Episode list

The young Levi Strauss leaves Buttenheim in Upper Franconia to realize his dream in legendary America. Together with his sister Fanny, he sets off for New York, where his older half-brothers have made a name for themselves as textile merchants. On the ship, he meets Jacob Davis. The tailor from Riga tells him about the gold rush in California and the unimagined opportunities to make his fortune there.

In San Francisco, the law of the jungle prevails - and that is the boss J. C. Eddy. After an arson attack on his warehouse, textile merchant Levi Strauss also pays protection money. Only the journalist Jude William still dares to take on the gangster. Levi is not only impressed by the courage of his new friend Jude, but also by his trousers made of solid denim - a new type of material that the textile merchant has never seen before.

Levi takes great risks in order to do business with the denim fabric on his own account. His nonconformist confidant Jude puts himself in danger when he writes about Mr. Eddy's crimes and political machinations. Meanwhile, Annie arrives in the gold mining town. There she wants to present the work trousers, which have been made particularly durable using rivets from Levi's office. Annie needs money to buy her husband Jacob out of military service during the civil war - and runs into Mr. Eddy.

Annie, the tailor's wife, is exploited by Mr. Eddy, who sees big business in her husband Jacob's invention. In order to oust the all-powerful "patron", Levi seeks out the tailor, who has been on his mind since the Atlantic crossing. Together they want to patent the sturdy work trousers. In doing so, the Jewish emigrants encounter unexpected resistance, the cause of which they must first find out.