You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
-Short Attention Span Theater-
Millionaire Michael Moore: 'Capitalism Did Nothing for Me'...
2009-10-01
(CNSNews.com) -- Documentary film director Michael Moore, who has become a millionaire thanks to the profits from his movies, told CNSNews.com that "capitalism did nothing" for him.
Other than the tens of millions in the bank, the Upper East Side co-op, the jet-set lifestyle ...
CNSNews.com spoke with Moore on the red carpet at the Uptown Theatre in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday night before the premiere of his upcoming documentary, "Capitalism: A Love Story."

CNSNews.com asked: "Critics may say, when they see this movie, Michael Moore has amassed a fortune of over $50 million, some have said and --"

Moore said: "Really? Are you kidding me? Seriously? Wow. Where did it go?"

CNSNews.com then asked Moore: "Critics would say he's [Moore] been very successful under a capitalist system. How would you justify making a movie where you paint capitalism as evil?"

Moore said: "Well, capitalism did nothing for me, starting with my first film."

You know, I had to pretty much beg, borrow and steal," he said. "The system is not set up to help somebody from the working class make a movie like this and get the truth out there."
Technically not a complete lie. His father worked to support his family, and so was a "working man", even if that job was, if I recall correctly, upper management at one of the car manufacturers. The system is set up for a child of the working class to make Star Trek 17 or Home Alone 23 or Transformers: More Kewl Shapes, not vanity flicks by Vice President Daddy's gormless kid. And yet the gormless kid has money thrown at him to make his vanity flicks anyway. Ain't America grand!
"In fact, in Fahrenheit 9/11 if you remember, capitalism, the Disney Corporation, tried to kill that film--tried to make it so that people couldn't see it," said Moore. "My book Stupid White Men--Harper Collins tried to kill that book so that people couldn't see it. It's only because I put the light of day on it and told people what was going on did people get the chance to see these things."
Suuuuure. That's exactly how it happened.
According to Fortune Magazine, Moore's films have grossed over $300 million worldwide. His highest grossing film was "Fahrenheit 9/11," which critiques the Bush administration's handling of the war in Iraq and earned over $200 million worldwide.

Moore reportedly was paid $21 million by Disney for producing, directing and creating the film.

Moore also earned 50 percent of the profits of his 2007 film "Sicko," totaling $25 million plus DVD sales, according to Vanity Fair. The Los Angeles Times reported that Moore would receive all of the profits made from DVD sales of "Sicko," sales of which have been estimated at over $17 million.

"Look, you know, I mean, I make documentary films," said Moore.
He misspoke. What he meant to say was "documentary" films.
"So, clearly, I'm not loaded in the way you described. But I do well, obviously because my films do well."

"So, that means I have an extra responsibility to make sure I spend my time trying to make things better for the people that don't have what I have, right? I mean, everybody should do that," he said.
Why are there no stories about Mr. Moore's charitable ventures, then? By comparison, that bastion of love and goodwill, Mr. Jimmy Carter, is photographed at least once a year, hammer in hand, on one of those Habitat for Humanity projects. Mr. Moore seems to do nothing more than wobble sweatily on the various talk shows, selling his latest opus.
Moore's newest film, "Capitalism: A Love Story" opens in theaters October 2.
Posted by:GolfBravoUSMC

#16  Someone who WAS born in Flint MI and did something useful with his time unlike some...
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2009-10-01 19:32  

#15  Look, you know, I mean, I make documentary films," said Moore. "So, clearly, I'm not loaded in the way you described. But I do well, obviously because my films do well."

Doesn't sound as if he understands capitalism, does it. The only way he could qualify as not loaded is when compared to some of his elitist liberal friends in Hollywood.
Posted by: rjschwarz   2009-10-01 19:16  

#14  A couple of weeks ago he told Howard Stern that he might be worth a "million dollars" if you count his house. No freaking way. His docs are cheaply produced, and have raked in hundreds of millions. His percentage of that would be large. Mel Gibson made $300,000,000 on "Passion of the Christ" alone, given that he financed and produced same. Moore is loaded.

