A&E Biography: Wilbur & Orville Wright - Dreams of Flying

On December 17, 1903, they flew into history. But the years that followed were anything but smooth sailing. Wilbur and Orville Wright collaborated on many things in life. Before they carved their name in history as the inventors of the airplane, they had built a printing press, launched a newspaper and started a successful bicycle-building business.

See rare footage of their early experiments with gliders and the historic first flight. Learn how a fatal crash in 1908 permanently injured Orville, and follow the many years of legal battles that put Wilbur in an early grave. Explore how the pressures of success affected their private lives, and led Orville to sell the company, devoting the rest of his life to trying to secure the brothers' rightful place in history.