With both his mother and wife victims of genetic deafness, Alexander Graham Bell made it his mission to find a cure. It was out of this personal struggle that Bell invented the telephone, a revolutionary device that changed the course of history. By allowing people to talk to one another across huge distances, the telephone was instrumental in helping the growing United States stay united.

"Mr. Watson, come here, I want you," was the sentence heard 'round the world, as Alexander Graham Bell spoke for the first time through his incredible new invention, the telephone.

In March 1876, the ability to communicate by speech across vast distances could not have come at a better time. America was expanding exponentially and the telegraph -- with its central stations, low bandwidth, and delivery boys -- was becoming inadequate to serve the needs of a burgeoning industrialized nation. In this fascinating record, discover how Bell's initial interest in telephony stemmed from his desire to find a cure for genetic deafness, and how he might have just been a footnote in history had his lawyer not filed for the patent a mere two hours before his rival Elisha Gray.

Man, Moment, Machine proves that "necessity is the mother of invention" in this captivating look over the great inventor's shoulder as he toils to bring a world-changing technology to a young nation in need.