That said, I don't condone the sale of derivatives; those sales bear no similarity to risk paper like commodity options. Capitalism hardly means selling anything that some pigeon might buy. Panderers like Moore aren't the only ones who believe that.
Posted by: Blackbeard Ebbaique4750   2009-10-01 17:15  

#13  Moore as a symptom of the culture of narcissism

Truth about Bowling for Columbine

MOOREWATCH - Watching Michael Moore's every move

— SHOOTING MICHAEL MOORE a film by Kevin Leffler
Posted by: anonymous5089   2009-10-01 16:49  

#12  Yeah, mike is a bona fide phony, from the very beginning : he's not '"working class" (his father was upper management, with golf membership and all), he's not "from Flint" (he's from a neighbouring, wealthier, residential town), and the premise for is first "documentary", "Roger and I" (think that's how it translates back to english)is that he, an humble car assembly line worker-turned moviemaker, couldn't get an interview with the Big boss of GM; turned out that 1) he was an "assembly line worker" only for a very short period of time and had gotten the job only in anticipation to the movie (as he already was an "activist-journalist" that notably had gotten out of Mother-Jones because they were not supportive enuff of the sandinistas - IE oit leftwing enough to his taste), AND, he HAD gotten a full interview from that boss, but chose instead to pretend he got the cold shoulder treatment. His very first movie, and his all career, actually, is built on a deliberate lie.
But then again, even his whole public character is a fabrication, so, why not???
Posted by: anonymous5089   2009-10-01 16:21  

#11  Technically, we are a crony capitalism welfare state ergo the premise of his ignorant movies is all wrong.

I wish he would just move to cuba or something and leave us alone.
The man is just one big fat walking fallacy.
Posted by: newc   2009-10-01 14:51  

#10  His daddy was upper management at one of the US car companies, eh? No wonder American cars back then sucked.
Posted by: Cornsilk Blondie   2009-10-01 14:37  

#9  This is a guy who needs to wake up in a North Korean concentration camp, after telling the other inmates that he "tastes like chicken".
Posted by: Anonymoose   2009-10-01 13:56  

#8  Moore's lake house is assesed at $647,200

His Traverse City riverfront house is on the market for $259,000.
Posted by: Parabellum   2009-10-01 12:57  

#7  "Look, you know, I mean, I make documentary films," said Moore. "So, clearly, I'm not loaded in the way you described. But I do well, obviously because my films do well."

Sad really - he believes his own bullshit.
Posted by: CrazyFool   2009-10-01 12:50  

#6  I can't imagine how big his carbon a$$print must be.
Posted by: BrerRabbit   2009-10-01 12:24  

#5  I don't get it. Isn't making a profit the whole incentive for releasing the movie? Maybe Mr. Moore should make a documentary exposing himself...(sorry for the disturbing mental images that statement created).
Posted by: abu Chuck al Ameriki   2009-10-01 12:17  

#4  I can't believe anyone takes this buffoon seriously. Capitalism is the only reason he's able to do what he does. Which is to say that if it weren't for capitalism, Moore would have to find work doing something else (perhaps as a food taster for his Dear Leader, The 0ne? Sorry, I couldn't resist) other than bash the very system that makes his livelihood possible (and a rather cushy livelihood, at that).

The irony is so blatant that it almost ceases to be ironic at all. What a joke.
Posted by: eltoroverde   2009-10-01 11:30  

#3  By the looks of him, he's given a hefty portion of his money to McDonalds.
Posted by: Woozle Uneter9007   2009-10-01 11:13  

#2  #1 Then give away all your money to the poor and go dig ditches, you fat fuck.
Posted by: DarthVader 2009-10-01 11:02

Well said, Darth. I ask all my liberal friends (who think Moore is right) what he would be doing if it were not for the money he "begs, borrows, etc." to produce his "documentaries". He might actually have to work for a living.
Posted by: WolfDog   2009-10-01 11:12  

#1  Then give away all your money to the poor and go dig ditches, you fat fuck.
Posted by: DarthVader   2009-10-01 11:02  

00:00