Robert Downey, Jr. and Maggie Gyllenhaal

what happens

Many American descend from a dense soups of European ethnicities; we could call them mutts, with ancestral roots across every country in Europe. Actors Robert Downey, Jr. and Maggie Gyllenhaal are textbook examples of Americans with a rich tapestry of European immigrant stories making up their family trees. We delve in to their deep American roots in early colonial communities, and we meet their Eastern European Jewish ancestors, who share almost identical migration stories From the Mayflower to Ellis Island, we journey through centuries of immigration that shaped and built our melting pot nation.

guest cast

Billed for this episode only — the turn people remember an episode for.

• Robert Downey Jr. as Self
• Robert Downey Sr. as Self
• Naomi Foner as Self
• Maggie Gyllenhaal as Self