and Firestone flourished, and Toledo, where jeeps were mass-produced for military use in World War II, before proceeding to Detroit, where she devotes major segments to Henry Ford and Motown Records before dealing with the decline of the city following the collapse of the American auto industry. The final stop is Milwaukee, where she offers a sketch of the city's history as a port as well as cheerful overviews of the brewing industry and the Harley Davidson motorcycle company. Although the Rust Belt might not be a prime vacation destination, McCormick does identify tourist attractions and architecturally significant structures in each locale while also providing a sketch of the region's role in the nation's development that does not ignore more recent economic difficulties. Recommended. Aud: P. (F. Swietek)