Michael Myer?s alter ego is anything but scary

by Peter Jakey– Managing Editor

Mike Myers of Rogers City has come to expect the extra glances, double takes or remarks. His name is identical with a horror movie character synonymous with Halloween. The movie that made the chalk faced killer Michael Myers famous was set on Halloween night. The original movie, ?Halloween? came out in 1978 and starred a young Jamie Lee Curtis and veteran actor Donald Pleasence. Not many people knew Michael Myer?s name in the first films, because it is mentioned very little. It wasn?t until the fourth installment of the series in 1988, ?Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers? did the connection get made.

?THAT?S WHEN everybody made the reference, everywhere I went,? said Myers. ?If it was at a restaurant, you give them a credit card, or anywhere, a lot of people would make a big deal about it. Other people would look at you funny.? And it doesn?t just happen around trick or treating time. Nope, it goes on all year long. But the famous movie character doesn?t end with the machete-wielding psycho, the actor from the Austin Powers films also shares the same name. ?You tell a lot about someone?s age by the reference,? he said. It will be either, ?are you going to kill me?? or ?Yeah, baby!? from the Austin Powers films. Rogers City?s version of Mike Myers is far different than the relentless killer. Mike is motivated in other ways. He has lived in the community for nine years and just recently became president of the local Kiwanis Club. He?s also involved in youth soccer and wrestling. Myers is friendly and personable.

MYERS PLAYS along with the friendly ribbing, and has all the gear to go out on Halloween night tomorrow as his alter ego. He?s got the knives, a machete and an ax (don?t expect him to leave home with them), a mask and the coveralls. He even has a life-size cut out of the character from a practical joke played on him when he worked at Spectrum Hospital. ?I was the building services director and had an office in one of the wings of the hospital,? said Myers. ?My house keeping staff let in a salesman I h

ad been working with for years. This guy came in and asked them to unlock my office. I walked in that morning, and had stuff in my arms, and here?s the character Michael Myers from the movie starring at me. Of course, my heart stopped and I about fell over.? Don?t ask Mike too many trivia questions about the movies, because it is a waste of time. He?s not seen more than 20 minutes of any of the movies. He has an open invitation from a friend who owns the entire series, but still hasn?t got through one. Last weekend, an opportunity presented itself to watch one, but instead Mike put in Charlie Brown?s Halloween.

?We didn?t want to scare the kids,? said Myers. Mike Myers didn?t want to scare someone around Halloween? Just goes to show you, real life often bares no resemblance of what happens on the silver screen. Especially in the case of Rogers City?s version of Mike Myers.