BY The Associated Press
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Humana Inc. says it was tricked into allowing satirical filmmaker Michael Moore and a camera crew past the lobby of its headquarters tower in downtown Louisville.
Mr. Moore -- perhaps best known for his 1989 documentary Roger and Me, which hounded the chairman of General Motors -- talked his way into the Humana headquarters with a camera crew Dec. 16. Once inside, he "clearly engaged in some theatrics that were intended to upset our employees," said Humana spokesman Greg Donaldson.
"They did in fact lie about who they were and what they wanted to talk about," Mr. Donaldson said.
Mr. Moore couldn't be reached for comment on what sort of film he might be making.
Mr. Moore's crew "indicated a desire to talk about global issues facing the industry," but it began asking questions about a lawsuit involving a Humana policyholder in Florida instead.
"And I think that that does speak to their integrity and credibility," Mr. Donaldson added.
He said Mr. Moore told Humana he was producing a short segment for a pilot TV program that would appear on cable next year.
Pressed for more details about the encounter, including
the nature of the alleged theatrics, Mr. Donaldson said, "I have no desire to talk about this thing in too much detail."
The Humana episode recalls the kind of guerrilla tactics Mr. Moore used in making Roger and Me and The Big One. The two films have gained him notoriety as a crusader against corporate greed.
In Roger and Me, Mr. Moore portrayed the effects of GM's layoff of 30,000 workers in Flint, Mich., and chronicled his failed attempts to get GM chairman Roger Smith to visit Flint to see the economic devastation. GM called the film unfair and said the 30,000 layoffs occurred over 10 years, not all at once.
Last spring, The Big One chronicled Mr. Moore's attempts to interview corporate chiefs during a tour to promote his book, Downsize This!
