An actor, advocate

by Paul V. Arnold

He used to deliver mail and one-liners as postman Cliff Clavin on the television show “Cheers.” Today, John Ratzenberger delivers a message: save American manufacturing jobs.

The veteran actor is the creator and star of “John Ratzenberger’s Made in America,” a TV series on the Travel Channel. Visiting factories across the country, he spotlights the companies and people that invent and build many of our best-known products. From Campbell Soup, Gibson Guitars and Zippo Lighters to John Deere, Harley-Davidson and Kellogg’s, each episode honors those people who “take pride in their workmanship and are the backbone of our economy,” he says.

Ratzenberger traveled through MRO Today’s neck of the woods recently, visiting Wisconsin manufacturers Kohler and American Champion Aircraft.

At these and other stops in his cross-country journey, Ratzenberger says he quenches his “thirst for knowledge about how American products got started and how they are made.”

That isn’t acting. The son of a factory-working mom, Ratzenberger spent some of his pre-TV years as a woodworker. And, while still starring on “Cheers,” he founded Eco-Pak Industries, a maker of alternative packaging products.

“Coming from a hard-working blue-collar family (in Black Rock, Conn.), I was raised with a real appreciation for inventors and craftsmen, and I feel it’s important to showcase the people who really build this country,” he says. “They get up every morning and pour their hearts into their work. They take pride in their crafts, and the proof is in American brands with longevity.”

By showcasing the history and quality of American manufacturers, Ratzenberger aims to not only entertain viewers but educate them on the importance of keeping industrial jobs in the U.S.

“That is who we are, and we work hard at it,” he says. “The more companies that go overseas, the less likely we will have that philosophy handed down to the next generation.”

He believes industry’s importance is as much cultural as it is economic.

“Everything has a cost, even lower prices,” he says. “There will never be a factory in China that sponsors your kid’s Little League team.”

Like Ratzenberger’s TV series, MRO Today showcases U.S. manufacturing and the power and importance of the American industrial worker. For a very visual example, click here to read “The People’s Choice,” our cover story unveiling the fifth annual MRO All-Pro Team.

Cheers to Ratzenberger, and to all of you.

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