Willie Boats, a long-time Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association member, will be featured on a new television program featuring John Ratzenberger, called John Ratzenberger’s American Made.
The former “Cheers” actor who played know-it-all Cliff Clavin, hosted “Made in America” on the Travel Channel from 2004 to 2008 and is creating a similar show which will celebrate products made in the United States. Ratzenberger has also been featured in many Pixar feature films, ranging from “Finding Nemo” to “Cars II.”
“Willie Boats is the quintessential American made company,” said Liz Hamilton, executive director of the NSIA. “They are an iconic Oregon company and it’s great news to hear they are featured on this new show. We are very happy for them.”
The show is said to showcase the story behind Willie Boats, including how they hand build some of their popular vessels. The series will also feature other great American companies and inspiring “Made in America” stories.
Ratzenberger is making the series through crowdsourcing site www.fundanything.com and is promoting the show through http://fundanything.com/americanmade. At the site you can donate to make sure the show gets into full production, and also a chance to get some memorabilia from the show.
Willie Boats is a long-time member of the NSIA and Jim Bittle, president of the company, currently serves on the NSIA board.