Michael Moore

Michael Francis Moore (born April 23, 1954) is an American film director, author and social commentator. He is widely known for his outspoken and critical views of corporations and the Bush administration.

Early life

Michael Moore's home town, Davison, Michigan, is neighbor to Flint, Michigan home to many General Motors' factories, where his mother was a secretary, and both his father and grandfather were employed. His uncle was one of the founders of the United Automobile Workers labor union and was part of the famous sitdown strike.

Related Topics:
Davison, Michigan - Flint, Michigan - General Motors - Factories - United Automobile Workers - Labor union - Sitdown strike

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Moore, an Irish-American, was brought up a Roman Catholic and attended a Diocesan seminary at age 14. He then attended Davison High School, graduating in 1972. That same year, he ran for and won a seat on the Davison school board under a platform based on firing the high school's principal John B McKenna and vice principal Kanje Cohen. By the end of his term both had resigned. Michael Moore is also an Eagle Scout, which is the highest rank awarded by the Boy Scouts in the United States, and an achievement of which he is still proud. For his Eagle Project, he filmed a documentary pointing out various safety hazards and issues within his community.

Related Topics:
Irish-American - Roman Catholic - Seminary - 1972 - Eagle Scout - Boy Scout

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After dropping out of University of Michigan-Flint, at 22 he founded the alternative weekly magazine The Flint Voice (which soon changed its name to The Michigan Voice). In 1986, when Moore became the editor of Mother Jones, a liberal political magazine, he moved to California and the Voice was shut down. After five months at Mother Jones, he was fired when he refused to publish an article by Paul Berman that was mildly critical of the Sandinistas' human rights record. Explaining why he did not publish the article, Moore stated that "(Ronald) Reagan could easily hold it up", saying, "See, even Mother Jones agrees with me" http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/880242/posts. He later sued for wrongful dismissal, seeking $2 million, and settled the case for $58,000, which provided partial funding for his first film project, Roger and Me.

Related Topics:
University of Michigan-Flint - 1986 - ''Mother Jones'' - Paul Berman - Sandinistas' - Roger and Me

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Moore is married to Kathleen Glynn (born April 10, 1958 in Flint). In 1981, the couple gave birth to a daughter named Natalie.

Related Topics:
April 10 - 1958 - 1981

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