American Pie - 1, First Episode

This TV series which attempts to go beyond cliché and stereotype to find real Americans. Presenter Gordon McLaughlan starts at Ellis Island — where late 19th century immigration marked what he calls the beginning of modern America. Interview subjects include a Jesuit priest running a home for street kids in North Bronx, a construction company vice-president of Italian descent, an Ohio auto worker watching on as the rust belt encroaches on industry, and a retired submarine captain who is master of a replica of the Mayflower at Plymouth Rock.

(American Pie) shows a country that, for all its faults and contradictions, has an all persuasive energy and positiveness from which we could learn a lot.

– Director Geoff Steven in The Listener, 27 May 1989, page 62

Key Cast & Crew

Gordon McLauchlan

Presenter

Geoff Steven

Director, Producer

Julienne Stretton

Line Producer - United States, Research

David Coulson

Editor

Craig Perry

Sound

Tony Johnson

Sound