American Experience: Mr. Miami Beach on AllMovie

Before models roamed the beach and celebrities opened up their own restaurants, Miami Beach was nothing but brush and swampland. It took the ingenuity and entrepreneurship of Indiana's Carl Fisher to turn Miami Beach into a vacationer's paradise. American Experience: Mr. Miami Beach profiles his dream of creating an American Riviera. Though Miami boomed for a time, Fisher's high-speed living eventually caught up with him. A devastating hurricane and the stock market crash of 1929 brought an end to his tropical paradise, his marriage, and his fortune. As a result, he slipped into a life of alcoholism and obscurity until his death in 1939. This program details his rise and fall.