The first episode of American Made is a profile of Howard Schultz, Chairman of Starbucks. According to CNBC’s press release, “The program traces Schultz’s compelling story from his childhood in the poor housing projects of Brooklyn, N.Y. to running the respected worldwide company that operates coffeehouses in the United States and in over 35 countries outside the U.S. In a series of probing interviews, Schultz and Vanderveldt discuss his strategy for the company, the challenges and the philosophy behind the Starbucks’ success.”

I find this to be a very interesting concept. Learn from some of the best business leaders, how they started and grew to become a very powerful person in the business world. Some of the episodes in the future are going to profile Red McCombs (Clear Channel, former owner of Minnesota Vikings), Christie Hefner (Playboy, daughter of Hugh), John Mackey (Whole Foods) and the Maloof Brothers (owners of The Palms Hotel and Casino and the Sacramento Kings). I really hope that this will be a very insightful learning experience for viewers. Not some 20/20 type interview.

I will be watching, will you?

4/24/06: Anybody notice how annoying the background music is in each segment? Sometimes it gets hard to hear the dialogue.