• March 25, 2005

Caterpillar, the agricultural machinery maker, has gotten its first branded-entertainment initiative with the Discovery Channel through its media agency, Starcom MediaVest Group's StarLink.

The company's star turn will prove that it's more than a maker of earth-moving equipment: it can move people too via its on-road vehicles on the Discovery Channel show "American Chopper."

StarLink brokered a deal with Discovery and the Peoria, Ill.-based company to feature a custom-built Caterpillar Chopper during the program. The "Cat Chopper" episodes will air April 4 and 11 at 10 p.m. EST. Caterpillar will also launch a companion "Cat Chopper Tour" on May 1, with more than 30 already scheduled appearances at Cat dealers across the country. -- D.K.